Client Stories and Profiles

The following stories are told from clients who have benefited from music therapy. Please click on the title below to read their personal stories:

Client Profile: Kevin and Patricia Heenan

Patricia Heenan's book, Kevin and Me: Tourette Syndrome and the Magic Power of Music Therapy, is a heartfelt memoir of a single mother who struggled with her son's Tourette syndrome and discovered music therapy as a magical influence on him and their relationship. Her courageous story covers Kevin's life from age five when his TS tics first appeared to his late twenties when he transformed from a violent man into a peaceful person. Her story conveys a powerful healing process for her as the mother of a Touretter, in that she expresses the full gamut of emotions f rom fear to despair to hope to joy.

The author relates her personal account of music therapy with Kevin, a person with Tourette syndrome, developmental and learning disabilities, ADHD, and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Kevin and Me will inspire parents, psychologists, teachers, and medical professionals to explore music therapy as a medium for reaching children and adults with Tourette syndrome. Music therapy services are available in private centers and school districts through special education.

Review :

"Patricia Heenan's remarkable book shows how much music therapy benefits her son with Tourette syndrome, ADHD, obsessive compulsive disorder, and learning disabilities. This is one treatment approach that is clearly free of 'side effects.'" -- David E. Comings, M.D. ADHD Clinic, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, California

Visit her website at www.touretteandmusic.com or order her book via e-mail: patricia@touretteandmusic.com

Client Profile: Chris Stepan

CHRIS STEPAN - BEFORE THE ACCIDENT At the age of 17, Chris Stepan was a popular, good-looking athlete who loved playing high school football and spending time with his friends. Chris was the jovial type of young man who exhibited a tough physique but really had a very genuine caring and loving heart for others. Chris and his brother Darren and parents had an especially close relationship with each other so the impact of the car accident greatly affected the entire family unit. The night of Saturday, April 13, 1996, would never be forgotten by any of them.

APRIL 13, 1996 - THE ACCIDENT I am Chris's Mother and I want to help others to learn from our experience and to hopefully give some hope to those who are in despair. The phone call that we received about the car accident was the Real Nightmare that every parent thinks about on a Saturday night when they are waiting up for their child to get home. There had been three of Chris' classmates who had died in car accidents in the months preceding his accident. It seemed as though the students at the high school were jinxed in some way. So when we received the phone call I immediately thought , "Oh no, its happened to us." "It can't be real." For so long I thought it was really just a bad dream and that I would be waking up and everything would be just as before. The steps of grieving have been very arduous for each of us to go through and we are all at different steps in the process of acceptance of this life changing experience. I sincerely believe that God uses the lemons in our life to make lemonade for each of us, if we will just open our eyes and see the graciousness of our Lord even in the midst of adversity!

When Chris left his home on Saturday night, April 13 he went over to a friend's house. They ended up at a high school unchaperoned party and Chris consumed some alcoholic beverages and then decided to drive himself home at about ll:30 p.m. Unfortunately, he never made it home that night. He missed a sharp turn in the road and ended up hitting a rock embankment on the side of the road. The man who first arrived at the scene of the accident later informed us that he had been the first at the scene many times before but this was the first time that the person survived. In fact he said that when he ran up to the car and he saw Chris, he stopped to say a prayer for our son because he saw how seriously hurt he looked at first sight. Two of Chris' friends then showed up and one of them contacted us at home. When we were told Chris had been in a car accident we calmly asked "Is he o.k?" and the voice on the other end of the phone simply said. "Well, he has a pulse!" At that point the phone was slammed down onto the receiver and I just went running through the house screaming, "Chris has had an accident". I immediately fell to my knees and prayed repeatedly from then on till we arrived at the emergency room, "Oh, please Lord, let him live."

CHRIS STEPAN - AFTER THE ACCIDENT Chris had sustained a very severe traumatic brain injury, crushed his left elbow and had open lacerations on his forehead and left knee. The doctors were concerned when a week later he had still not awakened from his coma. We were then told that he had a diffuse axonal injury to his brain and that there was no surgery that could be done to "fix" the axons that had been stretched and/or severed that connect the brain to the rest of the body. In layman's terms he explained that the brain was not able to send appropriate signals to his body. So, then we continually prayed, "Oh, please Lord, let Chris wake up." After about 30 days, Chris began to barely open his eyes. It's not like on TV where a person just sits up and starts to talk, walk and eat again. For example, Chris had to relearn how to have his eyeballs move and track people walking across the room. Eating, talking and walking didn't happen until many months after the accident. We were just so thankful when he was able to identify objects and speak one word sentences again. Any little thing that Chris has been able to relearn or accomplish over the last 5 years has been celebrated with joy and renewed happiness! Chris has had many therapists, doctors, counselors, etc., and their remarks have been that he is a fighter and a hard worker. His determination has helped him immensely to come as far in his recovery as he has to date.

THE POSITIVE IMPACT OF MUSIC THERAPY It was decided this year that we wanted to try music therapy as an alternative way to help his speech, gait, tremor and behavioral problems. After being in traditional therapy for about 5 years, the music therapy has been a "breath of fresh air" for Chris. He looks forward to each therapy session and seems to be making some remarkable changes in his speech, gait and behavior. Hope Young who is the founder of the Center for Music Therapy in Austin, Texas just reverberates with a passion and enthusiasm for what music therapy can do for people of all ages. She and Amy Thompson who both work with Chris are abounding with energy, interest and expertise in helping our son with his problems. They are professionals who understand the impact of the injury to his brain and are using music as a re-entrainment for the brain to learn new ways of dealing with these disabilities. The music therapy sessions are helping to make his voice stronger and louder as they sing songs and do breath support exercises with music. His walking has become more rhythmic and faster as he practices walking to the rhythm of music. His undesirable behavior has also been able to be addressed through the music therapy sessions. Music seems to connect him with the therapist in ways that traditional therapy has not been able to reach him emotionally. We are very pleased with the work that they have done with Chris.

Our frustration is that the health insurance company continues to deny the claims we have sent them for the sessions and every appeal to date has also been denied. The insurance company seems to be more interested in "saving" insurance money than spending it on a music therapist who is really helping to make significant changes in his quality of life. Realistically, it seems they would be more interested in what the outcome of the therapy provides to the client rather than the title of the therapist who helps to provide the desired outcome.

CHRIS STEPAN - LIFE TODAY The most debilitating problem that Chris lives with today is a very severe cerebellar outflow tremor which was finally diagnosed by the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota in l997. This kind of tremor seems to be rare for people with brain injury. The tremor had a delayed onset from the traumatic brain injury of about 7 months and has affected Chris' limbs and now even his head. The deep brain stimulation surgery that they perform on essential tremor and Parkinsons disease tremors is not FDA approved for the type of tremor that Chris has and they are unsure if it would even be effective for a tremor caused by injury to the brain. It is a risky surgery that could cause paralysis, death, or increased speech, cognitive, physical, vision, hearing, etc., disabilities. After traveling to various movement disorder clinics across the country and getting second and third opinions, it has been decided to wait and see what other options could become available to help with this tremor

The tremors make it laborious for him to do daily tasks like washing his hair or even dressing. He is not able to feed himself, write with a pen or even carry a tray of food. So now each day is a functionally difficult challenge for the young man who just 5 years ago was a strong, muscular football player. The frustration of not being able to do things for himself sometimes affects his emotional stability. One of the most common unwanted behaviors from frontal lobe brain damage is impulsiveness and when you add that to frustration, you can have a difficult behavioral problem to live with. Chris's old friends that rallied around him in the first days and weeks at the hospital, have gone on with their lives. It is difficult for them to understand the "new Chris Stepan". He deeply longs for their companionship and interest but that is a very poignant loss he is having to experience. He thinks about the past and yearns for "his old life" but is just not able to "do, think and be" the person he used to be because of the physical, cognitive, speech, emotional, and psychological disabilities that he is now living with each day. So now our prayer is "Oh God, please give Chris hope and help him and us to "accept" his new life". His life was spared on April 13, 1996, and we believe that there is some supreme, divine purpose that God has planned for Chris Stepan. We look forward with great anticipation and trust in the Lord's will being fulfilled! May the Lord Bless each of you in your life journey!

Client Profile: Scott Mickan

Scott D. Mickan was born October 3, 1984, prematurely at 28 weeks, weighing 2 lbs. 12 oz and diagnosed with Pierre Robin Syndrome, cleft palate, Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD heart defect) and respiratory problems. Nurses nicknamed him "Scooter" because he was so active, despite his health impairments and medial issues. A few months later, Scott needed an emergency surgery to correct a "mislodged gastrostomy tube" that a doctor had reinserted a few hours prior. During the surgery, Scott went into cardiopulmonary arrest and was successfully resuscitated. It was 2 years later when Scott was diagnosed with cerebral palsy. Scott has had 15 surgeries (some being open heart surgery, gastrostomy (twice), tracheotomy, cleft palate surgeries, Nissan fundiplication, bilateral hip surgery, appendectomy). Scott was introduced to music therapy at an early age and as his strenghth improved, he was able to participate. Music therapy has soothed his discomfort and pain during recovery from so many surgeries. He now has such an enthusiastic heart and soul for music and is making remarkable gains in occupational and physical therapy. His love of music therapy is evident the minute his music therapist, Stefanie, walks in the his home. He is ready to sing and dance.

Scott's music therapy has increased his communication skills, range of motion, self-esteem, self expression, and relaxation. Scott's music therapy has improved his fine and gross motor functioning and interpersonal skills.

Thanks to all of you at Center for Music Therapy ...............especially Stefanie and Hope!!!!!!

Client Profile: Nova Longest - Age 84 June 2001

When first introduced to Music Therapy, I was skeptical about the ability of this program to help my Parkinson's symptoms. However after four weeks of therapy, my family and I noticed I was "freezing" less (stopping and not being able to move), stumbling less, standing straighter, and talking clearer and stronger.

I was able to resume my daily walks without the use of a cane. My family and friends have stated that they have noticed a marked improvement not only in my motor abilities, but also in my attitude and outlook on life. I would recommend Music Therapy to anyone having ambulatory problems with Parkinson's disease. I found the staff to be helpful, friendly, informative and knowledgeable about their work.