Waking the Spirit: A Musician’s Journey Healing Body, Mind, and Soul

Andrew Schulman; With an Afterword by Marvin A. McMillen, M.D., FACS, MACP

An Oliver Sacks Foundation Best Book of the Year Selection, Finalist for the Books for a Better Life "Best First Book" Award, and a People Magazine Pick in Nonfiction.The astounding story of a critically ill musician who is saved by music and returns to the same hospital to help heal othersAndrew Schulman, a fifty-seven-year-old professional guitarist, had a close brush with death on the night of July 16, 2009. Against the odds-and with the help of music-he survived: a medical miracle.Once fully recovered, Andrew resolved to use his musical gifts to help critically ill patients at Mount Sinai Beth Israel's ICU. In Waking the Spirit, you'll learn the astonishing stories of the people he's met along the way-both patients and doctors-and see the incredible role music can play in a modern hospital setting.Schulman expertly weaves cutting-edge research on neuroscience and medicine, as well as what he's learned as a professional musician, to explore the power of music to heal the body and awaken the spirit.

CONTENTSPrologue1. The Ultimate Reality2. Code Blue3. The Passion of Wendy and Bach4. Awakenings5. Returning6. Goin' Home7. Every thing Vibrates8. Alice Blue Gown9. Better Than a Standing Ovation10. Getting to the Other Side of the Rainbow11. Through the Gate12. Just Don't Kill the Patient13. The Music of Poetry, the Poetry of Music 14. Steppin' Out with My Baby15. The Memory of All That16. Wild HorsesAfterword by Marvin A. McMillen, M.D., FACS, MACPNotesResources I. Music and Medicine Resources by Barbara L. Wheeler, Ph.D., MT-BCResources II. More Resources by Andrew Schulman, GuitaristA Note on the MusicSarabande by Johann Sebastian Bach arrangement by Andrew SchulmanAcknowledgments