Wednesday evening....7:45pm....rainy and cool...for as bad as we need the rain it looks like it will washout our Family Day at the Renn Fest....bummer
I haven't written in a couple weeks....I really don't know where to start because there has been so much news and so many wonderful experiences...but just too busy to get it written down. I think I will start with today and go backwards.
My first day doing Internship Hours at the Nursing Home. This is a small Facility, State Funded and a lot of indigent Patients there. Some of the Residents come from the Mental Health Facilities that our State felt the need to close, leaving these people on the street or worse. The Nursing Home was clean as a whistle and I found all the Staff that I interacted with were loving, caring and doing their job, it was a pleasure to Serve there.
So my first Patient was "hard to get along with" or so I was told, but you know the old saying, "Music soothes the savage beast" and so when she refused the Music that the Staff was trying to sell, I stepped in and told her she did not have to talk to me, or be moved to another location, that the music was just for her and no one else. Ok...she smiled and said I could stay for a few minutes. I started to play and her entire body just relaxed and sank into her recliner. She had lost that hard face and it was replaced with a peaceful smile. Occasionally she would say, "that is just beautiful". I played Familiar music for her at a pulse tempo of 70-80 bpm. I heard this "jabber" behind me as I was playing but didn't stop to look and stayed focused on my Patient. When I was finished I turned around to find another Patient, a drifter I call them, in the doorway in a wheelchair and she was "thumbs up" smiling and trying to talk. My first Patient said, "she can't talk no more" to which I replied, no she can't but she knows beautiful music when she hears it. I was invited to come back and play for Patient #1, and down the hallway I went with the drifter following me shouting and giving me thumbs up....totally wonderful.
Next on my list were 2 Palliative Care Patients in the same room. Patient B was outside the room and wanted no music. Patient A is static and does not communicate. I told her I was going to play music for her and she seemed frightened and moved against the wall. I brought in my harp and just played one string at a time. Then I played soft, rolled chords and finally I went into a Lullaby. She relaxed and closed her eyes...she remained that way the entire 30 minutes. About halfway through this, I noticed Patient B quietly slid into her bed and was laying there with her eyes closed also. When I left they were both sleeping like babies......totally peaceful
My next experience was amazing...to say the least. 2 Palliative Patients, Patient B on Oxygen and Patient A in a Recliner, staring at the ceiling. Patient B was asleep so I approached Patient A and told her who I was .....no response.....and that I was going to play Music for her....no response. So I sat down and started to play and I looked at her a few measures into the Tune and she had a smile on her face! So, ok this is a good sign...but then I noticed her foot was moving....even better....but the best was when her Doctor walked into the room and stopped next to me and said, "this is amazing...I have been her Doctor since January and I have NEVER seen her face like this" and as we are looking at her, she tries to speak. Now I have stopped playing because the Doctor is just shocked at the transformation of her Patient. As I stood up, the Patient tried to talk!!! I thought the Doctor was going to faint.....she hugged me and said, "I have goosebumps and this is going in her record, I have never seen anything like this before". So I sat down to play again and I heard Staff behind me but I never turned to look. I later found out the Doctor had gone downstairs and found the Director and brought her up to see for herself. As I was leaving the Dr. told me the Patient's Son was there and he wanted to talk to me. He was so wonderful, he comes every day at noon. He thanked me for my Service and I promised I would be back in 2 weeks. Now in this room, while all this was going on, Patient B was awake off and on. When I was leaving she said she was sorry she couldn't stay awake and I told her that even in her sleep she was hearing the Music and it was perfectly ok to sleep while I played for her...........totally Amazing!!
My final 2 Patients of the day were Palliative. Both Patients were lying down and I came in and introduced myself, asking if they would like some beautiful harp music. Patient B was unable to move, but he shook his head yes...Patient A, on the other hand, sat up and said, "are you dancing with me?" I cracked up and told him no dancing but I would play music for him. He told me he fought in WWII in a terrible battle. He told me he was proud of that. So my first Tune was God Bless America and he sang at the top of his lungs...with a nice voice too! He remembered the words to most of it and he tried to sing all the other tunes I played. He also told me I was Beautiful...gotta love this guy!! Patient B was lying on his side but his eyes were shifting back and forth and I could tell he loved the Music. Before I left I thanked Patient A for his service to our country. He said, "did you remember I served in WWII? wow that is great you remembered and you're welcome". I stopped at Patient B's bedside and asked if he enjoyed the Harp. He shook his head yes and I told him I would be back to play for him........totally gratifying
what a day...what a day
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