Looking after a relative with dementia is very challenging! A study by the Alzheimer’s Society highlights Gordon, a 76 year old, man with prostate cancer caring for his wife Sue with dementia. During lockdown Gordon lost the paid carer who visited an hour a day, and Sue no longer can attend day care four days a week. Gordon says, 'The carers used to really help with my stress, giving me some time off to look after my own health. But when lockdown hit, I stopped getting that care and the day centre closed. It was all on me, and I didn’t want Sue sitting in bed all day. 'So, I took it all on - the morning getting up, cooking all the meals, all the washing, the housework. 'Sue’s not able to do anything for herself now, so it was exhausting and I began to feel very depressed. Gordon's situation isn’t unusual. The study found during lockdown family carers had to provide considerably extra support. 95% said extra caring hours negatively impacted their physical or mental health, 69% feeling constantly exhausted, 64% feeling anxious, 49% feeling depressed, and 50% developing problems sleeping. 14% had no time to see a GP about a health problem, more than 10% said they had an injury from caring.