Gabrielle Riegel didn’t have much time to celebrate graduating from Missouri State this spring before being admitted to the hospital.
Not long after her graduation party, the 24-year-old became “very sick,” initially convincing herself she had a common cold, but it didn’t take long for her symptoms to worsen. Once at the hospital, Riegel learned her kidneys were failing, causing her to experience pleural effusion, when fluid accumulates between the lungs and chest wall. Her body also went into septic shock while in the hospital due to an infection at the port for her catheter, which she has had since she was 18 years old. She ended up spending about two weeks in the hospital.
Today, Riegel is living homebound in Springfield, with regular visits from nurses three to four times a week. Despite the hardships she has endured over the past year, Riegel is keeping herself busy with new projects that bring her happiness. Specifically, she is producing music from home, working on her master’s degree in criminology at Missouri State and beginning work on a book about the misconceptions of what it means to be homebound.
Originally from Boca Raton, Florida, Riegel moved to Springfield when she was 8 or 9 years old. Since childhood, Riegel has managed problems with her bladder, often sustaining urinary tract infections. She said at age 18, her bladder was only functioning at about 40%, which is why she got a catheter. In June, just a month after her two-week stay in the hospital, Riegel also got a nephrostomy tube, which allows urine to drain from the kidneys through an opening in the skin into a bag.
In addition to managing her catheter and nephrostomy tube, Riegel also began using a walker off and on in May.
It took months for Riegel to recover from her hospital visit in the spring and she still experiences lapses in her heath. Just a few days before meeting with the News-Leader, Riegel was back in the hospital temporarily. Fortunately, she was back home, walking on her own on Tuesday.
‘I’m going to try literally everything’
Upon returning home from the hospital in the spring, Riegel had a conversation with herself about trying as many new things as she could get her hands on.
“When I first became homebound, I was like, ‘I’m going to try literally everything,” she said. “I was just like, ‘Well, I just need to step it up with art, music, everything because I just have to get all of this experience while I’m at home.'”
One of the first things she did was sell all of the instruments she had at home, using the money to purchase a synthesizer. To produce her songs, Riegel uses Elf Tech, an artificial intelligence software from electronic musician Grimes. The software allows users to upload vocals that are then replicated in Grimes’ voice. If users decide to distribute their songs online, Grimes receives 50% of the master recording royalties for her likeness, according to Pitchfork.
“I was listening to some of the Grimes AI songs myself, while in the hospital, and I was like, ‘Oh, these are bops. I want to make these, too,'” Riegel said.
The first song Riegel made with Elf Tech is called, “I’m going to rave hell.” Riegel’s entire discography, which includes 10 songs made with Elf Tech, is available on most streaming services. Riegel said she hopes to release an album soon.
In addition to the music she makes independently, Riegel is also working with Kansas City-based jazz musician Loren Broaddus. Together, the two are calling themselves “Meme Z,” a play on Generation Z, World War Z and memes, Riegel said. The duo has not released any music publicly, but Riegel said they have completed one song together.
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While not working on music production, Riegel is busy completing classwork and research for her master’s degree. She is building on her bachelor’s degree and studying criminology. Riegel said after completing her master’s, she’d like to get her doctorate so she can teach. She anticipates completing her master’s program by 2026.
More recently, Riegel has also started working on a book called, “Homebound Drama.”
“It’s kind of all about the things that happen on home health that aren’t related to home health,” Riegel said. “All of the things that happen when you are not in home health still happen … and people just think when this happens, when you go on palliative care (physical and mental medical care for someone with a serious illness) and when you go on home health, everything stops. And that’s just not true.”
Riegel said since becoming homebound, the most important thing, for her, has been staying busy.
“Honestly, I think the only thing that keeps me sane are all these projects because I can bring them into the hospital with me,” Riegel said. “For art, I have a little easel and so I’ll still make art in there (the hospital). I figured out how to produce music without this equipment and then clean it up when I get home. And I also just bring my laptop in to work on homework.”
When asked what type of advice she would give to other young adults who are being introduced to palliative care or becoming homebound, Riegel said, “keep yourself busy.”
“Whatever you can (do), do it, even if it’s just something like … for awhile there I was making beaded bracelets for fun and it kept me busy,” Riegel said. “Literally any hobby that’s lowkey and will keep your mind off of what’s happening, do it.”
Greta Cross is the trending topics reporter for the Springfield News-Leader. Follow her on X and Instagram @gretacrossphoto. Story idea? Email her at gcross@gannett.com.
