Three men broke into Jeremy’s apartment two years ago, assaulted him, set him on fire and left him to die. He survived. With both arms so badly injured that they had to be amputated, Jeremy started the long road to recovery.
Along with basic physical therapy, psychotherapy and medical treatment, Jeremy received music therapy. Eighteen months after his first session, music therapy has helped reconnect him with his love of music. He was very involved in his church choir before his accident, but writing songs, multi-track recording and CD production were all new adventures for him. Thus the process of creating personally meaningful music involved the entire gamut of the music therapy process: creative and personal explorations, music instructions, collaborations, philosophical discussions, and music technology instructions. Jeremy now writes original songs about his life without arms, about how people treat him differently, and how he has significantly changed the way he sees himself. He openly discusses his trials and his newfound meaning in life. Music is central to this new life in that it connects him with that part of himself that is expressive, accomplished, and hopeful.
“When I was young my mother used to tell me to stop touching everything, but I couldn’t…as a child, it was my way of familiarizing myself with the world. Touching is a big part of who I am – or at least who I was before I lost my hands.”
During the process of writing “Still Beautiful,” Jeremy struggled with the realization of his profound losses. For him, touching is more than just gathering information about temperature and textures; it’s connected to who he is as a physical person in the physical world. How was he going to reconnect with the part of himself that he lost? Though music may not provide all the answers, it has given him an outlet to express his emotions and to “touch” people in a different way. In his extraordinary journey, Jeremy has learned to see the beauty in his everyday encounters with strife, success, relationships, and even pain…lessons he shares with us through this song of hope
Trevor Gibbons was a carpenter installing windows on the fourth floor of a new building when he had his first stroke. The confusion and dizziness caused him to lose his balance and fall, resulting in an additional spinal cord injury. Almost a year later after suffering another stroke and undergoing cervical spine surgery, he came to Beth Abraham for sub acute rehabilitation. Harnessed in an immobilizing body brace, Trevor had difficulty talking. His vocal chords had been damaged and he was dealing with tremendous physical and emotional pain. What he could not express verbally about this life-changing situation, found another outlet through the simple melodies of gospel songs.
Encouraged by his music therapist, Trevor began singing and writing his own music. During one improvisation he was ‘sitting at the window watching all the cars go by, wondering why [he felt] so empty inside’, which became the first words of his very first song. He is now in the process of producing his second album, which will contain 10 of his original songs.
About Trevor’s Music…
“Music is my inspiration, my escape from sadness and loneliness and pain. When I start to sing it opens up my mind and I think ‘there’s nothing I can’t do.’” The Song of the Birds was inspired by the birds that would sing every morning outside Trevor’s window. He would wake up unmotivated and tired, but hearing the birds outside brought him hope and inspiration to get up, get out of bed, and do his best to make it through his recovery. He felt like the birds were singing a positive song and was thankful to have made it through another night. This specific song demonstrates Trevor’s way of keeping a positive insight despite his circumstances by letting something as simple as bird chirping serve as an inspiration.
Laura, an Inuit girl, was relocated with her family from their home in a remote area of the Canadian North to seek treatment for her illness. She was hospitalized for several weeks on the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit at SickKids. Laura spoke minimal English, was frightened and somewhat withdrawn. Ruth was asked to help Laura cope with her hospitalization and extended treatment. During the first music therapy session Laura was obviously interested in the instruments, but too shy to sing – even though she loved to sing at home with her family. Upon learning that Dad played the drum, Ruth gave both he and Laura a small hand-held lollipop drum and invited dad to sing. Dad knelt down by the bedside, began a steady beat on the drum and sang songs of their homeland in their native tongue. Soon Laura joined in. Together they sang, laughed and enjoyed making music. Many staff came by to witness the ‘transformation’ of this little girl, whom they knew as so shy and reserved. Laura felt proud of her accomplishments. Ruth offered to videotape their time together to provide happy memories of the hospital stay. As Laura’s condition deteriorated and her treatment intensified it was expected she would be transferred in the Intensive Care Unit. Knowing what was ahead, Ruth made a video tape of Laura at mom’s request. Laura’s condition remained very precarious for several days in the ICU. She was put on a breathing machine and was often unconscious. During this time, Ruth came to visit, and with dad, surrounded Laura with songs of comfort, faith and courage. The family now had the copy of the videotape, reminding them of precious time together and giving them hope that they would once again sing with their daughter. Laura gradually regained strength. A physician commented on how wonderful it was to see Laura begin to play the drum again, ever so weakly, in her ICU bed, even when she was unable or uninterested in doing anything else. Clearly the music therapy served as an important support for Laura and her family during this difficult time. Thankfully Laura made an amazing recovery. Today she is a happy, healthy girl.
