August 15, 2024
Carrie Morrison paints with help from nursing student/caregiver Aba Prah at her home in Lethbridge. The therapeutic recreation program at AHS sparked a creative passion for the quadriplegic patient. Photo by Leah Hennel.
Morrison poses with a selection of her mouth-painted art. “I completely enjoy (creating art). To have that one thing that you’re passionate about, that you can actually do, even in the situation I’m in, is astounding.” Photo by Leah Hennel.
Morrison painted this pretty starlit scene of moonlight and cherry blossoms. Photo by Leah Hennel.
Story by Kelly Morris | Photos by Leah Hennel | Video by Nathan Luit
LETHBRIDGE — It took mere seconds for a single event to flip Carrie Morrison’s world upside-down.
“A witness said, it was like, it was supernatural; it just started flipping,” says Morrison, who remembers nothing of the night she went off a remote driveway near the addiction recovery centre where she worked in Fort Steele, B.C. Her vehicle tumbled 90 metres — ejecting her halfway down — to wind up in a farmer’s field far below.
“I was found around 40 metres, not a hair out of place — well, maybe, but I had no scratches. Nothing wrong with me, except that I landed on a boulder backwards, and cracked my neck in five places. That’s how I became a quadriplegic, completely paralyzed from the shoulders down.”
A mother of two, Morrison returned to her hometown of Lethbridge and spent 16 months in hospital before starting her home life anew with the support of 24/7 care staff.
“We just made it work,” says Morrison. “It was very difficult, but I took it on and was like — this is what I was dealt, and I have to live for my kids. I never sat in a wallow of pity and cried about it; I just started my life like this.”
Morrison’s son put a sticker on her wheelchair, “never give up”, which has become her family’s motto. “That’s been our driving force — to never give up.”
In the 10 years since that fateful night, Morrison has adapted as best she can to her limitations. She’s embraced technology, support staff and her family and friends to help her live her best life.
Independence has come through her computer. With a small metallic dot on the tip of her nose, Morrison moves her head to control the mouse, which allows her to work from home, scroll the Internet and stay connected with friends and family.
At an appointment with her pain specialist in 2023, Morrison shared how she’d like to paint again, but her attempts with a paintbrush in her mouth had proven frustrating and uninspiring to that point.
“I’d made a few paintings that would never see the light of day, because they were so terrible,” adds Morrison. “I tried it once, and then it was more than two years before I tried again.”
Lacking the right tools, techniques and motivation, Morrison had abandoned her passion. That’s she was referred to Alberta Health Service (AHS) Therapeutic Recreation in Lethbridge, where she agreed to give the Creative Journey program a try.
The virtual, 12-week Creative Journey therapy program helps individuals to pursue their goals through artistic expression and creative projects. It aims to set up participants for long-term individual success, giving them the skills and motivation to carry the experience forward — and build up their quality of life.
“The very first time, that very first painting, I don’t know what it was about it, but it gave me the drive to keep going,” says Morrison. “To have somebody say, ‘you know you can do it, do whatever you want, just put it on paper.’”
Shana Wandler, recreation therapist and clinical lead, along with therapy assistant Hannah Yunick, worked with Morrison to find the best way for her to achieve her goals, considering new approaches and techniques to create art by mouth.
“During the first assessment, we had to start from the beginning, to see how we were going to hold the paper, discover which paint would run or not,” says Wandler. “We also looked at different types of brushes and the length of the brush. Some were too long, which were hard to navigate. “We cut all the long ones to be the right size, so it wasn’t gagging me,” says Morrison, with a laugh.
Wandler and Yunick had her try various techniques, demonstrated various mediums as they mentored and coached Morrison and her support staff, who became her easel and artist assistants.
“They are my hands,” adds Morrison. “They have to dip the brushes and change the colours, and wipe the brush off, and re-dip it. As I’m painting with my mouth, if I need more paint, I just kind of go away from the paper and point, and they know what I mean.”
Morrison even challenged Yunick to try painting with her mouth, too. “I did for one project, and oh man, it was a challenge to paint that way,” says Yunick. “It put me out of my comfort zone. It made me realize that, even having a conversation during the session, is hard because you can't talk when you're painting and trying to change colours.”
Wandler and Yunick went beyond artistic techniques, to come up with better communication techniques, to ensure Morrison, as the artist, could communicate her decisions so her assistant would know how to put her wishes into practice.
“While I’m teaching Carrie techniques, I’m also teaching the staff,” says Wandler. “They meet Carrie where she’s at in terms of capturing the vision. It speaks to the relationship that Carrie has with her support staff, to recognize the valuable role they play in making art a successful experience for Carrie.”
With growing confidence, Morrison now paints daily. Her paintings continue to improve in creativity and quality, as she renders more fine details with patience and determination. With almost a dozen paintings sold and an upcoming exhibition at the Coaldale Library this fall, Morrison’s creative journey has only just begun.
“It changed everything — the first time that I painted I felt this breath of ease, like, ‘I get it. I like it. Why am I not doing this?’ I completely enjoy it and there’s not much for me to be able to do, so to have that one thing that you’re passionate about that you can actually do, even in the situation I’m in, is astounding.”
Morrison adds: “I would never be sitting here painting, good or bad, if it weren’t for the program. It gave me the drive to do it — and let me know that I could do it. If it weren’t for the program, I never would have picked up another paintbrush.”
Their quality time with Morrison has left a lasting impression on Wandler and Yunick, too.
“It really changed my perspective and helped me grow as a therapy assistant,” says Yunick. “That she can paint with her mouth and make these beautiful projects, I realized, anyone can do anything.”
