37 results for “hospice”

For such a universal experience, it’s somewhat shocking that so many of us know so little about what actually happens as death approaches. Most of us have been raised in an era and environment where death happens in a facility or setting apart from everyday life, and frequently those in…

By Kathleen M. Rehl, Ph.D., CFP®   “Where do you want to live when we’re old?” I asked my husband two years ago. That was before my 75th birthday. Charlie replied, “Our grandkids already think we’re old!”       Conversations followed over the coming days and months, resulting in…

“You might think sitting with someone who is dying means you will be having big conversations about the meaning of life,” a hospice chaplain had advised me. “Wrong! Sometimes, all that’s called for is to just show up and watch Jeopardy! together.”

You may remember during the earlier days of the Covid pandemic, when death was an ever-present concern in the minds of many, we touched on the role of end-of-life doulas, trained professionals who provide comfort, companionship, and counseling for individuals and loved ones as death approaches. While not providing actual…

By Kathleen M. Rehl, Ph.D., CFP®, CeFT® Emeritus   A triple whammy sent me crashing.   My husband died. A month afterward my mother passed. And I had said farewell to my father less than two years before.    But before their deaths, they each gave me a gift that…

The late, great comic Lucille Ball once said, “I’d rather regret the things I’ve done than regret the things I haven’t done.” In fact, according to Daniel Pink, New York Times best-selling author of the new book, The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward, the feeling of…