'I am grieving my dad while he's still alive'

A man has completed a walk in honour of his dad, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer's.

Paul Lindsay says he has been "grieving" his dad Richard while he is still alive ever since he started showing symptoms seven years ago.

To honour him, the son - who is from Radcliffe-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire, has completed a 54-day walk on Thursday to raise money in his dad's name.

He walked the length of Great Britain - from Land's End in Cornwall to John O'Groats in Scotland - in the hope to help other families affected by the neurodegenerative disease.

The 50-year-old said he took two months off work to complete the challenge, which began on 21 April.

His efforts have raised £18,000 for the Alzheimer's Society - a charity that carries out vital research into the disease.

Mr Lindsay's father was 70 when he started showing symptoms of Alzheimer's, however his son said it took four years to get the official diagnosis.

Speaking to the BBC while finishing the last stretch of his walk, Mr Lindsay said: "I realised seven years ago that something was happening and I said to my wife, I was feeling a bit weird, not good.

"I was grieving. You grieve for your loved ones before they die - it's a long loss."

Mr Lindsay said he saw his father's health decline during the wait for his diagnosis and hoped his fundraising efforts would go toward ensuring a quicker diagnosis and intervention for others.

Despite the devastating diagnosis, Mr Lindsay said there had been light-hearted moments.

"He started to just get minor memory issues. When he got really poorly, we ended up with socks in the fridge," he said.

Mr Lindsay's father, who is now 78, suffers from "brain fog" and has "limited interaction" with people, but his son says they are still able to enjoy special moments together - including going to Nottingham Forest matches.

He had also been following his son's challenge via a dedicated YouTube channel Mr Lindsay set up.

"My mum said he'd been watching them every night and he knows I'm doing something positive," Mr Lindsay said.

Mr Lindsay said he only had about four days of dry weather throughout his journey and spent much of it camping.

On completing the challenge, he said: "I feel mixed emotions, I've spent a lot of time thinking about all the families affected by dementia and my dad and I'm ready to get back to my family."

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