Shannen’s musical talents are making a difference to neuro-rehab patients

An actress and singer who turned her back on stardom is now using her skills to help people recovering from brain injuries.

Shannen Turner, 30, was once named best young actress in Kent, and had an agent in London and Dublin after graduating from drama school.

She took the lead role in Irish short film Dead Leaf Moth, as well as appearing in a host of live theatre shows, but when the showbiz world shut down during the coronavirus pandemic, Shannen decided to reassess her priorities.

She ended up retraining as a speech and language therapist and now works at the Kent and Canterbury Hospital as part of the team on the neuro-rehabilitation ward, where she leads a popular music group for patients.

She said: “I always enjoyed being the centre of attention; my mum likes to tell the story of my first Holy Communion when I stood on a chair and started singing.

“Originally, I had no interest in acting but I joined the Meopham Players amateur dramatics group and won the best young actress title in a competition, and the adjudicator said I should consider it as a career.

“I ended up living in Dublin, working as a waitress, and doing auditions all the time, until Covid hit and I moved home.

“After three weeks of panic at not having any auditions, I realised I actually liked it, and I didn’t miss the frequent knock-backs or comments on my appearance.”

Shannen was aware of the work of speech and language therapists (SLTs) after receiving help from one following a car crash when she was 16. Her injuries affected her voice and the SLT was able to work with her to recover her range.

She said: “My biggest fear is being bored and after doing some investigating about the role of an SLT I realised I could never be bored.

“Going back to uni was terrifying and I felt a bit out of my depth but I received so much support from my tutors.

“After doing a module on biomedical science I was fascinated by the brain and how it worked and I knew I wanted a role involving that.

“I love working on the neuro-rehabilitation ward. Every day is different and I am able to work with families as well as patients and it’s wonderful to see people improve every day.”

The ward team had wanted to introduce more groups for the patients so Shannen, who still gigs professionally and has released an album of her songs, volunteered to lead a music group

She said: “The whole team have been fantastic at helping me get it up and running. We started just by playing recorded music and singing along, but then I bought my guitar in and I think that’s what unlocked what the group was meant to be.

“Some patients take a little time to come along to the group but they enjoy listening. It gives people a break, they can get away from their bay and meet other people and develop friendships.

“They are so supportive of each other, and their own unique experiences of life-changing brain injury.

“I feel very lucky to be able to do this. There are tears sometimes but music does that.”

The group is having a real impact on individual patients who respond to the music. One woman was unable to speak and could only make one sound, but she was able to sing a line of a song and the team then used singing as part of her regular therapy and she was soon able to sing words, including a greeting for her husband.

Shannen said: “If she hadn’t come to music group, we might never have found the key to helping her communicate.

“I never imagined I would be able to use my skills for this. It is such a privilege and I absolutely love my job.”

For more information on Shannen’s music, and where you can see her perform, visit https://www.shannenturner.com/