This post pulls together into a thread a series of tweets and posts we shared on Twitter and Facebook during Dotty Days, our awareness week, using the hashtag #7factsaboutLewy.

We hope they’ve helped to inform people about Lewy body dementia, the Lewy Body Society and our work.

Day 1 of #7factsaboutLewy

It is thought that 130,000 people in the UK may have Lewy body dementia, around 15-20% of all dementia cases. It can be misdiagnosed as Alzheimer’s disease, which can delay treatment & support for the patient and their carers.

Day 2 of #7factsaboutLewy

Our logo is a dotty L-shape called a ‘Fritz’. The L is for Lewy, the knot is for remembering those we’ve lost, and the spots are symbolic of the Lewy bodies (clumps of protein in the brain), discovered by Dr Friedrich Lewy in 1912.

Day 3 of #7factsaboutLewy

Our awareness week #DottyDays is inspired by our patron, Eastenders star June Brown MBE, aka Dot Cotton. June’s husband Robert Arnold died with Lewy body dementia and she has been a huge support to us over the last few years.

Day 4 of #7factsaboutLewy

Depending on the order in which symptoms appear, a person may be diagnosed with either ‘dementia with Lewy bodies’ or ‘Parkinson’s disease dementia’. They are essentially the same condition. We use ‘Lewy body dementia’ as a catch-all term.

Day 5 of #7factsaboutLewy

Symptoms of Lewy body dementia include hallucinations, sleep disturbances and swings of consciousness, from alert to confused. Memory loss is less common than it is for people with Alzheimer’s disease.

Day 6 of #7factsaboutLewy

Many world experts on Lewy body dementia are based here in the UK, such as our President Prof. Ian McKeith from  Newcastle University. Our equivalent organisation in the US is the Lewy Body Dementia Association and we are part of a global family supporting people with the disease.

Day 7 of #7factsaboutLewy

We’ve funded £1m in research since we started our grants programme. Most of our income comes from funeral donations & fundraising activities by people personally affected by Lewy body dementia, who want to help support research into the disease.

If you’ve been inspired by #DottyDays contact us today for a free fundraising pack and sign up for a run, a walk, or organise an event.

Thank you to all our followers for your support and for sharing #7daysofLewy with your friends.