‘Music is my miracle cure'

Daphne Bryan, 71, didn’t know how she’d cope after being diagnosed with a debilitating disease, but her childhood hobby has helped her cope

- RUBY DEEVOY/FRANCES LEATE

Peering through the window in the local dance school, I watched enviously as the dainty little girls pirouetted in their pink ballet outfits. Desperate to join them, I begged my mum for weeks afterwards to let me take part, only we found out the class was full.

‘You’ll have to learn the piano instead,’ mum told me. So, at seven years old, I started having piano lessons, tapping away clumsily on the family piano that had been gathering dust in our living room for years.

It was a bit of an uphill battle at first. Learning to read music and training my hands to tap the right keys at the right time wasn’t easy, but I kept going, and eventually, I grew to love my new-found skill until, by the time I reached my teens, I’d play effortlessly for hours.

Something was wrong

I enjoyed it so much that what had started out as a childhood hobby became a big part of my life, and I went off to music college at 18 and later became a music teacher.

After a enjoyable career as a teacher, at 49 I decided to study for a Master’s degree and then a Ph.D. in Music Psychology. I loved being a mature student, and my husband David, then 62, and daughter Katherine, then 17, were so supportive.

However, as I settled into my studies, I started to struggle to use my computer keyboard and mouse when typing essays. My right hand and thumb would twitch and ache and I was really slow.