WHEN Inge Smith’s husband, Julian, suffered a major brain injury after a fall downstairs, it changed their lives forever.

Julian suffered a bleed on the brain and was in hospital for more than two months receiving specialist care. Doctors didn’t expect him to survive.

Now Julian, 66, has memory loss and has to be reminded to do everyday tasks such as brushing his teeth. He also had a heart attack late last year.

Inge, 65, is his fulltime carer. “Every morning he asks me, ‘What are you doing today?’ and I’m always reminding him,” she says. “I tried using a planner so he could see what I’m doing and where I am, but it didn’t work as he’d forget what day it was.

“He can’t help it and I understand it must be difficult for him, but it’s also hard for me. He’s not the man he used to be.”

Inge says the hardest thing about being a carer is that she lost her confidence. As well as looking after her husband, she was also the main carer for her late parents and at one stage she was looking after Julian and her father simultaneously.

“If it hadn’t been for the support from Carers’ Resource I don’t know where I would be today,” she says.

Formerly an engineer, Julian previously had Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma cancer and had managed to carry on working throughout his treatment. “I feel like I’m always a carer for someone and I just keep going,” says Inge, a former DWP benefits officer. “Thanks to support from Amnah at Carers’ Resource I’ve got involved with lots of groups and activities - that’s what keeps me going.”

Inge, of Baildon, volunteers at a film club in Shipley, enjoys Reiki and meditation, has joined the U3A and has used a Carers Wellbeing Grant to pay towards a holiday.

This week - Carers Week - the spotlight is on people like Inge who devote their time to caring for a loved one. A key theme is on building carer-friendly communities. Carers’ Resource, which supports 13,000 unpaid carers across the Bradford district, is hosting a range of events reaching out to those looking after someone who is frail, has a disability or illness, or addiction.

Verlie McCann, 67, of East Morton discovered Carers’ Resource when her late mother was diagnosed with dementia in 2013. She visited the Alzheimer’s Society in Shipley and noticed Carers’ Resource was next door. “The support I have had has been through Carers’ Resource activities where both my mother and I could take part and latterly, activities where I can benefit personally,” she says.

Verlie had been a carer for many years, unaware of support on offer. “I’ve been a carer for nearly 30 years for my husband who was diagnosed with depression and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in 1987. But I wasn’t aware I was a ‘carer’ because taking care of Tom was all part of ‘for better or worse’. No-one had ever talked to me about available support or discussed what Tom’s diagnosis would mean on a longterm basis.

“Mental health issues were certainly not discussed, it has taken me a long time to find the answers to questions about Tom’s condition.”

Tom, a member of the Armed Forces for 22 years, had a stroke last year which has affected his mobility. Verlie had worked at a solicitors’ firm in Leeds, and got a law degree through the Open University.

She finds respite from caring at the Carers’ Resource art group in Skipton. “It’s a lifeline; a highlight of my week,” she says. “I would recommend it to carers who’d like to try something different. The group is friendly, welcoming and encouraging. One of our members says she may arrive feeling down but goes away happy.”

Adds Verlie: “I can’ thank Carers’ Resource enough for all the help. I would urge anyone in a caring role to join one of the activities. The art group is relaxing and a way to meet other carers - and to have a little time for you.”

Carers’ Resource provides one-to-one support, information, support groups, employment and training advice, and planning for emergencies.

Chief executive Chris Whiley says: “One of the biggest challenges is that a lot of carers don’t identify with the word ‘carer’. We work with GP surgeries and medical centres to make sure carers are identified early to help ensure they don’t fall through the net. For carers to be supported, so they can care with confidence and stay healthy to do so, there needs to be a much wider recognition and respect for their role, and a greater understanding of challenges they face.”

* To find out more about support for carers, and events taking place for Carers Week, go to carersresource.org