Vancouver Island men facing early-onset dementia pivot to maintain active lives<\/p>\n
Published 6:30 am Tuesday, March 17, 2026<\/p>\n
Entering early retirement in the face of a dementia diagnosis can be daunting at the best of times. <\/p>\n
Team Pivot fills that void for folks in Victoria who want to stay active while dealing with the effects of their condition.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a program that almost developed itself, said facilitator Debra Sheets, a professor emerita with the UVic School of Nursing, who already leads busy and successful Memory Cafe programs. <\/p>\n
While mental and physical aspects are often addressed, social needs are skipped for people facing dementia, which can come with a stigma that spurs isolation. Sheets founded the community-based Memory Cafe that provides continuous social connection, arts and support for people living with dementia and their care partners. Meetings are held in safe, welcoming and engaging environments.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen people have memory loss, they lose some initiative,\u201d Sheets said. \u201cThey stop engaging, along with becoming depressed and anxious, learning new things like singing, writing, learning to drum or paint \u2026 they\u2019ll keep your brain more nimble, they\u2019ll help create new neurons.\u201d <\/p>\n
Team Pivot fills a similar gap in social needs, for what\u2019s frequently a younger demographic. <\/p>\n
Island Health reached out to a handful of folks with early-onset dementia who didn\u2019t have specific programs. There are many for what Sheets calls geriatric dementia, diagnosed later in life. Often age-related, the risk of dementia doubles every year after age 65. <\/p>\n
\u201cBy then you\u2019re often retired and it\u2019s a different part of the life course,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
The new group offers friendship and connection for an especially young group of people living with dementia. Young onset is frequently diagnosed before age 65. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re so young and they\u2019re facing huge changes. They find themselves having to pivot,\u201d Sheets said. \u201cIt\u2019s quite a change for them and their families, for their partners.\u201d <\/p>\n
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