Being with Dying

Author: Joan Halifax
Publisher: Shambhala Publications
ISBN: 1645472876
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 233

Book Description
Inspiring teachings, personal stories, and meditations for those near death and their caregivers, by a respected Zen teacher who has worked with the dying for over 30 years. Everyone who lives must inevitably face death. Inspired by traditional Buddhist teachings and decades of work with the dying and their caregivers, this landmark work on death and dying by beloved Buddhist teacher Joan Halifax is a source of wisdom for all those who are charged with a dying person’s care, facing their own death, or wishing to explore and contemplate the transformative power of the dying process. Relevant and powerful for people of all backgrounds, her teachings affirm that all of us can open and contact our inner strength even in the face of death, and that we can help others who are suffering to do the same. Halifax observes that millions will have to deal with the loss of parents and loved ones and that we are largely unprepared emotionally for their deaths. She presents the notion that the process of dying is a rite of passage. Halifax offers stories from her personal experience as well as guided exercises and contemplations to help readers contemplate death without fear, develop a commitment to helping others, and transform suffering and resistance into courage. Topics and exercises include: Learning to see death as a rite of passage The guiding principles of bearing witness and how self-awareness can help us to relate more fully with others How to take care of ourselves when we’re taking care of others Contemplation on the universality of death How to transform pain and fear with lovingkindness Coupled with a new foreword by Frank Ostaseski, a leader in the field of death and dying palliative care, the guidance and experiences represented in Being with Dying are invaluable in supporting and instilling peace as the journey of life unfolds and inevitably reaches not only an end, but also a new beginning.

Dying to Be Me

Author: Anita Moorjani
Publisher: Hay House, Inc
ISBN: 1401937527
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 218

Book Description
THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! "I had the choice to come back ... or not. I chose to return when I realized that 'heaven' is a state, not a place" In this truly inspirational memoir, Anita Moorjani relates how, after fighting cancer for almost four years, her body began shutting down—overwhelmed by the malignant cells spreading throughout her system. As her organs failed, she entered into an extraordinary near-death experience where she realized her inherent worth . . . and the actual cause of her disease. Upon regaining consciousness, Anita found that her condition had improved so rapidly that she was released from the hospital within weeks—without a trace of cancer in her body! Within this enhanced e-book, Anita recounts—in words and on video—stories of her childhood in Hong Kong, her challenge to establish her career and find true love, as well as how she eventually ended up in that hospital bed where she defied all medical knowledge. In "Dying to Be Me," Anita Freely shares all she has learned about illness, healing, fear, "being love," and the true magnificence of each and every human being!

Top Five Regrets of the Dying

Author: Bronnie Ware
Publisher: Hay House, Inc
ISBN: 1401956009
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 322

Book Description
Revised edition of the best-selling memoir that has been read by over a million people worldwide with translations in 29 languages. After too many years of unfulfilling work, Bronnie Ware began searching for a job with heart. Despite having no formal qualifications or previous experience in the field, she found herself working in palliative care. During the time she spent tending to those who were dying, Bronnie's life was transformed. Later, she wrote an Internet blog post, outlining the most common regrets that the people she had cared for had expressed. The post gained so much momentum that it was viewed by more than three million readers worldwide in its first year. At the request of many, Bronnie subsequently wrote a book, The Top Five Regrets of the Dying, to share her story. Bronnie has had a colourful and diverse life. By applying the lessons of those nearing their death to her own life, she developed an understanding that it is possible for everyone, if we make the right choices, to die with peace of mind. In this revised edition of the best-selling memoir that has been read by over a million people worldwide, with translations in 29 languages, Bronnie expresses how significant these regrets are and how we can positively address these issues while we still have the time. The Top Five Regrets of the Dying gives hope for a better world. It is a courageous, life-changing book that will leave you feeling more compassionate and inspired to live the life you are truly here to live.

Being With Dying

Author: Sarayu Kimberley Johnson
Publisher: M A Center
ISBN: 1680370197
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 178

Book Description
A Practical Approach To Serving Others Through Times Of Illness And Death. Death–Of Our Loved Ones And Ourselves–Is An Experience Most Of Us Fear But All Of Us Have To Eventually Go Through. Drawing On Amma’s Teachings And The Author’s Firsthand Experiences Of Serving As A Hospital Chaplain, Being With Dying Addresses Our Fears And Reveals How Being With Our Loved Ones During The Process Of Dying Can Be A Profound Spiritual Gift For Them-And For Us. The Most Important Gift That We Can Offer To Another Who Is Dying Is To Be Present, Writes The Author. It Means Actively Listening And Giving Our Full Attention To The Person Accepting Them Where They Are In Every Changing Moment. Filled With Practical Advice, Powerful Stories, And Great Love And Gratitude For Life, Being With Dying Helps Us Develop A Truly Peaceful, Accepting Approach To Death. Published By The Disciples Of Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, Affectionately Known As Mother, Or Amma The Hugging Saint.

The Good Death

Author: Ann Neumann
Publisher: Beacon Press
ISBN: 0807076996
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 250

Book Description
Following the death of her father, journalist and hospice volunteer Ann Neumann sets out to examine what it means to die well in the United States. When Ann Neumann’s father was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, she left her job and moved back to her hometown of Lancaster, Pennsylvania. She became his full-time caregiver—cooking, cleaning, and administering medications. When her father died, she was undone by the experience, by grief and the visceral quality of dying. Neumann struggled to put her life back in order and found herself haunted by a question: Was her father’s death a good death? The way we talk about dying and the way we actually die are two very different things, she discovered, and many of us are shielded from what death actually looks like. To gain a better understanding, Neumann became a hospice volunteer and set out to discover what a good death is today. She attended conferences, academic lectures, and grief sessions in church basements. She went to Montana to talk with the attorney who successfully argued for the legalization of aid in dying, and to Scranton, Pennsylvania, to listen to “pro-life” groups who believe the removal of feeding tubes from some patients is tantamount to murder. Above all, she listened to the stories of those who were close to death. What Neumann found is that death in contemporary America is much more complicated than we think. Medical technologies and increased life expectancies have changed the very definition of medical death. And although death is our common fate, it is also a divisive issue that we all experience differently. What constitutes a good death is unique to each of us, depending on our age, race, economic status, culture, and beliefs. What’s more, differing concepts of choice, autonomy, and consent make death a contested landscape, governed by social, medical, legal, and religious systems. In these pages, Neumann brings us intimate portraits of the nurses, patients, bishops, bioethicists, and activists who are shaping the way we die. The Good Death presents a fearless examination of how we approach death, and how those of us close to dying loved ones live in death’s wake.

The Valedictorian of Being Dead

Author: Heather B. Armstrong
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1501197061
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 219

Book Description
From New York Times bestselling author and blogger Heather B. Armstrong comes an honest and irreverent memoir—reminiscent of the New York Times bestseller Brain on Fire—about her experience as the third person ever to participate in an experimental treatment for depression involving ten rounds of a chemically induced coma approximating brain death. For years, Heather B. Armstrong has alluded to her struggle with depression on her website, dooce. It’s scattered throughout her archive, where it weaves its way through posts about pop culture, music, and motherhood. In 2016, Heather found herself in the depths of a depression she just couldn’t shake, an episode darker and longer than anything she had previously experienced. She had never felt so discouraged by the thought of waking up in the morning, and it threatened to destroy her life. For the sake of herself and her family, Heather decided to risk it all by participating in an experimental clinical trial. Now, for the first time, Heather recalls the torturous eighteen months of suicidal depression she endured and the month-long experimental study in which doctors used propofol anesthesia to quiet all brain activity for a full fifteen minutes before bringing her back from a flatline. Ten times. The experience wasn’t easy. Not for Heather or her family. But a switch was flipped, and Heather hasn’t experienced a single moment of suicidal depression since. “Breathtakingly honest” (Lisa Genova, New York Times bestselling author), self-deprecating, and scientifically fascinating, The Valedictorian of Being Dead brings to light a groundbreaking new treatment for depression. The Valedictorian of Being Dead was previously published with the subtitle “The True Story of Dying Ten Times to Live.”

Final Gifts

Author: Maggie Callanan
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1451677294
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 218

Book Description
In this moving and compassionate classic—now updated with new material from the authors—hospice nurses Maggie Callanan and Patricia Kelley share their intimate experiences with patients at the end of life, drawn from more than twenty years’ experience tending the terminally ill. Through their stories we come to appreciate the near-miraculous ways in which the dying communicate their needs, reveal their feelings, and even choreograph their own final moments; we also discover the gifts—of wisdom, faith, and love—that the dying leave for the living to share. Filled with practical advice on responding to the requests of the dying and helping them prepare emotionally and spiritually for death, Final Gifts shows how we can help the dying person live fully to the very end.

Dying to be Happy

Author: Chris Stepien
Publisher: Wellspring
ISBN: 9781942611622
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 117

Book Description
A few days before Thanksgiving 2014, author Chris Stepien found himself in an oncologist s office. But he wasn't the patient. Stepien's wife, Ellen, was just beginning her battle with aggressive breast cancer. That day, while listening to the oncologist's treatment strategy, Stepien began writing Dying to Be Happy: Discovering the Truth About Life. In the pages of this book, a brush with a life-threatening disease sparks a frank discussion on mortality. The author explores the prospects of embracing death on a daily basis versus denying it. He encourages readers to follow the advice of Jesus Christ: always be ready for the end of life. Along the way, Stepien highlights a spectrum of short, true stories where people rise above the fear of death, including the harrowing account of a child who survived the Holocaust -- Stepien's own mother. But Dying to Be Happy is more than an anthology of grim tales and close calls. It beckons readers to admit the inescapability of death in order to find true joy in this life and the next.

Live Like You Were Dying

Author: Tim Nichols
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
ISBN: 1418577448
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 71

Book Description
Live Like You Were Dying is the unforgettable story inspired by Tim McGraw's #1 Country Music song of the same name. It weaves a tale of the miracles that happen once you stop being so busy with life that you actually have time to live it. Millions have embraced the song's lyrics. Now experience the inspirational story that will touch your heart and soul.

Dying Well

Author: Ira Byock
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 110150028X
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 321

Book Description
From Ira Byock, prominent palliative care physician and expert in end of life decisions, a lesson in Dying Well. Nobody should have to die in pain. Nobody should have to die alone. This is Ira Byock's dream, and he is dedicating his life to making it come true. Dying Well brings us to the homes and bedsides of families with whom Dr. Byock has worked, telling stories of love and reconciliation in the face of tragedy, pain, medical drama, and conflict. Through the true stories of patients, he shows us that a lot of important emotional work can be accomplished in the final months, weeks, and even days of life. It is a companion for families, showing them how to deal with doctors, how to talk to loved ones—and how to make the end of life as meaningful and enriching as the beginning. Ira Byock is also the author of The Best Care Possible: A Physician's Quest to Transform Care Through the End of Life.