Imagine how frightening it would be to look down at the swirling patterns on a carpet and instead seeing slithering snakes.

Or think how confusing it must be trying to pick pieces of fruit up from a table only to discover they are actually patterns on the table cloth.

And how would you feel if you couldn’t walk into the shop to get your morning paper because there was a huge black hole in the floor between you and the doorway, but everyone around you said it was just a doormat and floated over the top of it?

Most people think of dementia as a disease that affects memory but it can also alter a person’s perception leading to confusing and sometimes terrifying situations.

The Gravesend and Dartford Messenger’s Charity of the Year for 2017 is Alzheimer’s and Dementia Support Services and to get a better understanding of what it is like for someone living with the diseases, we teamed up with our colleagues at the Kent Messenger in Maidstone to take part in a Dementia Friends training session.

Led by Dementia Friends champion Denise Wilton, the Alzheimer’s Society-inspired session explained the progressive disease, which affects one in 14 people and has overtaken heart disease as Britain’s biggest killer, alters perception and communication as well as memory.

To explain memory loss through dementia, Ms Wilton used the analogy of a bookcase full of books that represent memories, rocking from side to side, with the most recent ones at the top falling out first.

When the newest memory books have gone, older ones, perhaps from a few decades ago, end up at the top of the pile and the person living with dementia can be tricked into thinking they are living in that time. This can explain actions such as placing an electric kettle on a hob, because that is how the person would have made a cup of tea years ago.

Rather than try to force the person to recall recent memories, Ms Wilton said, family and friends should adapt their own behaviour and expectations, perhaps by buying them a stove-top kettle.

Emotions, she explained, are stored in a more sturdy bookcase and can remain in place long after the event that caused the person to feel that way has vanished from their memory.

After the session each participant pledged to become a Dementia Friend and do something to change the way people think, act and talk about dementia by, for example, being more patient with someone they know, volunteering, or spreading the word among family, friends or via social media.

Ms Wilton, 45, began volunteering last October after her father Allen developed the condition and has already led sessions for about 70 people.

She said: “When he was diagnosed it felt like there wasn’t enough information about dementia.

“I wish I knew more about it at the start, now I know how important it is to understand and adapt.

“It’s not about whether he recognises you or remembers seeing you, it is about those moments you see him smile and you see his eyes light up.”

There are more than 1.95m Dementia Friends across the country. To watch videos or find out how to get involved visit dementiafriends.org.uk or call 0300 222 5855. Find out more about Alzheimer’s and Dementia Support Services at www.alz-dem.org or call 01474 533990.

Additional reporting by Claire McWethy