Siobhan’s Story

Siobhan (Age: 35-44)

Singing about my life or finding songs that I can relate to is my way of coping with trauma. 

SINGING PRACTICE

Siobhan is a classically-trained professional singer and composer. She has been singing in choral and theatre settings since her childhood and composes songs about her life experiences. 

SIOBHAN’S STORY

I was diagnosed with epilepsy at 8 years old after having both generalised and focal seizures. … It wasn’t until I studied music at university that my tutors noticed my struggles and I was soon diagnosed with Dyslexia and AuDHD. … I lost my mobility in 2024 to Ehlers Danlos Syndrome. I grew up as a performer doing dance and gymnastics. I just thought the pain in my joints and major hypermobility were due to that. 

I now have to use mobility aids including a wheelchair. 

Siobhan is actively seeking diagnoses of POTS and MCAS.

Has your singing practice or pursuit of singing shifted in any way since your diagnosis/onset of symptoms?

Since the onset of symptoms, Siobhan has had to retrain her body to sing in a wheelchair. As a classically-trained singer, she is learning to adapt what she was taught about posture to seated singing practice. 

Siobhan also writes about her struggle with anxiety when singing in public. She also often finds herself fatigued, and her brain fog is a barrier, stating that, 

Remembering lyrics can be a real pain with dyslexia, but I try to remember one word from each verse and [...] see[ing] the song as a picture helps.

ACCOMMODATIONS THAT HELP SIOBHAN WHILE SINGING

Vocal rest, access to water

SIOBHAN’S ADVICE

For singers: 

Adapt, don't give up! Let yourself feel how you need to feel, then take a deep breath and carry on. 

For professionals working with singers with these conditions: 

Have patience and knowledge about our conditions. 

Our disabilities won’t always be the same for all of us, so individual tailored plans are best.