Patient’s healing songs
A St Mark's patient has put his musical talents to good use by recording songs about his experience of living with Inflamatory Bowel Disease (IBD).
Bill Gandey, AKA Callycat, has lived with IBD for forty years, been hospitalised on numerous occasions, and undergone major surgery.
Bill said: “My journey has not been straightforward and fifteen years ago I was told by my local hospital that there was nothing more they could do for me. It was one of the lowest points of my life.
“A fellow IBD patient suggested I ask for a referral to St Mark's. My GP arranged an appointment just a few weeks before one Christmas. By that stage, I was extremely unwell - weak, underweight, and struggling even to stand upright. I remember asking him whether I would be coming back to the hospital after Christmas. The consultant looked at me and said, very calmly: “You are not going home. I'm admitting you now.”
“Within days, I was surrounded by a full multidisciplinary team - surgeons, gastroenterologists, dietitians, nutrition specialists, stoma nurses, and extraordinary ward staff. It was the first time in a long time that I felt there was a clear plan.
“Writing has always been easier for me than speaking. After stoma surgery many years ago, I wrote a poem about how I was feeling. Recently, while clearing out old papers, I found it again and turned it into a song 'Inside Out'. That led to the release of two albums - Beautifully Broken and I Accept the Dark - both shaped by my experience of living with IBD.
“A young woman in Australia contacted me after hearing one of my songs. She told me she had played it to her specialist because it expressed feelings she had never been able to put into words herself. That message meant more to me than she will ever know. If sharing my experience helps even one person feel understood, then something meaningful has come from all of this.
“When people asked if the music was available on CD, I made physical copies. Rather than selling them, I ask for a donation to St Mark's Hospital Foundation.
“It feels like a small way of giving something back to the place that has given me so much.”