Rahul Sidhu - My Grandad’s Story: Why I Became a Neuroscientist

Dementia Researcher, with a blogger narrating.

My grandad's story.

Why I became a neuroscientist.

For most of my career so far, I have spoken about dementia through the lens of research.

I have discussed experiments, scientific discoveries, research papers, and spent much of my time thinking about dementia as a scientific challenge.

However...

Before I became a researcher and studied neuroscience, dementia was something I experienced every day at home with my late grandad.

As I've progressed in dementia research, I've realised how important lived experiences are, as they shape the questions we ask, the passion we bring to our work, and our understanding of the people behind the disease.

Therefore, I've decided to use this platform to share my family's experience of dementia, for three main reasons.

I want to remind researchers why this work matters and that behind every experiment, every paper and every research project are real people and families whose lives have been changed by dementia forever.

I want to raise awareness of the realities of dementia and the stigma that still exists in many communities, including the South Asian community like my own.

I want to honour my grandfather and ensure that his legacy is remembered for far more than the dementia he developed later in life.

I hope that sharing my family's experience will encourage other families to seek support sooner, while reminding and inspiring fellow researchers of the purpose behind the years we dedicate in the lab.

My grandad was one of the most influential people in my life and he lived with vascular dementia during my formative years.

I was a teenager when his symptoms became more severe until he sadly passed away in 2019.

Watching somebody you love slowly change because of dementia, knowing there is no cure, is like a continuous slow drip of sadness and an experience that stays with you.

I can now see that my experiences with my grandad have shaped almost every aspect of my journey into dementia research, even if I did not fully realise it at the time.

Dementia Researcher, with a blogger narrating.

My grandad's story.

Why I became a neuroscientist.

For most of my career so far, I have spoken about dementia through the lens of research.

I have discussed experiments, scientific discoveries, research papers, and spent much of my time thinking about dementia as a scientific challenge.

However...

Before I became a researcher and studied neuroscience, dementia was something I experienced every day at home with my late grandad.

As I've progressed in dementia research, I've realised how important lived experiences are, as they shape the questions we ask, the passion we bring to our work, and our understanding of the people behind the disease.

Therefore, I've decided to use this platform to share my family's experience of dementia, for three main reasons.

I want to remind researchers why this work matters and that behind every experiment, every paper and every research project are real people and families whose lives have been changed by dementia forever.

I want to raise awareness of the realities of dementia and the stigma that still exists in many communities, including the South Asian community like my own.

I want to honour my grandfather and ensure that his legacy is remembered for far more than the dementia he developed later in life.

I hope that sharing my family's experience will encourage other families to seek support sooner, while reminding and inspiring fellow researchers of the purpose behind the years we dedicate in the lab.

My grandad was one of the most influential people in my life and he lived with vascular dementia during my formative years.

I was a teenager when his symptoms became more severe until he sadly passed away in 2019.

Watching somebody you love slowly change because of dementia, knowing there is no cure, is like a continuous slow drip of sadness and an experience that stays with you.

I can now see that my experiences with my grandad have shaped almost every aspect of my journey into dementia research, even if I did not fully realise it at the time.