A former opera singer who was paralysed from the neck down has been able to perform again following an extensive rehabilitation programme comprising “therapy, perseverance and hope”.
Naomi Hyamson was a sub-editor at The Times newspaper for 20 years and a semi-professional opera and cabaret singer, but became tetraplegic after developing the degenerative condition cervical myelopathy, which left her barely able to speak.
Having become a resident of British Home, a specialist neuro-disability residential centre in London, her potential for recovery was spotted after she moved a finger in May 2018 while still in hospital.
A tailored rehabilitation programme was then devised to restore nerve pathways and build strength in her lungs and core muscles that had degenerated when she was paralysed.
Naomi went from total paralysis that lasted many months – during which she had two potentially fatal chest infections, caused by her tetraplegia – to gradually regaining the ability to perform a variety of tasks, such as being able to feed herself, move her table, operate a smartphone and iPad, and get into her power-wheelchair with extensive independence.
In 2020, she edited the visitors’ guide to a highly successful exhibition curated by a friend, and the captions for the exhibits, and also edited the press release for the exhibition.
British Home’s summer party
And in a hugely significant achievement for Naomi, she developed enough strength in her lungs and core muscles to be able to begin singing again, even being able to take to the stage at British Home’s Summer Party to perform Gershwin’s Summertime, and for an encore, the folk song Blow the Wind Southerly.
She now practises for one hour a day and has even begun giving singing lessons to the other residents at the Home.
“One of the most rewarding aspects of providing rehabilitation therapy is that we are able to restore and preserve people’s identities,” says Paul Perkin, CEO of British Home.
“We worked with Naomi to strengthen her core muscles and lungs and it’s amazing to see her independence grow over the last few years.
“Naomi’s commitment to recovery, with the help of the therapy team, allowed her to become more independent, and after a long journey, she was able to sing again, which was really special to experience at our annual British Home Summer party.
“Naomi’s love of music and singing has been felt by everyone at the home thanks to the singing lessons that she introduced in June, and it’s amazing that she has been able to help other residents express themselves creatively.”
Naomi began singing from an early age, having grown up in a family passionate about music, but only began classical voice training at the comparatively late age of 26.
By the time she reached the standard at which she could have been accepted by a music college which might have led to a career as a singer, she had two other degrees and an established career in journalism.
Instead, she took a semi-professional path, which included a tour of Wales in Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro.
A mezzo-contralto, she was in great demand to give concerts for Jewish community organisations, especially the Association of Jewish Refugees. Naomi studied with the then Streatham-based American soprano Arlene Randazzo and performed with her company Randazzo Opera including at The Rookery in Streatham.
British Home’s garden party
Her most recent teacher was Kathryn Harries, a soprano who went on to be director of the National Opera Studio.
However, Naomi suffered from degeneration in her spine, which in 2017 developed into severe cervical myelopathy, which caused compression of the spinal cord in her neck, and therefore complete paralysis from the neck down.
At the beginning of 2018, Naomi had an operation at The Royal London Hospital to relieve the compression on her spinal cord. She was in hospital for six months before the discharge team recommended British Home.
The British Home team developed a tailored therapy plan with physiotherapy to restore nerve pathways and build strength in the muscles that had degenerated due to paralysis.
A lot of focus was placed on developing Naomi’s core and leg muscles. Over time, Naomi became stronger and can now feed herself, type herself and, after three months of intensive rehabilitation at the London Spinal Cord Injury Centre in Stanmore, transfer in and out of a power-wheelchair using a standing frame.
