Fifa World Tackling Dementia Through Football

7/31/2019 Fifa World Tackling Dementia Through Football

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A sense of hopelessness is what comesacross most when Irene Grey describes her

initial experiences of watching her long-

term partner Walter gradually develop

Alzheimers disease, one of the most

common forms of dementia.

He had a shed out in the garden with

all his tools and he always knew where

everything was, Irene tells FIFA Worldas

Tackling dementia

through footballThe ravaging illness of dementia is fast becoming one of thedeveloped worlds most pressing health concerns. Whilemost cases still remain incurable, a ground-breaking projectin Scotland is using the memory-provoking power offootball to provide some remarkable relief.

By Stephen Sullivan, Glasgow

she recalls the onset of Walters illness.

Then he started coming in and saying

that I had moved these tools. He saw

nothing wrong he couldnt see himself

doing these things. But it was then that

I realised we needed a bit of help. And

you know that your life is never going

to be the same again, no matter how

hard you try.

It is not like a physical injury you can

bandage up, she points out. Its invisible

you cant touch it. Its also stressful for

friends and family, and the challenge is

there seven days a week, 24 hours a day.

Its just so sad.

Unfortunately, Irene and Walters story

is far from rare. As life expectancy has

steadily risen, the incidence of dementia


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has also increased. There are currently 36

million diagnosed sufferers worldwide,

and according to a recent study, only

the discovery of a cure can prevent that

number from swelling to over 115 million

by 2050.The numbers tell only half the story, with

the most common symptoms memory

loss, mood changes, difficulties with

communication and reasoning making

dementia one of the most feared illnesses.

As an affliction that robs its sufferers of

their passions and identities, it can also

have a devastating effect on their loved

ones.

As the many different types of dementia

progress, it can become increasingly

diffi

cult tofind a way through the fog

which clouds the minds of sufferers. But

it is exactly in meeting this challenge that

football has been found to be unexpectedly

effective.

The discovery began back in 2009 when

Michael White, club historian at Falkirk FC,

started taking along some old football

photographs to various local care homes.

White had already been giving talks at the

homes for some time, but had seen that

lecture-style presentations were having

little impact.

Talking to a large group wasnt very

effective, because in a group of around

20 people youd only have maybe two or

three really getting something from it, he

told FIFA World. There were reminiscence

therapy sessions taking place, where the

therapists use a particular subject matter to

try and bring back memories, but most of

those worked better with women, because

they focused on things like clothes and

music. Often I found that the men would

just switch off.

Photographic memories

That all changed when White decided to

take along his photographs, showing some

of the teams and players that those men

had cheered on many years before.

The response was incredible, and it still

amazes me to this day, he recalls. We

recently had an elderly gentleman from

eastern Europe who we really struggled

with at first as he couldnt speak much

English and was very withdrawn. Then we

showed him a picture of Ferenc Pusks and

suddenly his eyes just lit up! It turned out

that he could reel off that entire Hungary

team from one to 11!

We gradually found out that he hadmoved to Ipswich after the Hungarian

uprising, so he also knew everything

about the Ipswich team of that era. You

could see how much he was enjoying and

gaining from going back to those days,

remembering names and other things

about his life around that time. Experiences

like that are extremely gratifying, and we

invariably come away from the session

having enjoyed it every bit as much as

the patient.

With football so closely interwoveninto the wider lives of its enthusiasts,

White found that associated memories

of people, rituals and places would often

come flooding back once a photograph

had sparked initial recognition. It wasnt

a cure, of course, but tapping into lost

memories through the beautiful game was

providing moments of joy, and helping

reconnect sufferers with loved ones and

their own identity.

As news of the projects successes

spread, interest soon grew in expanding

it nationwide. After gaining the backing

of Alzheimer Scotland, the Football

Reminiscence project also received support

from the Scottish Football Association,

who opened up Hampden Parks Scottish

Football Museum to the organisers. There,

the stadiums original turnstiles, as well asrecreated terracing and dressing rooms

complete with the unmistakable scent

of liniment oil stirred yet more long-

forgotten memories.

By this stage, Irene Grey was already one

of the projects most passionate advocates.

Having brought Heart of Midlothian FC

supporter Walter along to the Football

Reminiscence group in Boness more in

hope than in expectation, she found

that her feeling of hopelessness lifted

considerably.He loves his football, but its got to

be the Hearts though! she says with a

smile. Id tried two or three other groups

that hadnt been for him, but Football

Reminiscence has given him something to

talk about, something to think about... a bit

of life back. Hes a different person when

he comes out. Hes animated and hell

talk all the way home, and not necessarily

about football. I know I can leave him there

and that when I come back, hes going to

be in a happy mood. It lightens my day

too.

Reviving footballing memories is a gratifying experience both for the dementia sufferers

and the project organisers.


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Scientific support

As moving as Irenes testimony is, the

academic community alerted to a swell

of similar stories were initially sceptical.

Nonetheless, the sheer weight of anecdotal

evidence convinced Glasgow CaledonianUniversity to launch a year-long study. The

results merely underlined that White had

stumbled upon something spectacular,

with the studys final report concluding

that it left participants more confident,

calmer, more talkative within the group

and, afterwards, more communicative

with their spouses.

Professor Debbie Tolson, one of the

reports co-authors, freely admitted that

it had been an eye-opening experience.

Im actually not a football fan, she toldFIFA World, so I wasnt aware although

I certainly am now of how important

football is in peoples lives. To be honest,

I was astonished. I dont believe anything

until I see the evidence, and what struck me

as amazing was how people who were so

withdrawn would suddenly shine.

Of course, the inevitable question

raised by such successes is: why? What

enables football to stir memories that other

reminiscence therapies leave dormant?

Tolson puts it down to the spirit of

football.

Belonging to that spirit seems to

pervade the psyche of these men, she

says. From a very young age, it enables

them to feel a sense of community and

group identity, and forms part of their

dreams for the future.

International ambitions

Having won over the scientists in Scotland,

the project organisers now want to spread

the word to as many different countries

as possible. In November, they helped set

up a website (www.footballmemories.

org.uk), on which players, celebrities

and regular football fans have been able

to contribute their own special football

memories, with the aim of raising both

funds and awareness for the work of

Football Reminiscence.

It was fantastic for us, both in terms

of attracting volunteers and in generating

interest in what were doing, says White

of the site, which attracted 14,000 unique

visitors in its first couple of months. I

think its also helped bridge a generationgap, because youngsters who might

otherwise not have been interested in

visiting a website about dementia were

hooked in by the stories recounted by

Zindine Zidane or Noel Gallagher, and

then found out more about the project

from there.

White is now working alongside

dementia expert Tony Jameson-Allen

and Chris Wilkins, an entrepreneur with

experience in other charitable and social

enterprises. As part of their mission to

broaden the scope of the original project,

they recently co-founded Sporting

Memories Network a community-interest

venture which now plans to include othersports and combat other mental health

issues, including memory loss, bereavement

and social isolation.

Were all very passionate about it,

Wilkins told FIFA World. Everyone has

seen the benefits it has had with dementia

sufferers in Scotland and theres no doubt

in my mind it can be just as effective

elsewhere. For many of the people

were targeting, theres often a spiral of

Group meetings give participants a chance

to share memories of days gone by.


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depression, so tapping into the persons

passion whether thats football or, in

my case, motor sports can be extremely

powerful in arresting that.

Football will, of course, remain at the

projects heart, and White is currentlyworking on a plan to introduce retro

Top Trumps-style cards, with the aim

of making the reminiscence project even

more interactive. Ideally, well be looking

for about ten players in each position per

club, he explains, and thats something

well be looking to involve supporters and

local newspapers in. Then it will be down

to the patients to make up their own minds

about who was best.

Amid all these innovative and exciting

new plans, White is determined never

to lose sight of the projects roots, nor

the reason why it has generated such

interest. After all, it has been in providing

a glimmer of light, however small, in thegloomy existence of dementia sufferers

that Football Reminiscence has received

such justifiable renown.

Dementia today is something that

nearly everyone is affected by in some

way, but it seems that no one wants to talk

about it, sums up White. Its like cancer

was in the past in that respect.

Anything that can help people suffering

from it is to be welcomed, and theres a

consistency in the medical and scientific

research that confirms we are doing

something worthwhile. We see that

ourselves every single day and, although

this project is never going to be a miracle

cure, its obvious how much pleasure itgives to the men involved and to their

families and carers. As far as Im concerned,

thats a massive achievement in itself.

For more information on the Sporting

Memories Network and Football Memories

website, see the links on our webpage

www.fifa.com/fifaworld.

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Fifa World Tackling Dementia Through Football