Yvonne Sweeten plays her ukulele for an appreciative audience of one: her husband, Jeff | Photo: Denise Truscello
When Yvonne Sweeten was younger, she used to play guitar.
Now she’s learning the ukulele. What do you want to hear? She can strum “Happy Together.” Or “I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing.” Or “Edelweiss.” “The music triggers memories,” she says. “Certain songs can be comforting.”
Sweeten is a regular in the music therapy program at Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health in Las Vegas. She attends sessions virtually from her home in nearby Henderson, Nevada — group therapy five days a week, individual therapy once a month.
In 2016, Sweeten was diagnosed with Huntington’s disease (HD). The rare hereditary disorder attacks the brain, taking a toll on physical, mental and emotional abilities. “I get fidgety,” Sweeten says. “It takes a lot of energy to do normal things.”
Nonetheless, this former elementary school teacher somehow has found the energy not only to raise awareness about HD, but to help other patients learn to live with the disease by setting a positive example. For her efforts, Sweeten was named Person of the Year in 2021 by the Huntington’s Disease Society of America.
In turn, music therapy helps her. Led by Becky Wellman, PhD, the Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health’s program is supported entirely by philanthropy, allowing it to offer sessions at no charge to patients. Sweeten, for one, is grateful. “With my HD, it’s hard to stay focused,” she says. “But music therapy keeps me engaged. It’s calming. I really get a lot out of it.”