Conversations Near the End Mind Map
This is the companion mind map for the article Conversations at the End…
Conversations at the End…
We wish it didn’t come to this, but it does. Someone you care about is at the end of their life. No one knows exactly when but everyone is clear about what’s happening. Now comes the hard part, the conversations…
Why Doctors Die Differently…
As a clinician, this Wall Street Journal article echoes my own views on dying, ones that are in my health directive. Maybe its the medical knowing, seeing all too often how a promise of “more time” turns out poorly. While…
Best Possible Day
Atul Gwande’s article “Best Possible Day” is compassionate and articulate about asking the right questions, over and over again, in a world where time is running short…
Best Possible Day…
Beyond Loss: Grief vs Major Depression
With aging comes the loss of those who mean the most to us. There is no way to prepare for it. We are ambushed and swept away into grief and suffering. After some period of time, we slowly, unevenly crawl…
Dangling Conversations…
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Conversations with adult children about their aging parents eventually include the dilemma of declining health. Embedded in this emotional topic is the volatile issue of “advanced directives.” Everyone knows that you need one, but having just one version turns out…
Bad Parent Connection: Now What?
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It’s one thing to have a decent connection to our aging parents. We may not be close, but we still feel compelled by love and loyalty to come along side them in the in last years of their lives. But…
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…
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…