It’s a gray, rainy day outside the Westlake Porter Public Library. But, inside, the dark skies are replaced by the warm blues and greens painted across the walls of the library’s children’s section, where parents and children are learning together.
Jerri Thomas of North Olmsted and Lisa Lengen of Westlake both live with Parkinson’s and are here to participate in a nonprofit program called Hear Me Roar Storytime. The program gives Parkinson’s patients an opportunity to read to children to strengthen their vocal cords.
The two women have books in their hands with young children and their parents sitting around them in a semi-circle. The program begins with children roaring in response to a prompt by Hear Me Roar founder and speech language pathologist Esther Verbovszky.
“I want all you guys to sound like lions today. Can you do that?" Verbovsky asks.
She counts off, and Thomas, Lengen and the children roar together before dissolving into laughter.
A music therapist then leads a sing-along call and response.
Regaining control
Hear Me Roar Storytime began to address a common issue Parkinson’s patients face when speaking, Verbovszky said.
“The problem with them is they don't realize that they're not loud enough," she said. "They think that when you ask them to project their voice that they're yelling and screaming and they're not."
Patients can also lose control over their vocal cords due to neurological damage. This is something Thomas said she had experienced personally.
“My voice was dropping off, and I didn't even realize how soft I was talking with people,” she said.
Thomas said the program also helped improve her mental health.
“Just getting out socially makes a real difference," she said. "The minute I get into a group of children I kind of become childlike. It really opens me up.”
Working with children can help with the depression and anxiety that often accompany Parkinson’s, Xin Xin Yu, a movement disorders neurologist at the Cleveland Clinic. said.
“I can just imagine how much joy people might experience during that activity," she said. "That social connection, connecting with a group, I think that all really helps support our patients’ well-being.”
But social activities like Hear Me Roar are just one piece of the puzzle, Yu said. Patients also need medication, speech and physical therapy and mental health counseling.
More patients and children will hopefully begin to participate, Lengen said.
“It’s therapy for us and it’s good for the kids," she said. "It’s just a win for both sides.”
Lengen and Thomas are among four Parkinson’s patients currently being treated at University Hospitals in Avon who are participating in the story time.
In the coming months, Verbovszky said she would like to expand the program by asking Parkinson’s support groups on Cleveland’s West Side to participate.
