Neuro Note 1

“Me Before You”

I decided to do my first neuro-note on the movie and novel, ‘Me Before You”, I had seen this movie last November and was very intrigued with the story and the relationship between the caregiver and client. I will say the movie didn’t have the happiest ending in the world, but still taught valuable lessons that can be related to the field of occupational therapy and the psychological affects that certain tragedies can have on clients and their family members.

The main character of this story (Will Traynor) seems to have the perfect life. He is athletic, smart, funny, and a successful business man living in the UK. Will is between the ages of 25-30 and lives every day to the fullest, rather it be work or recreation. It should be also noted that he is engaged to the women of his dreams, and they are both looking forward to a wonderful future together. One day Will is struck by a motorcycle while getting into a taxi, and the results leave him a quadriplegic. As you might imagine he goes into a deep depression and is constantly feeling sorry for himself. Because of his lack of interest to participate in life, Will, begins to lose close friends and his fiancé. Sadly after 2 years of therapy and countless doctor visits, Will, decides he wants to end his life with assisted suicide, in Will’s mind, if he can’t live life to the fullest then he doesn’t want to live at all. As one can imagine his family is horrified by the news, but ultimately understand that it’s his decision, however they come to an agreement that he must wait at least 6 months before he can go through with it. Eventually his mom hires a second caregiver, for when the Physical Therapist is not assisting Will. Her name is Louisa Clark and is known for being a very bubbly and energetic human being, unknown to Louisa at the time, but Will’s mother is hoping that Louisa can get to Will and influence him in a positive manner so that he will not want to end his life. Although difficult at first Louisa does begin to get through to Will’s heart (in more ways than one), and as a result we begin to see Will beginning to appreciate life again. Sadly, Will does go on to end his life by means of assistive suicide, but does leave Louisa a good amount for her to pursue her dreams. He was forever grateful for the impact she had on his life when nobody else could.

Reflecting on this movie/novel I’m filled with many emotions. Obviously as a future OT, I would never want another human being to end their life, no matter how depressed they might have been. At the same time, it opens my eyes to the kind of emotions clients go through that I could never begin to feel or understand. We love to preach to people to make the best of what life has to offer, even after tragedy, but do we really understand what that client is going through, what the family is going through?  As a future OT this experience makes me want to continue to be a positive influencer, but at the same time it makes me want to real on the inside and real with the client. I’m never going to force a smile on someone, I’ll always be a friend first, and meet the client where they are. It’s not in our job description to be someone’s friend, but sometimes a client just needs to know that they are loved and understood before any rehabilitation progress is to be made, and I could even argue that it’s the most important part of the rehabilitation process. I also found it interesting that Will was also discouraged because his house was not handicap accessible, which goes back to the importance of universal design and the huge impact it can have on a client’s psyche.  

References

 Moyes, J. (2012). Me before you. New York: Pamela Dorman Books.

Me Before You (2016). (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2674426/ (trailer also available here)