[(Title)] Carers of loved ones with dementia supported to navigate 'tiring, isolating' reality.

Organisers of a new support group in regional Victoria hope bringing together the carers of people living with dementia can help them fight off stress and isolation.

维多利亚州一个新志愿团体的组织者想将老年痴呆症患者的护理人员聚集在一起，帮助他们消除压力和孤立感。

Uniting AgeWell's program coordinator, Kerry Egan, said her aged care organisation was overwhelmed with interest from carers since receiving a $10,000 State Trustees Foundation of Australia grant to start up monthly meetings of the group,

该方案的协调员伊根说，她的老年护理机构自从收到澳大利亚基金会1万美元的赠款以来，吸引了很多老年痴呆护理人员的加入。

"A lot of people are out there, not telling people their [family member's] got dementia. They're embarrassed and don't want to believe it themselves," Ms Egan said. "I think they're starting to come forward now after realising that there are some supports."

伊根女士说：“很多人都在外面，没有告诉人们（家庭成员）痴呆了，他们感到尴尬，或是自己也不愿接受这个事实。我认为，有些人在意识到支持就在身边时，会慢慢开始站出来。”

The demand for help is not surprising given dementia is the leading cause of disability in Australians aged 65 years and older.

人们寻求帮助的需求很大，这一点并不令人惊讶，因为痴呆症是65岁及以上澳大利亚人残疾的主要原因。据信有超过40万澳大利亚人患有痴呆症。 

More than 400,000 Australians are believed to be living with dementia. Six-thousand of them live in the Loddon Mallee area that Uniting AgeWell services. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare estimates 90 per cent of people diagnosed with dementia require full-time care, a task usually performed by the person's spouse or adult child.

据澳大利亚卫生和福利研究所估计，90%被诊断患有痴呆症者需要全时护理，这项任务通常由该人的配偶或成年子女完成。

Mrs Watts' husband of 53 years has progressively come to rely on her more in the time since his diagnosis, and she said it was a tiring responsibility.

瓦茨太太53岁的丈夫自从诊断以后，逐渐越来越依赖她，她说这是一种非常累的责任。

"In many cases like my own, you're showering them, dressing them, you're making all their meals — they can't even get a drink for themselves," she said.

“在许多情况下，我帮他洗澡，穿衣服，做饭，他们甚至连自己喝水都做不到。”她说。只有那些照顾痴呆症病人的人才能理解这项任务的艰巨性，而支持小组则是一次在类似情况下与人会面的机会。

Mrs Watts said only people who cared for dementia patients could understand the enormity of the task and the support group was an opportunity to meet people in a similar situation."When you're with people that are going through it, it's nice because you know that you're not alone," she said.

她说：“当你和那些经历过的人一起生活时，你会很高兴，因为你知道你不孤单。”