Watch my story on instagram…
My name is Jordan Adams I am 29 years old and for the last 15 years my life has been incredibly difficult.
I say that because I had a fantastic childhood, bought up by two loving parents - my dad Glenn & my mom Geraldine. Alongside my two siblings we had access to every opportunity and experienced fantastic holidays & created great early memories.
But sadly, on the 23rd of June 2010 my mom was formally diagnosed with Frontotemporal Dementia and overnight as a 15 year old I became my mom’s primary carer. I looked after my mom for the next 6 years - her care progressing from stopping her trying to drive when her license had been revoked and she was extremely confused, not knowing who or where she was or recognising us before the last two years of her life where my tasks included taking her to and from the toilet, feeding her, turning her routinely and also cleaning her up once due to incontinence.
At the age of 52 in March 2016 my mom passed away in the front room of our family home and after trying to come to terms with the grief of her illness and passing - we as her 3 children became aware that this dementia had a genetic cause (MAPT variant) and we each had 50% chance of carrying the genetic mutation which causes the FTD which has taken 13 of our relatives. It is this development that left us all with sleepless nights and we each set upon a journey to be genetically tested.
First my sister had good news in spring 2018, that she is not a carrier and has the same chance of inheriting a case of dementia as anyone but she categorically won’t get our familial FTD. Inspired by my sisters bravery I followed in her footsteps and in September 2018, it was confirmed that I am a carrier of the MAPT variation which 100% guarantees I will lose my life to FTD starting to develop symptoms in my 40s.
On that day, I had a choice to make - did I let my genetic circumstances consume me and live no life or do I let it empower me to create change that will positively affect millions of people.
I chose the latter, since 2018 I have dedicated my life to raising awareness of FTD and fundraising towards groundbreaking research. I have done this largely through running challenges, completing a number of marathons including a 7 marathons in 7 days attempt in 2022 - however, after turning my circumstances on its head, our family were dealt another blow. As in February 2023, my brother received his genetic test result, that he too shared the same fate and in the same week myself and my wife had to make a decision to terminate our pregnancy on the basis that the baby was a carrier of the mutation too, one that has broken our hearts.
Following Cian’s result - we were unsure how he would respond.
Until one day in May, I received a text out the blue - which outlined how he wanted to take fundraising and advocacy to the next level. It read somewhat like this;
We would set upon our biggest physical challenge yet - running the entire length of the UK in one month.
We would start creating content on social media in an effort to drum up support.
We would utilise Alzheimer’s Research UKs media connections to try and get some PR around the challenge and our story.
We set ourselves a target to raise £100,000 towards ARUKs efforts #ForACure.
All of this baring in mind, Cian had never ran further than 5km, we had zero followers online and no one believed it was possible.
Yet, we sit here 6 months of from running the entire length of the UK in 31 days. Having raised £320,000 and counting for ARUK, with an audience of over 250,000 people on short form platforms now invested in our journey.
I quit my job in December to take this life of advocacy full time and become a catalyst for change over the next decade as I look to help fund a cure for all types of dementia but this is where I need your help….
I am dedicating my life to advocacy—using endurance challenges, public speaking, and storytelling to raise awareness for dementia, inspire resilience, and push the limits of what’s possible. But building a sustainable career in this space is challenging.
This crowdfunder will allow me to continue my work—running world-record challenges, supporting others affected by dementia, sharing my journey through content and public speaking, and growing a platform that drives real impact. Every contribution helps me take another step forward in this mission, ensuring that those living with dementia and facing adversity are never forgotten.