- http://www.thedivingbellandthebutterfly-themovie.com/
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Diving_Bell_and_the_Butterfly
- http://www.salon.com/2008/02/23/diving_bell_2/
Thursday, April 23, 2015
Diving Bell & the Butterfly
More info on the film
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I thought this movie was very interesting in that it was filmed entirely from the patients point of view. What surprised me a lot of the time was the doctors' bedside manner towards the patient. It was important that they made him aware of his situation and they were honest about his condition which was great. However, as healthcare professionals, it is important to show compassion which I do not think his doctors did. This man could not speak or move, but still was perfectly capable of forming thoughts and opinions. I cannot imagine being in this situation. I do not think the doctors empathized with Jean which was unfortunate. I didn't necessarily have a favorite scene, however I thought it was really interesting how the speech therapist worked with him on finding a way to communicate by going through the alphabet and having him blink yes or no on certain letters. His therapists certainly made up for the doctors' lack of empathy as they spent hours upon hours with him helping him to write his book. The part that was most sad for me was when his children came to visit with him and took him to the beach and he could no longer play with them. I can't imagine how hard that would be. Overall I thought this movie was much better than I was expecting at the beginning of it and turned out to be really eye opening.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Mallory. It is so hard for us as healthcare providers to truly understand what a person is thinking when we are not able to verbally communicate with them. We have come a long way to provide tools to create a positive rehab experience and to advocate for them. Building a close relationship with then and gaining your trust is key. Compassion most of the time goes by the waste side these days in the fast pace of every day duties of nurses, therapists and doctors but we must place that in the forefront of our minds when giving care. I also think it is disappointing to see how the doctor in this film was aphasic, lacked empathy and did not have true compassion for this man whose life has been changed forever. He just assumed all of his decisions were what the patient wanted. This is never a good way to practice medicine. I also think the movie was wonderful and shed some light of how real this type of situation is.
DeleteThis movie is a fantastic representation or how patients who are not able to speak or move from a stroke or any tragic health event see the world and react to what is going on around them. Most believe that those who are not able to speak or express themselves are in fact "dead" to society. This man had a successful life and when he had a stroke his whole world changed. He spoke about his regrets with personal and professional relationships and how he would of approached them differently if he could speak or even get the chance to express by movement. Even though this is a movie , the reality of the story makes it surreal to the healthcare world today. We can learn a great deal from this. Being trapped physically does not mean that your cognitive ability has been destroyed. We must treat all patients with respect and dignity. Imagine what it would be like to be aware that you are not able to move or speak. How would you feel? Depression and the lack of desire to thrive is very common as seen in the beginning of the movie. He did not want to participate in therapy or see anyone. He just wanted to die. He felt that his quality of life has been taken from him and he had nothing left to offer, little did we know that was so far from the truth. I enjoyed the therapy sessions and his reactions to the girls. They were an integral part of his rehabilitation and having that relationship where he was not judged by others was a major positive part of his rehabilitation.
ReplyDeleteI agree, we can definitely learn from this movie as healthcare workers! I think people that are not in healthcare think that people that cannot speak do not know what is going on, but as depicted in this movie, they really do. I cannot imagine the emotional struggle Jean went to after his stroke and it is so sad to know that there are people thinking the same things as he was. I hope that other healthcare workers can help their patients persevere like Jean did and help them come out of their depression.
DeleteWhen I first started to watch the movie, I kind of got a bad attitude about it because it was in a different language, which meant I actually had to pay attention, but after about 20 minutes, I couldn't stop watching! I thought it was ingenious how the speech therapist was able to communicate him, although I'm sure it was so hard for the therapist and Jean to be patient. It is amazing how Jean was able to write his entire book by that communication technique. I am not sure if I could endure being unable to talk or do anything for myself. One of the scenes that really got to me was the scene in which Jean's father called him on the phone. I can't imagine how hard it would be to know that your child was close to death. After watching the film, I did a little research on the actual people in the movie. According to one source that I read about, Jean really only had one boy and one girl, but in the movie he had two girls. It also said that the mother of Jean's kids never came to visit him and his lover was actually with him all the time. I'm not sure if any of that is true but I thought it was pretty interesting to read.
ReplyDeleteI agree that it must have taken a lot of patience on both sides to communicate the way they did. I thought it was also amazing how Jean wrote his entire book by alphabet communication. The fact he decided to still go on writing the book after his stroke says, that he wasn't going to let his condition impede what he wanted to do before his stroke.
DeleteThis movie was very moving. Having lived your life in good health and had a great career, for it to change. This is a testament, knowing who the true friends and family around you are. Having people who care about you sticking around during the bad times is important. I thought it was very courageous in the movie, the mother of his children came around often to help him, even he wasn't always the best to her when they were together. The therapists were incredible, even though Mr. Bauby was unable to verbal speak. The communication system they had meant to me that they are not giving up hope. What made me sad was, when he said that he wanted to die. He felt the way he was living was not living. What surprised me was, his speech therapist wouldn't allow him to pity himself. The way she went about it shocked me, because healthcare professionals shouldn't impose their thoughts onto their patients. I'm happy she did it gave him the courage to keep fighting.
ReplyDeleteI too found this movie to be extremely moving. I also feel that having a secure support system of friends and family is very important to have especially during terrible times such as in this movie. It was somewhat sad when Mr. Bauby admitted to wanting to die, but it was nice to see that his speech therapist pushed him and encouraged him for the remainder of his life. I feel that this woman brought Mr. Bauby much happiness during this terrible event in his life.
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