Mom moved to the rhythm…

Hello everyone,

Here I’d like to share another anecdote of a family’s experience with music therapy and end of life in Vancouver. While this story speaks of music therapists tending to patients in a palliative care unit of a hospital, I feel the spirit is the same, and again, I have encountered similar situations at Valley Hospice. Funnily enough, Rita MacNeil played an important part in this patients’ end of life experience, and her music is certainly requested often at Valley Hospice, being the Nova Scotian treasure she is.

Working as a music therapist, sometimes the things we observe may not appear significant to the outside eye, but engaging a person in even the tiniest amount of pain-free movement when they previously had been immobile is huge. When a person’s movement or speech is limited, these small music-supported motions can make room for brief but important moments of self-expression.

Please enjoy.
Sarah

“I never knew music therapy existed”.

The experience of being in a busy ICU with no windows was so hard. I came home from visits feeling exhausted each day. Moving to the Palliative Care Unit was the best thing for Mom and our family. There’s a calmness there, especially compared to the commotion of the ICU. The whole floor and all the palliative staff and their attitudes are part of this. While I was still sad seeing my mom’s fate, I felt more relief after visiting her in palliative care.

Josh (music therapist) and his assistant were there the first time I visited Mom there, and I was so amazed at the experience of music therapy. I never knew something like that existed.

A Rita MacNeil fan

My mother had many CDs throughout her life. I never liked Rita MacNeil as a kid but I could remember seeing her picture on the front of Mom’s CDs, so I suggested Josh could play some of her songs. Mom lived for Rita! Josh instantly knew who I was talking about and played some of Rita’s songs. He also played a Christmas song and some Elvis. The music was melodic and gentle. I was so impressed he could play anything you asked for, and if he didn’t know the song, he would learn how to play it.

Mom moved to the rhythm

It’s wild – Mom played the steelpan drums when she was younger, and actually played them in palliative care. I only learned this from her while she was staying on the unit. When Josh was there, she was engaged and knew what was going on. Her feet moved to the rhythm.

My mom went from someone who didn’t move in ICU to moving to music on the Palliative Care Unit. She couldn’t clap her hands, but she tapped her chest to say thank you for the music. It is really touching. When Josh is playing everything goes away and you’re just in that moment. It really helps you relax, and I can’t believe the warmth that my mom and family felt.

(www.providencehealthcare.org, 2022)