Close to two months after suffering a debilitating stroke while on tour in Toronto, alt-rock singer-songwriter Matthew Sweet has given fans an update into his current condition.
News of Sweet’s condition was confirmed longtime manager, Russell Carter, in a statement on Oct. 22, which noted that the musician faced “a long, difficult road to recovery” and weeks of around-the-clock care followed by months of rehabilitation.
“Matthew has always been intensely focused and tenacious in all of his endeavors, not only in his recording career, but in all of his artistic and intellectual pursuits,” Carter shared.
“I am confident that his signature determination will serve him well as he focuses now on recovery to good health.”
In the wake of his stroke, a GoFundMe campaign was launched in order to cover Sweet’s medical expenses. Having initially set a goal of $250,000, more than 8,700 donations have seen a total of over $500,000 raised so far, with the goal having been updated to $750,000.
On Saturday, Dec. 7, Sweet himself shared an update via the GoFundMe page, recollecting the circumstances of his stroke and sharing his gratitude with all the donors thus far.
“I was colder than I’ve ever been and an icy sweat came from every pore,” Sweet recalled. “Then I heard a deafening white noise in both my ears growing, and growing and growing in volume, and my eyes started to scramble like eggs in a pan.
“’Call me an ambulance’ I called out to Evan who was just checking us in to the Toronto hotel after a ten hour drive from Baltimore. Then I was in an ambulance and I heard a man yell, ‘Sir you’ve had a stroke.’ I didn’t know what it meant. It seemed unreal as much of my life has.”
In his post, Sweet recalled having to spend ten days in Toronto before receiving clearance to fly back to the U.S. to continue his care. “The only way they would let me travel back to the states was with a medical crew, on an airplane and straight into a rehabilitation hospital,” he wrote. “The cost of all these things was already astronomical. What is mankind doing? To not make these things available as part of our culture everywhere.”
Furthering his care at the Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital in Omaha, Nebraska, Sweet says he was not only exposed to the importance of carers and those who work at facilities such as this, but that he was also given the Madonna Spirit Award upon his discharge in early December.
Most notably, Sweet also took the time to reflect upon his future as a creative individual, recognizing that his condition has seen him come to terms with many changes moving forward, but an enduring appetite to continue creating.
“I’ve lived through the day where I realized I may never play guitar again, I’ve lived through the day where I realized I may never draw a straight line again or enjoy the pasttime that developed over just the last year of my life, painting with fountain pens and coloring with dip pens and ink,” he explained.
“I understand now what it means to need to reinvent oneself, when the self you knew before is gone, you have no other choice, you either quit or you keep going and so I feel I must keep going, and I feel a great burden to do so with such incredible support that you, many of whom I do not know, have given me. I must just say thank you to you for giving me this help.
“This hope I cannot feel whether I could have had on my own,” Sweet concluded. “I will try to make music. I will try to. I will try to make art. I will try to express myself, because that is all I have ever known and all that has ever brought me joy, throughout a life filled with more sadness than anyone could know what to do with, than any of us know what to do with, and that’s life. May you all today find a glimmer of hope and love and a future to strive toward the way you have helped me find it, every one of you.”
