The first thing you notice about Nell Hawe is her happy energy. It’s an uplifting spirit that’s evident, despite her diagnosis with early onset dementia in February 2020. Nell, 54, from Port Macquarie, NSW, says she’s excited to chat with WHO to educate others about a disease most believe only affects the very elderly. “I had symptoms back in 2016,” she recalls. “So my journey was harrowing because it took four years before I finally got a diagnosis.”
Initially, Nell says her concerns were dismissed. “Doctors were complacent, putting everything I was experiencing down
