Louisa & Margaret
Companionship not only benefits our mental health, but in Louisa’s case, it benefits physical health too! Link volunteer Margaret, a retired physiotherapist, has kindly, and very gently supported Louisa in her recovery with shared activities.
Louisa, who lives with her husband Martin, is a devoted wife facing multiple challenges—she battles dementia and is recovering from hip surgery. Her progress in regaining mobility has been sluggish, often contributing to her low spirits. As Louisa's primary caregiver, Martin finds himself consumed by the demands of her care, leaving him little time to indulge in his true passion—his workshop.
Initially, when introduced to volunteer Margaret, Louisa responded with curt, one-word answers to Margaret’s inquiries. However, undeterred by Louisa's initial reserve, Margaret persisted. After about 20 minutes of gentle conversation spanning various topics, Louisa began to open up. She shared stories about her work as a seamstress, and from there, the conversation flowed effortlessly.
Margaret, once a physiotherapist, approached her time with Louisa with a compassionate touch. When we caught up with Margaret most recently, she told us:
“Louisa has mobility issues, often spending all day in her chair and only getting up to go to the toilet and back. I wanted to support her to gain strength for activities. We’re now able to cook together each week and, while I do all the cooking on the stove, Louisa does the bulk of the preparation of vegetables and meat. We then wash up together - I wash and Louisa dries. We chat the whole time and Louisa becomes animated and happy.
If we’ve time, I help Louisa with the mopping. She sits in her wheelchair, I pass the mop and she washes the kitchen floor, and I rinse it for her. The movement is fantastic for her trunk and arms and she’s getting stronger all the time. When the weather is nice, we sit outside and enjoy the garden together too. I know that Louisa really appreciates all that Link does.”
Louisa has attended a couple of the chair yoga courses run through the Link and her mobility is very much improving and her mood is brighter too. Martin is grateful for the bit of respite Margaret’s visits allow him.
* Names changed to protect anonymity
Volunteer and change someone’s life through friendship
