Something to Think About
a blog on end of life
When working with families who ask me not to tell mom, I say that I won’t bring the subject up, but if she asks, I will talk about it.
It has been almost six months since my husband of 62 years died. As an end of life educator I have taught about loss and grief, and even wrote a booklet about it. BUT...
Addressing the timelines of approaching death also neutralizes the false hope that our person will get better, that there is more time.
Anger in caregiving generally comes from a place of frustration, of fear, of sadness, of tiredness. All sorts of feelings with no outlet so they come bursting out.
We tend to play the “elephant in the room” game at the mention of our missing loved one. “If we don’t talk about how sad we are feeling we won’t...
We tend to carry within our memory every death encounter we have ever had. Yes, even we professionals who work with end of life. BUT it is the personal deathbed memory,...
The showing and expressing of emotions is so individual, expressing our grief is individual also. Some cry, some show anger, some depression, some “tough it up" and move forward, some...
Grief is whole bunch of normal emotions rolled up into a package we call grieving. It isn’t new emotions. It is our emotions. It is how we have handled everything...
Zooming is certainly helpful but know as she progresses toward death she will not be able to respond, even to know you. Continue the zooming and talking to her even when...
Our children are not supposed to die before we do. I cannot think of any grief more intense than watching our child deteriorate before our eyes. We grieve their dying...
Our job as an end of life specialist is to address the elephant in the room, to be direct and honest in the gentlest way possible. We are not doing...
People are dying and in a manner we are not used to. We, in America, have become accustomed to having our loved one either at home with family close, or...
Hospice Bereavement support, as well as any bereavement support program (church, Community Support, Senior Activity Program) is important during the best of times. Now it is vital. Here are my recommendations;...
There are many of the same circumstances with today’s coronavirus as we faced with HIV/AIDS in the early years— lack of medical knowledge, lack of guidance, and fear. I think...
Isolation from others is teaching me this about my self ——- I do a lot for others, for their thoughts of me, why else do I wear makeup? Get dressed?...
I'm sorry to say when a family member is dying it can bring us together and be our finest hour as a family or it can bring out the worse...
...If an adult knows at some point in their disease progression that they aregoing to die (and they do know whether they share that knowledge withothers or not) why should...
You have to walk the walk before you can talk the talk. Learn from your patient/family interactions. At the same time read everything you can get your hands on...
From the moment of a diagnosis of a life threatening illness we begin grieving. We grieve not just the eventual losses that come with serious illness but the approaching...
Why make your mother’s remaining time be unhappy and with more discontent than is already there due to age and illness? Being old is hard work. Our thinking processes aren't...
So many factors affect the length of our labor to leave this world that it is imprudent to put a specific time frame on approaching death. The closest we can...
