Music helps cure child's rare condition that caused constant seizures: “It brings her back"



WESTMINSTER, Colorado -- A baby girl from Colorado, diagnosed with a rare condition causing her to have dozens of seizures each day is defying all odds.

Janey and Eric Handmacher told KDVR they knew something was wrong with their daughter, Melody, around the time she was five months old.

The girl showed symptoms of a rare disorder known as Aicardi syndrome. The neurological disorder can affect toddlers, making them suffer multiple seizures a day.

“She would have clusters of spasms. Hundreds of seizures a day,” said Janey Handmacher, Melody’s mother.

Doctors told the Handmachers their daughter might never walk, crawl or talk. Regular medications weren’t working, so they tried something different: Hemp oil created by "Charlotte’s Web."

“We’re absolutely convinced 'Charlotte’s Web' is why she’s not having spasms right now,” Janey Handmacher said.

By August 2015, the seizures had stopped. The Handmachers credit the hemp oil, but they said something else played a role: Eric’s guitar playing.

The moment he started playing some tunes around his daughter, something changed in Melody.

“It would bring her back. It was like her connection, her anchor to reality almost,” Eric Handmacher said.

The baby girl who doctors said would likely never crawl or walk again, was jumping around, crawling and dancing the moment dad strummed his guitar’s strings.

“Whenever I play the music, it brought her back mentally to pre-episodes,” Eric Handmacher said.

Who knows what Melody’s future holds, but for now, her parents said they're thrilled with her progress. At this point, they’re going to focus on Melody’s speech, and said they're hopeful she’ll overcome that obstacle as well.

You can follow Melody’s Journey on Facebook.