Tuesday, January 22, 2013 - Music Therapy Begins

Marc had a very busy and productive day. 

He got a wheeled walker that he can use, when accompanied by a nurse, to go back and forth to the bathroom and to go to physiotherapy.  That’s it for now until Catherine is confident that he is able to safely use the walker with less supervision.   

In physiotherapy Marc worked on balance and coordination. It looked like he was practicing his dance moves.

Give him a few more weeks and we can sign him up for Dancing with the Stars. 

To go along with the remedial dance lessons, today was Marc’s first day of music therapy.  This was a generous gift from our friend Susan.  Her son’s girlfriend, Rebecca Wright, is a music therapist who currently works at Baycrest in Toronto.  Susan thought that music therapy would be a wonderful addition to Marc’s rehabilitation. 

Unfortunately, RVH doesn’t offer music therapy at this time, so we had to get permission for Rebecca to work with Marc.  I hope that the benefits of the music therapy will be obvious enough in Marc to at least get RVH considering it as part of their rehabilitation programming. 

Rebecca lugged in a djembe drum, a guitar and a bag full of instruments.  For one part of the session, she had Marc follow her pattern on the drum.  This helps with his cognitive skills and coordination.   

Everything that Rebecca did with Marc during the session really supported what he’s been working in OT and physio, as well as helping with relaxation. 

The best part is that Marc thoroughly enjoyed the entire session and is really looking forward to next week. 

We can’t believe what a thoughtful gift this was can’t thank Susan enough for providing this therapy.  Rebecca is a sweetheart and a welcome member of the team. I have no doubt that it will make a big difference to Marc’s healing.