I was recently with a woman who is ninety-seven. Her two children, who are both in their late seventies (and are not children anymore),...

I was thinking recently that grief is like a really foggy day; you go out for a walk, you see the path below your feet, you are moving...

When my sister died several years ago, I didn't get to say goodbye. I didn't get to tell her all the things I wanted her to know. I know...

We talk a lot about physical pain at the end of life. Not all illnesses have pain as a symptom, but physical discomfort is something we...

Several years ago, I was blessed to be at the bedside of an incredibly kind and generous man. Because of him I was gifted a lifetime friendship with his wife and daughter. After he died, I stayed in contact with them and we had several meals together over the years, until his wife's memory started to fade, confusion slowly set in, and she learned to navigate a dementia diagnosis. She was moved into a facility where I was able to visit occasionally, but the space between the v

I recently spent time with a patient who was planning to take the end-of-life medications, which is approved in California. It is met...

If we talked about it more openly If we said the words out loud If we pushed aside the fear and the uncertainty Maybe the conversation would be more welcomed… and allowed It is us that puts the walls up We’ve created the fear We’ve wrapped it up in stigma We’ve made it so unclear Why do we dance around it Why do we whisper its name Why does talking about death and dying Make us feel so much shame It won’t happen any faster We aren’t moving it ahead Talking about death and dyi

When you work in a field where caring for others is your focus, caring for yourself can be overlooked. I know this from experience. I...

I was thinking about you today … and how you make me feel Wishing you were just a dream … wishing you weren’t real But the truth is that...

What is pancake grief? Let me explain… When my brother died, the grief was so deep it brought every other loss to the surface. It felt like he was the top pancake added to an already tall stack, fragile, heavy, and ready to fall. Grief already feels that way, but pancake grief is messy! I look at it like this, when we are young, our first experience with death places the first pancake on the plate. We see it. We know it’s there. Maybe we even talk about it, briefly, and then

One of the things I witness most at the bedside is regret. Regret is big… we can’t help but look back and think of all the things we wish...

I had the honor of sitting with a woman who asked me to be with her in the last few hours of her life. She was the mother of a very dear...

When I first saw this photo, it took me back to a moment I was present for a man who chose to exercise his right to take the End-of-Life...

We don’t wear a cape We don’t have wings We are not angels We are none of those things What we are is human We lead with our heart We...

I received an email with the words, "I am afraid of dying," in the subject line. It was from a woman who was given a few months left to...

Today I sat with a husband who was preparing to say goodbye to his wife... When I asked him what I could do for him, he said "give me...

Awhile back I received a call from a woman who was dying and searching for an end-of-life doula. While I feel confident in the work I do,...

After spending many weeks with a gentleman who was dying, I was honored that he requested me to be there when he took his last breath. I...

I was with a gentleman who needed to be assisted to his chair, he was 72. He was a tall man, very handsome, and had been an avid golfer...

A poem I wrote one morning when grief decided to suddenly invite itself into my sleep... totally unannounced. I woke up early this...