Alastair Stewart wasn't particularly forgetful but felt "discombobulated" in the months before his dementia diagnosis.
Alastair Stewart has opened up about the symptoms he suffered before his dementia diagnosis
The 71-year-old newsreader went public with his health news over the weekend revealing he is battling early onset vascular dementia and he's revealed the symptoms presented themselves in strange ways over six to nine months before he went to see a doctor.
Speaking on the 'Camilla Tominey Show' on GB News on Sunday (10.09.23), he explained: "[I felt] a bit discombobulated ...
"I wasn’t becoming forgetful but things like doing your shoelaces properly – that’s how I wear these lovely moccasins now – making sure your tie was straight, remembering that the call time for your programme is four o’clock and not five o’clock, not turning up early or late, and stuff like that."
His GP told him the symptoms could just be down to old age, but Stewart was sent for a scan which revealed he had suffered a number of minor strokes .
The TV veteran explained: "I had a scan and it was like a scene from 'Casualty' or 'Emergency Ward 10', because the results come back and I had indeed had a series of minor strokes that are called infarct strokes.
"Not the big one … it’s like peppershots. The cumulative effect of that was that I had a diagnosis of early onset vascular dementia."
He also had some wise words for anyone who thinks they could be unwell, telling them to listen to the advice of their doctor.
Stewart added: "If you do think that there’s something wrong with you, go and see the GP. Listen to what he or she says. But also do remember that the people you work with and the people you live with and share your life with are the most important people in the entire world. And they are there if you’re lucky enough, as I was, to help you."