End of Life Dilemmas

The Right Words…


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We are always searching for the right words when a death occurs. We mean well but our attempts to comfort may painfully produce the opposite result. This blog post by Carole Brody is a “refresher course” in how our words…

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So what’s in the world come over you…


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The title of this blog is taken from John Prine’s song “Speed of the Sound of Loneliness,” which seems apropos for an article on the profound impact of loneliness on the health of aging parents. Here’s the first punch line:…

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Seeking Forgiveness: Linda Kriger


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This deeply moving article by Linda Kriger was published in 2008: http://www.forward.com/articles/14255/ I have read and reread this tale of estrangement, bitterness, regret, and the search for “repair” because I heard endless versions of it from friends, colleagues, clients, and…

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Pulling the Cardiac Plug


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Even the best laid plans of aging can fall apart. Katy Butler’s recent article in The New York Times, What Broke My Father’s Heart, tells a painful tale of the unwanted impact of medical technology in the last and most…

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No Place Like Home for Aging Parents? Maybe, Maybe Not (Follow Up)


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Leslie Peters was my guest on a recent blogtalk radio show I host (http://www.blogtalkradio.com/solie/2009/11/07/no-place-like-home-for-aging-parent-maybe-maybe-no). I asked her to provide me with a “list” of questions that would help aging parents and their adult children screen potential senior living accommodations. She…

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End of Life Conversations: From A Doctor’s Perspective


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My wife Janet shared with me a very moving article about end of life conversations from a doctor’s perspective entitled: Talking Frankly at the End of Life. Here is the link. One of the most important aspects of the article…

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Artificial Aging: The Developmental Implications of Dying Too Soon


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A woman in her early sixties was dying of a terminal illness. Her parents were gone, which left a younger sister as her only means of family support. But there was long standing disagreements between the sisters that had left…

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Bitter Endings


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We wished things had turned out different. They didn’t. History and personalities brought the drama of our aging parents to its only logical and painful conclusion. But as Linda Kriger points out in her heart felt article entitled Seeking Forgiveness…

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