Dementia Researcher Blogs
Dementia Researcher blogs are written and then narrated by the authors. Through this podcast channel, we share the narrations, so you can listen back where ever you get your podcasts, as well as on our website - careers, research and your science. Brought to you by www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk - everything you need, all in one place.
Dr Yvonne Couch - Storytelling in Academia
Dr Yvonne Couch, narrates her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
This blog explores how storytelling strengthens science communication across papers, presentations, and public engagement. Yvonne reflects on lessons from podcasts, conferences, and outreach work to show how understanding your audience can transform how research is shared. Drawing on personal experiences and examples from academia, the blog highlights how strong narrative flow helps researchers connect ideas, engage listeners, and improve interdisciplinary collaboration.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/blog-storytelling-in-academia/
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Dr Emma Law - How We Ensure Safety in Dementia Drug Trials
Dr Emma Law, narrating her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
Clinical trials in dementia rely on carefully designed safeguards to protect participants and ensure treatments are tested responsibly. Emma Law explains how safety is built into every stage of a trial, from ethical recruitment and consent to screening processes, monitoring, and staff training. In this blog Emma highlights how lessons from past trial failures shaped current best practice and emphasises the shared responsibility between researchers, participants, carers, and sponsors to ensure studies run safely while advancing new treatments. ÂFind the original text, and narration here o...
​Rahul Sidhu - My journey to a PhD in neuroscience: the highs & lows
Rahul Sidhu, narrating a new blog he wrote for the Dementia Researcher website.
We're pleased to welcome Rahul as a new regular contributor to the Dementia Researcher blog. In this post Rahul reflects on his route into neuroscience, from early uncertainty and academic setbacks to finding purpose through dementia research. He shares how personal experience, persistence, and discovery in the lab shaped his path to a PhD, alongside honest reflections on confidence, balance, and what comes next.Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk...
Dr Sam Moxon - Never Truly Known, The Reality of Lewy Body Dementia
Dr Sam Moxon, narrates his blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this blog, Sam reflects on the reality of Lewy body dementia through both his research background and his experience caring for his grandfather. He explores why LBD is so difficult to diagnose, how symptoms fluctuate, and how families are often left without clarity or closure. The piece speaks to the emotional weight of uncertainty and the importance of continuing to talk about LBD, not to find neat answers, but to help future families feel less alone.
Find the original text, and narration here on...
Adam Smith - Living alongside Hallucinations
Adam Smith narrates his post from the Dementia Researcher Community.
In this post Adam reflects on conversations with carers who support people experiencing hallucinations, particularly in Lewy body dementia. Drawing on real encounters, he explores the uncertainty, emotional labour, and isolation that often sit beneath everyday care, and why awareness and shared understanding matter.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://communities.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/c/research-chat/living-alongside-hallucinations-8379e5a8-9929-4b34-b5d5-033969892649
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Adam Smith was born in the north...
Ajantha Abey - From Alzheimer’s to Lewy Body Disease - Expanding our Research Horizons
Ajantha Abey narrates his blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this blog Ajantha reflects on why Lewy body disease deserves far greater attention within dementia research. Drawing on their journey from Alzheimer’s focused tau research into synuclein pathology, the blog explores co occurring disease, diagnostic challenges, biomarker advances, and why understanding overlap across conditions is essential for better science and better care.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/blog-alzheimers-to-lewy-body-disease-expanding-our-research-horizons/
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Dr Ajantha Abey is a Postdoctoral Res...
Dr Peter Connelly - Recognising Dementia with Lewy Bodies in Clinical Practice
Dr Peter Connelly narrates his blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this blog Peter explores how dementia with Lewy bodies can present very differently from other dementias, particularly in its early stages. Drawing on clinical experience, he outlines key features including sleep disturbance, hallucinations, movement changes, and fluctuating attention, and explains how careful observation during assessment can support earlier recognition. The piece also reflects on current treatment limitations and highlights opportunities for environmental and non drug interventions to inform future research and care practice.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
<...Rebecca Williams - Why you should Start Writing Blogs
Rebecca Williams, narrates her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
In this blog, Rebecca reflects on nearly three years of blogging during her PhD and how writing regularly changed her confidence, communication skills, and sense of voice as a researcher. She shares early doubts about not being a good writer, the gradual development of her writing process, and the unexpected impact her blogs had on others. As she steps into her postdoctoral career, Rebecca looks back on blogging as one of the most meaningful parts of her PhD and encourages early career researchers to start writing, even...Dr Lindsey Sinclair - What Changing Institution Taught Me
Dr Lindsey Sinclair narrates her blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this blog, Lindsey reflects on what stepping outside a long held academic home taught her about confidence, career identity, and progression. Drawing on her move from Bristol to Southampton after time in Brisbane, she explores the emotional, practical, and professional realities of changing institution, and how the shift helped her see her own expertise more clearly while still recognising that staying put must remain a valid and inclusive career path.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://www.d...
Dr Sam Moxon - Why the Business Side of Dementia Research Matters
Dr Sam Moxon, narrates his blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this blog Sam reflects on his move from academia into running a university spinout and what that shift has taught him about the role of business in dementia research. He explains why funding decisions, investor confidence, and commercial risk shape which ideas progress and which fall away. Using recent industry examples, he explores how failed trials affect not only companies but the wider research ecosystem, and why understanding these pressures matters for everyone working towards better treatments.
Find the original text, and narration here...
Dr Kamar Ameen-Ali - Protecting your Intellectual Property
Dr Kamar Ameen-Ali narrates her blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this blog, Kam shares a personal account of discovering that content from one of her grant applications had been accessed and reused without permission. She explains the emotional and professional impact of the experience, the steps she took to establish what had happened, and the wider issues this raises about intellectual property, copyright, data protection, and trust in academic research. The blog offers practical reflections for researchers on understanding their rights and being more deliberate about how unpublished work is shared.
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Adam Smith - What I thought I would be doing at 18
Adam Smith narrates his blog written for Dementia Researcher.
On UCAS deadline day, Adam reflects on how careers are often imagined as fixed destinations rather than evolving journeys. Drawing on his own experience, he explores how sideways moves, pauses, and apparent detours are usually acts of persistence rather than failure. The blog challenges the myth of linear progress in academia and research, offering reassurance to students and early career researchers who feel out of step with an imagined timeline.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://communities.dementiaresearcher.nihr...
Emily Spencer - Battling Disconnection
Emily Spencer, narrating her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
In this blog, Emily reflects on the quieter strain of doing a PhD while juggling work, parenting, and limited support. She writes openly about feeling overwhelmed, isolated, and out of step with peers, and how those feelings began to shape her confidence. Through a small but meaningful moment of connection with another PhD student, Emily explores how disconnection can deepen pressure, and how shared experiences can soften it.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr...
Dr Tom Russ - Which medical specialty should treat and research dementia?
Dr Tom Russ narrates his blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this blog, Tom reflects on how dementia has traditionally been treated and researched within different medical specialties. Drawing on his experience in old age psychiatry, he considers the strengths and limits of neurology, geriatrics, and psychiatry, and argues that dementia care works best when these disciplines collaborate rather than compete.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/blog-which-medical-specialty-should-treat-and-research-dementia/
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Dr Tom Russ is Reader in Old Age Psychiatry at...
Dr Sam Moxon - Working on the Move
Dr Sam Moxon, narrates his blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this blog, Sam Moxon reflects on the discomfort many people feel when working in public spaces like trains or coffee shops. Drawing on British social norms and his own experience, he challenges the idea that working on the move is performative or attention seeking. Instead, he argues that flexible working can support focus, creativity, and better use of time. The blog encourages readers to let go of worries about how they are perceived and to take ownership of when and where they work.
Find...
Dr Gemma Lace - Pursuing Your Passion: Finding Purpose in Chaos
Gemma Lace, narrates her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
Gemma joins our lineup of regular bloggers, and in this first post Gemma explores the moments that shaped her journey from a first in family student to Associate Dean and dementia researcher. She describes the triggers that guided her choices, from a desire to help others to a commitment to equity, inspiration, mentoring and finding her own path. Through personal stories and reflections on work, family and purpose, she encourages early career researchers to notice what brings them energy and joy and to use those clues to...Rebecca Williams - The Rocky Road to PhD Submission
Rebecca Williams, narrates her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
In this blog, Rebecca Williams reflects on the final stretch toward submitting her PhD thesis and offers a candid account of the pressure, doubt and exhaustion that shape the closing weeks. She shares how expectations about perfection created unnecessary obstacles, how imposter feelings surfaced at the moment she most hoped for clarity, and how the support of others proved essential when her own energy ran low. Her story highlights the value of community, perspective and acceptance during an emotionally intense period that many researchers will recognise.<...
Dr Becky Carlyle - A Scientific Christmas Message of Hope
Dr Becky Carlyle, narrates her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
In this blog Becky reflects on what recent work in molecular neurodegeneration reveals about progress in dementia research. Drawing on developments in early diagnosis, cerebrospinal fluid staging, high throughput proteomics and large scale single cell data, she explains why the past five years have transformed what we can measure and understand. These advances give researchers new ways to define disease stages, identify meaningful sub groups and uncover cell specific vulnerabilities. She describes why this creates genuine momentum for targeted treatments and why the tools needed...
Dr Emma Law -The Cognitive Dementia Rating (CDR) Scale: The future is coming!
Dr Emma Law, narrating her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
Emma reflects on a presentation at the European Alzheimer Disease Consortium that described a fully automated conversational agent to deliver the Cognitive Dementia Rating Scale in clinical trials. She explains how the CDR works, the domains it assesses, and the way scores are used to stage dementia. Emma then weighs the potential benefits of an automated AI version, such as standardisation and reduced subjectivity, against serious concerns about the loss of clinical skill, empathy, and responsiveness to emotion, especially when interviews are distressing for caregivers. She...Dr Peter Connelly - Cognitive Testing
Dr Peter Connelly narrates his blog written for Dementia Researcher.
Cognitive tests are central to dementia assessment, but Peter argues we rely on them far more than we should. He traces the history from early intellectual testing through tools such as CAPE and MMSE to modern complex batteries and laboratory measures supported by artificial intelligence. Across clinic and research, he highlights how scores can be misleading when training is poor, scoring is inconsistent, or guessing alters results, especially when small changes are treated as evidence that treatments work or fail. Throughout, he stresses that cognitive scores often...
Adam Smith - Finding Your First Research Assistant Role
Adam Smith narrates his blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this blog Adam offers clear guidance for people seeking their first research assistant role. It explains how building a visible online presence, following authors whose work you admire, reaching out for short conversations, and engaging with communities can help you stand out. It also covers job alerts, broadening the types of roles you consider, attending webinars and conferences, volunteering for small tasks, and preparing strong applications by matching the person specification.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://communities...
Dr Yvonne Couch - Competition in Science
Dr Yvonne Couch, narrates her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
In this blog, Yvonne examines how competition influences scientific work, using research on tenure, prestige, field evolution, and the pressures created by short funding cycles. She outlines how incentives in academia shape behaviour at every career stage and explains how systems geared toward rapid output and visible productivity can reshape what counts as valuable or creative work.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/blog-competition-in-science/
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Dr Yvonne...
Dr Jodi Watt - This Is Not a Goodbye Post (Except It Is, Sort Of)
Dr Jodi Watt, narrating a new blog they wrote for the Dementia Researcher website.
In Jodi's final post for Dementia Researcher, they share reflections on moving to a new role after years of writing about the realities of academic life. Jodi looks back on the value of open conversations about uncertainty and community, and offers words of encouragement to others navigating job precarity. With honesty and warmth, Jodi closes this chapter while celebrating the generosity and shared humanity that make research worth doing.Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
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Dr Rosie Ashworth - Finding My Path
Dr Rosie Ashworth, narrates her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
In this blog, Rosie reflects on her journey from studying psychology to building a career in dementia research. What began as a plan to pursue clinical psychology shifted dramatically after a transformative placement working with older adults. She shares how that experience opened her eyes to the importance of older adult psychology, research, and collaboration with people with lived experience. Her story highlights how exposure, mentorship, and curiosity can shape unexpected and rewarding career paths in dementia research.Find the original text, and narration here...
Rebecca Williams - Gamifying Dementia Research
Rebecca Williams, narrates her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
In this blog, Rebecca Williams explores how video games could revolutionise dementia research by combining scientific precision with engaging, naturalistic environments. From Sea Hero Quest to experimental ideas born at the Cognitive Computational Neuroscience conference, she reflects on how gaming might enhance data quality and participant experience. However, she cautions that accessibility and intuitive design are essential to ensure these tools benefit everyone, especially older adults.Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/blog-gamifying-dementia-research/
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Marian Montanha - Including Research in Every Dementia Diagnosis
Marian Montanha, narrates her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
In this blog, Marian argues that research should be a standard part of every dementia diagnosis. Drawing on her experience across the care pathway, she highlights how many people miss out on opportunities to take part in research because it is not routinely discussed or offered. She calls for a shift in how healthcare professionals frame the dementia journey, ensuring research is seen not as an afterthought but as an essential option that provides hope, purpose, and the chance to contribute to progress for future generations.<...
Dr Tom Russ - How I Got into Clinical Research: My Career Journey
Dr Tom Russ narrates his blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this guest blog, Tom traces his path into clinical research, crediting the people who guided, inspired, and challenged him along the way. From his early days in psychiatry to leading national dementia research initiatives, he explores the lessons learned from mentors like Professor John Starr and others who shaped his academic and clinical outlook. The piece underscores the importance of supportive working cultures, mentorship, and the balance between independence and guidance in a research career.
Find the original text, and narration here on our...
Dr Lindsey Sinclair - Is kindness key in academic life?
Dr Lindsey Sinclair narrates her blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this blog, Lindsey reflects on the role of kindness in academia, questioning whether success and empathy can coexist. Drawing from personal experience as a psychiatrist and researcher, she shows how kindness, towards oneself and others, builds healthier teams, fosters trust, and strengthens research culture. From small gestures like a smile or a thank you to mentoring and supporting colleagues, her message is clear: kindness is not a weakness but a foundation for effective, ethical, and fulfilling academic life.
Find the original text, and narration h...
Emily Spencer - Time, Work, and a Two-Year-Old
Emily Spencer, narrating her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
In her latest blog, Emily reflects on the daily challenges of combining academic life with motherhood. Balancing the demands of a PhD, a new role, and parenting a spirited toddler, she explores how parenthood shapes her time, focus, and opportunities. Emily offers a candid look at the realities of structure, guilt, and compromise in both home and work life, while acknowledging the quiet determination that keeps her moving forward.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://www.dementiaresearcher...
Aygun Badalova - Life Inside a Dementia Clinical Trial
Aygun Badalova narrates her blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this moving reflection, Aygun Badalova shares her experience working inside a dementia clinical trial at UCL. She explores the human side of research, where every test and data point represents real people, families, and moments of connection. From the challenges of recruitment and paperwork to the deeply emotional encounters with participants and their loved ones, Aygun shows that dementia research is about dignity, relationships, and hope as much as science.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://communities.dementiaresearcher...
Dr Donald Lyall - What Adrian Newey Can Teach Dementia Researchers
Dr Donald Lyall narrates his blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this guest blog, Donald draws lessons from legendary F1 designer Adrian Newey and the Race Against Dementia summit. Reflecting on Newey’s philosophy of learning from failure, teamwork, data integrity, and time for focused thought, Lyall shows how these principles can inform dementia research. By connecting motorsport precision with scientific collaboration, he highlights how structured creativity and belief in the mission can accelerate progress in diagnosis, prevention, and treatment.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://www.dementiaresearcher.ni...
Dr Kamar Ameen-Ali - Making the most of my sabbatical
Dr Kamar Ameen-Ali narrates her blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this blog, Kam reflects on her recent academic sabbatical and what it taught her about the shifting demands of university life. She explores how increasing administrative and teaching duties have transformed the traditional idea of a sabbatical from a period of rest into a vital opportunity to rescue research time. Kamar shares what she achieved, what she learned about productivity and burnout, and how the experience made her rethink what it means to take a break in academia.
Find the original text, and narration...
Dr Yvonne Couch - Running a Conference
Dr Yvonne Couch, narrates her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
In this blog, Yvonne reflects on the real experience of running a scientific conference—from forgotten sponsor needs to malfunctioning microphones and missing PowerPoints. With humour and honesty, she recounts the unpredictable tasks that continue long after the planning ends. Her candid insights capture the chaos, exhaustion, and eventual pride that come with pulling off a successful academic event.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/blog-running-a-conference/
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Bernie McInally - Research and the Lone Worker
Bernie McInally narrates his blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this blog, Bernie reflects on the often-overlooked area of lone worker safety in research. Drawing on 25 years of experience as a Community Psychiatric Nurse and Clinical Studies Officer, he explores the evolution of safety systems — from pegboards and coded texts to modern digital tools. The blog examines the evidence behind “Bring Your Own Device” policies, showing how familiarity, simplicity, and trust can make lone worker procedures safer, more efficient, and better aligned with real-world practice.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
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Denise Grassick-Munro - How carers can help research
Denise Grassick-Munro, narrates her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
Carers’ lived experience provides unique insights that help shape dementia research and ensure studies stay relevant to real life. Denise Grassick-Munro explores how carers contribute through Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE), supporting everything from clinical trials to co-designing resources. Their expertise enhances understanding, communication, and impact, bridging the gap between science and daily care. Carers and researchers working together create more compassionate, effective, and practical research outcomes.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac...Dr Becky Carlyle - From Draft to Dialogue: Fellowship Writing & Interview Tips
Dr Becky Carlyle, narrates her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
In this blog, Becky reflects on her experiences with fellowship applications, offering advice on writing, feedback, interviews, and resilience. She highlights the importance of engaging a broad audience, listening to feedback, and preparing a clear, focused interview presentation. With lessons drawn from both success and rejection, she encourages applicants to seek support, demonstrate independence, and approach the process with persistence.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/blog-fellowship-writing-interview-tips/--
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Rebecca Williams - Uncertainty: Academia’s Drive & Downfall
Rebecca Williams, narrates her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
In this blog, Rebecca Williams reflects on her transition from an internship in government to the uncertain world of academia. She contrasts the stability and structured career path offered by government roles with the instability and unpredictability of academic life. Yet, she reveals how uncertainty fuels her motivation, excites her imagination, and shapes her future. This blog captures the tension between fear and opportunity, offering an honest reflection on how uncertainty both drives and challenges those in research.Find the original text, and narration here...
Dr Jodi Watt - Navigating Digital Fatigue and Techno-Resistance
Dr Jodi Watt, narrating a new blog they wrote for the Dementia Researcher website.
In this blog, Jodi reflects on digital fatigue and techno-resistance in dementia research. She explores both researcher and participant perspectives, highlighting the emotional and practical challenges of constant screen use and emerging technologies such as AI. Jodi shares practical tips for more inclusive practice, from offering alternatives to online participation to valuing human-centred approaches.Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/blog-navigating-digital-fatigue-and-techno-resistance/
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Dr Jodi Watt...
Professor Naaheed Mukadam - Understanding Inequalities in Dementia
Professor Naaheed Mukadam, narrating her blog written for the Dementia Researcher website.
In this blog, Naaheed examines the many inequalities in dementia across age, sex, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, disability, and other factors. She highlights how these inequalities affect prevention, diagnosis, and care, while also noting promising interventions that aim to close these gaps. The piece underscores the urgent need for fairer, more inclusive dementia services and research participation..
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/blog-understanding-inequalities-in-dementia/
#DementiaResearch
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Adam Smith - The Perfect Study Playlist
Adam Smith narrates his blog written for Dementia Researcher.
In this blog Adam explores the link between music and focus, blending science with personal experience to create a reliable study playlist. He explains why lyrics distract, how tempo influences concentration, and the value of structure in building habits. His playlist, built around ambient piano, lo-fi instrumentals, and calming endings, has become a ritual that signals time to work. The blog encourages readers to experiment with sounds that suit their own study style.
Find the original text, and narration here on our website.
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