Turning tragedy into talent

Anna Katheryn Callaway uses a car accident as motivation to pursue her passion for music therapy

When she was in sixth grade, sophomore music therapy major Anna Katheryn Callaway was in a serious car accident that damaged the frontal lobe of her brain.

“It’s really gory, but basically they had to take out part of my brain because it was dead. Something went through my head and damaged it,” Anna Katheryn said.

Danielle Paluga

Anna Katheryn Callaway practices piano as a music therapy major. Anna Katheryn maintains her passion for music after being in a tragic car accident when she was in sixth grade. Callway continued to pursue her piano playing even after her doctor told her she would no longer be able to play after her trauma.

“The thing that got me through it was music,” Anna Katheryn said.

The doctors told Anna Katheryn, who had been playing the piano since first grade, that she would never be able to play again.

But she proved them wrong. About 10 days after she got out of the hospital she began playing the piano again. It was, as she called it, a miracle.

It truly was a miracle because she recovered in her hometown hospital and did not need to go to any specialized treatment centers. She did however have to be home-schooled while her wounds healed.

This whole experience changed her life, but Anna Katheryn emphasizes it was for the better.

“Sometimes disasters can be blessings in disguise. I would not have not had this happen to me because I would have been a totally different person,” Anna Katheryn said.

Her belief in Jesus helped pull her through the tough time as did the support of her family and best friend who would visit her during her recovery time.

Anna Katheryn was with her brothers at the time of the accident and one of them sustained an injury to where his whole forearm was broken. He couldn’t play the piano for a while, but he has fully recovered.

Because her whole family loved music it is no surprise she got started at a young age.

“I started playing the piano because my mom’s best friend played piano at our church and she also gave lessons. I grew to love it,” Anna Katheryn said.

Anna Katheryn firmly believes that she is meant to help people who have been through situations like hers, which explains why she chose music therapy as her major.

In the program she and her fellow students visit various places around Milledgeville that a music therapist might be needed. This includes local schools and Central State Hospital.

Right now Anna Katheryn is working with older men who have mental disabilities. Even if they can’t play instruments, the men can still have fun with music. As Anna Katheryn explains, they can still play fun games and interactive instruments like the drums and maracas.

“I’ve only been working with them this semester, but I know one man who never participated with the students last year has begun to be very active,” Anna Katheryn said. “You can see the change in people the longer you work with them.”

In the future, Anna Katheryn says she wants to work at a place like the Shepherd’s Center in Atlanta, which primarily deals with spinal cord and brain injuries. That is her dream.

Even though many patients recover using their existing music skills some don’t even need to pick up an instrument themselves.

“The therapists might play a song on the guitar to give them a beat to walk to. It distracts from the pain when they are recovering,” Anna Katheryn said.

A high profile example of music therapy in action is the case of congresswoman Gabby Gifford who was recently shot in Arizona. She is currently recovering from her brain injury using various types of therapies. Dr. Sanjay Gupta, a medical correspondent for CNN, went through a therapy program much like hers to see how it worked.

“While it may have looked like simple and fun singing, Megan (the music therapist) was constantly using strategies to externally cue me. I realized through music, she was working on developing my attention, memory and overall executive function,” said Gupta in his article.

Music therapy is all about helping others through a love for music as chair of Department of Music Therapy Chesley Mercado explains.

“Some people want more from music than performing,.Some people have seen how their music has influenced their lives socially, emotionally, and physically. Some people have had a family member touched by the influence of music on behavior.” Mercado said.

Posted by Danielle Paluga on Mar 3 2011. Filed under Features, Lead stories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.