By Michelle Jaffee
Bridging the arts, sciences, and clinical medicine, a dancer and filmmaker with a spinal cord injury shared her journey Wednesday with a crowd of more than 120 University of Florida researchers, rehabilitation therapists, neurointensivists, and students at a screening of her documentary, “Move Me.”
In a Q&A with the audience, Kelsey Peterson provided insights — moving, enlightening, and with a dose of good humor — from her cross-country quest to learn about the latest research into emerging therapies for chest-down paralysis.
The event, showcasing the transformative impact of uniting arts and sciences, was organized by the McKnight Brain Institute, the UF Center for Arts in Medicine, and UF’s BREATHE Center, which is developing new treatments for acute and chronic spinal cord injury.
Peterson described the sense of healing and joy she derived from returning to dance, using her body in new ways, and her aspirations for viewers of her Independent Lens/PBS film.
“I hope people can see the importance of the value in every person, no matter what their life looks like,” said Peterson, who in 2012 at age 27 became paralyzed in a diving accident in Lake Superior. “We all have a unique way of being human, they are all equally valuable.”
Peterson visited UF at the invitation of Erica Dale, Ph.D., an assistant professor of neuroscience and physiology and aging whose research focuses on strengthening connections from the brain stem to neurons in the cervical spinal cord. Dale first met Peterson 10 years ago when Dale was a postdoc researching epidural stimulation and Peterson was traveling the country interviewing scientists about advances in spinal cord injury treatment.
“We developed a great bond,” Dale told the audience. “Kelsey is unbelievably deep, dynamic, irreverent in all the best ways, and she is so thoughtful. She brings a beautiful sense of connection and spirituality, even if she’s just talking about the weather, but especially to this film. She’s a dancer, she is a daughter, she’s an entrepreneur, and she is a friend.”
As part of her two-day UF visit, Peterson led workshops in two dance courses — Dance in Medicine and Dance Improvisation — and toured the labs of Gordon Mitchell, Ph.D., director of the BREATHE Center and deputy director of the McKnight Brain Institute, and David Fuller, Ph.D., associate director of BREATHE and associate dean for research at UF’s College of Public Health and Health Professions.
Peterson also was the featured guest at a lunch hosted by NeuroPD2, the MBI’s postdoctoral organization, to promote collaborative research opportunities with the UF Center for Arts in Medicine.
In opening remarks at Wednesday evening’s event, Jennifer Setlow, interim dean of UF’s College of the Arts, said the screening spotlighted the healing potential of storytelling amid significant health challenges.
“Kelsey Peterson’s journey depicted in this film offers a true success story that brings into focus the use of the arts to build resilience and foster recovery — topics at the heart of arts and health,” Setlow said. “I’m really excited for all of you to have the opportunity, not just to experience this film, but the chance to connect with Kelsey and hear a little bit about her journey from her in person.”
Audience members ranging from occupational therapy students to physician-scientists asked about Peterson’s experiences evaluating potential clinical trials and her decision to return to the dance studio.
Dancing once again, in new ways, she said, “changed the depth of love I have for movement.”
Dancing with others with spinal cord injuries “made us all feel seen. It was really unexpected and so beautiful.”
For her, dance removed the barrier of her wheelchair and, on many levels, was therapeutic.
“The more I move,” she told the audience, “the more I feel like myself and the happier I am.”
