Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords Lip-Syncs Lyrics to Songs
The wounded Congresswoman is making progress in relearning how to talk.
Feb. 14, 2011— -- U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords is making remarkable progress toward re-learning to talk after being shot in the head last month -- mouthing words to songs, according to family members and officials.
Overnight, Giffords' chief of staff told ABC News that Giffords is vocalizing more and more.
Giffords, who was gunned down at a Tucson, Ariz., at a community event last month, has been mouthing the words to songs like "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," and even talking on the telephone, according to the New York Times, which first reported the congresswoman's latest development in her road to recovery.
On Sunday, Giffords spoke to astronaut Scott Kelly, her husband's twin brother, aboard the international space station.
She told him "Hi…I'm good," by telephone.
She has also been working on singing "Happy Birthday to You" -- as a surprise to her husband, astronaut Mark Kelly, who is celebrating a birthday this month. He will be flying the space shuttle Endeavor on its last mission in April.
Kelly has been by Giffords' side in every step of her recovery.
This all of this comes after news last week that Giffords' first word was "toast."
"What this indicates is that the bullet did not permanently damage these language pathways and that there is an ability for recovery here," said Dr. Geoffrey Manley, chief of neurosurgery at San Francisco General Hospital.
In an e-mail to sent to friends by Giffords' mother Gloria also she commented that her daughter has gone from being a "kind of a limp noodle" to "alert" and even sitting up straight with good posture, the New York Times reported.
Her mother's e-mail notes that Giffords has beaten one of her nurses at tic-tac-toe and that "little miss overachiever (Giffords) is healing very fast."
Giffords' staff members said she has progressed so well that she is now taking bedside briefings about subjects like Egypt.
While she isn't talking in paragraphs, she is verbalizing and making it clear she understands what they are discussing.
She is also walking -- going up and down halls using a shopping cart and doing squats -- all of which are good signs.