Something to Think About

Comment: “My son has died!” You have been with people when they die. Your book, The Final Act of Living, talks about body and spirit. How do you know? I...

I have been at the bedside of many, many people at their exact moment of death. Those people have taught me what happens in the hours to minutes before death....

 Question: Your books, articles and blogs have helped our family through several deaths and dying situations. I just read your blog about animals. It was very close to my...

There is a saying, “Live each day as if it were your last.” It makes sense that the last day of our lives is the day we would want to...

What does a dying person look like in the hours to minutes before death? Generally they are non responsive, their eyes are partially open, the skin color is palish often...

Question: “I would like to share my Hospice frustration with you and my culture. I am a Jew. I am an 11th Hour volunteer and a bereavement counselor in a...

I received the question, “What happens when we die and do I believe in reincarnation? I’m going to interpret the question to be asking what happens at the moment of...

I had the pleasure of spending three days with a man and his wife. We’ll call the man Harry and his wife Lila. The days were spent mainly feeding Harry,...

The following story had been written by one of our Excela Health Hospice nurses, Kim Kistler. I had read it about 2 years ago and always remembered it as such...

I think it’s a great idea to share stories and learn from each other. I learn something new with every case. It’s funny, because nobody but a hospice nurse truly...

It will be our time to die. When the doctors have said, “I can’t fix you” it is time to reconsider what medicine can do for us. Medicine can prolong...

Beware of anyone who puts a number on how long someone has to live. There are so many factors that affect the time of our gradual death that the closest...

The question, "Will you discuss palliative sedation?" has come up several times so I am putting my response in this section rather than the Comments. Palliative Sedation is a term...