Living With Hospice

Holidays are often difficult for anyone who has experienced or is facing the death of someone they love.   Instead of being a time of tradition, family togetherness, sharing and giving thanks for blessings, this time of year can bring feelings of sadness, loss and emptiness.  What do we do when we are feeling pressure to engage in the "holiday spirit", but we are triggered by memories of earlier times with a loved one who is now facing a terminal diagnosis?  While no simple guidelines exist that will take away the hurt,  Mitch discusses how to acknowledge and deal with these very normal feelings, and provides some alternative suggestions for keeping traditions and celebrating with a loved one who is in Hospice.

In this three part series, Mitch discusses the experience and emotions associated with being told that a disease is no longer treatable from different perspectives.  In part one of this series, we look at how this news impacts the patient and the fear associated with such a prognosis.  Mitch provides suggestions and love on how to address this fear, as well as to how to help other loved ones during this time.  

Diverging a bit from the Hospice theme, in episode 44, Mitch explores another form of end-of-life care and the role of a "Death Doula".   He explains the origins of a doula role in relationship to the dying process, and the recent resurgence of this in modern end-of-life care.  

At sometime in our lives, we will all have a  traumatic experience that causes us to have a strong emotional or physical reaction. On most occasions though, these reactions subside as a part of the body’s natural healing and recovery process, but in the moment, they seem overwhelming.  In this edition of Living With Hospice, Mitch discusses what happens in those few moments after trauma has occurred, and reminds us that sometimes something very simple - breathing - is the key to getting through it. 

Talking about the eventuality of death is not something anyone likes to do - much less plan for.  In addition to bringing up a whole host of emotions, it can be just an incredibly  uncomfortable conversation to have with someone who is terminally ill.    In this episode of Living With Hospice, Mitch discusses why these conversations are necessary to have before death and how to ensure that they are productive.    

Originally published in 2020, LWH's classic episode on how to handle the Holidays is once again returning for the season!  Holidays are often difficult for anyone who has experienced or is facing the death of someone they love.   Instead of being a time of tradition, family togetherness, sharing and giving thanks for blessings, this time of year can bring feelings of sadness, loss and emptiness.  What do we do when we are feeling pressure to engage in the "holiday spirit", but we are triggered by memories of earlier times with a loved one who is now facing a terminal diagnosis?  While no simple guidelines exist that will take away the hurt,  Mitch discusses how to acknowledge and deal with these very normal feelings, and provides some alternative suggestions for keeping traditions and celebrating with a loved one who is in Hospice.

We've all experienced the need to make a change at some point in our lives and understand that it can bring about a host of emotions and some fear of the unknown.  While at times, this can be something exciting,  when on an end of life journey, this can seem difficult, overwhelming and just plain impossible.  In this episode, Mitch discusses how to take control of your Hospice journey and have the courage to make it better if something is not suited to you.  As the famous Singer/Songwriter Sheryl Crow tells us, and Mitch affirms in this episode, sometimes "A Change Would Do You Good." 

In this episode of Living With Hospice, Mitch makes good on a promise made during most of the  episodes to answer questions that listeners have submitted over time.   In this episode, we discuss  active dying, telling our loved ones that we are out of treatment options, accepting the choice when someone chooses Hospice over curative care and finally, we get an update on Mitch's animal co-hosts.  

In this episode of Living With Hospice, Mitch addresses the many facets of 'closing the books' at the end of our lives, including practical planning, reviewing the bucket list and the often uncomfortable topic of saying goodbye.  While this can be an emotionally difficult period, it can also be empowering and is crucial in gaining closure and gathering a sense of peace.