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Grief specialist Dawn Delahoye is supporting people with terminal illness and their caregivers, promoting intentional self care and accepting help when offered.  After caring for her dad during his e…

Grief specialist Daw…

Grief specialist Dawn Delahoye is supporting people with terminal illness and their caregivers, promoting intentional self care and accepting help when offered.  After caring for her dad during his experience with Lewy Body Dementia (LBD), Dawn gained valuable personal perspective that made her understand the needs of caregivers.  People who support someone with a neurodegenerative disease (Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, Parkinson’s disease) often face a unique Caregiving situation. Isolation and lack of support are common.  Dawn recognizes the anticipatory grief that happens before the…

As a hospice aide and certified End of Life Doula, Cassidy Bastien is helping her clients and their families facilitate and provide meaningful after death care.  She’s cared for people with serious…

As a hospice aide an…

As a hospice aide and certified End of Life Doula, Cassidy Bastien is helping her clients and their families facilitate and provide meaningful after death care.  She’s cared for people with serious illness for six years and  hosts Death Cafes in her Washington state community.  Since 2022 Cassidy has served the non-profit End Of Life Washington as an Ambassador Volunteer assisting in providing their End of Life Ready Presentations online. Cassidy is also a passionate advocate for caregivers, founding the renowned Caregivers Hub Support Group on Facebook. The Caregivers Hub Group welcomes …

Social Worker Bridget Sumser works to provide support to patients and families in palliative and end-of-life care for over a decade, looking to unearth untended-to grief and sadness as a means to be m…

Social Worker Bridge…

Social Worker Bridget Sumser works to provide support to patients and families in palliative and end-of-life care for over a decade, looking to unearth untended-to grief and sadness as a means to be more in touch with our lives.  In this meaningful conversation, Bridget discusses how grief shows up in all its many forms.  Grief can result from loss that’s not only related to death, but comes from life events like Divorce, Retirement, or other major life changes.  Many people experience disenfranchised grief and often compare losses in what Bridget calls “the Grief Olympics”.  In her …

Today’s guest Roy Remer is teaching caregivers how to practice mindful caregiving, creating sustainability and calm during the caregiving experience.  Roy is the author of Zen Caregiving: How to Ca…

Today’s guest Roy …

Today’s guest Roy Remer is teaching caregivers how to practice mindful caregiving, creating sustainability and calm during the caregiving experience.  Roy is the author of Zen Caregiving: How to Care for Yourself While Caring for Others. An educator and end-of-life caregiver since 1997, he is executive director of Zen Caregiving Project in San Francisco and lead creator of the Mindful Caregiving Education curriculum. A dedicated practitioner in the Soto Zen tradition, Remer is a student at San Francisco Zen Center. He is certified by the Stanford University School of Medicine’s Center for…

Walking alongside someone with serious illness takes compassion, skill, and a willingness to learn.  Dr. Kevin Dieter is teaching medical students how to be with the dying.  When Kevin’s patient �…

Walking alongside so…

Walking alongside someone with serious illness takes compassion, skill, and a willingness to learn.  Dr. Kevin Dieter is teaching medical students how to be with the dying.  When Kevin’s patient “Mary” asked him to help her die, he had no idea how to support her.  Mary taught him how to shepherd a patient and Family at the end of life, teaching him a lesson that changed his career.  Kevin has gone on to work in hospice care and to write curriculum programs for medical students.  Here are the three Pillars of Care that Dr. Dieter teaches: 1. The dying are our teachers.  We learn fr…

End of Life Doula and hospice nurse Jan Booth teaches at the intersection of end of life care and quality of life, promoting open-hearted advance care plan conversations to get to what really matters.…

End of Life Doula an…

End of Life Doula and hospice nurse Jan Booth teaches at the intersection of end of life care and quality of life, promoting open-hearted advance care plan conversations to get to what really matters. Her heart and Wisdom shine in this episode as she acknowledges the challenges of navigating the healthcare “superhighway”. Jan reminds us we have more agency to take the lead in decision-making about the care we receive, and that includes what happens at the end of life. Hospice care is person-centered, caring for both patient and family. Having early (upstream) conversations about end of…

Hospice nurse and end of life doula Trish Rux believes that considering our death helps us to live life more fully.  After being at the bedside of hundreds of dying patients, she’s learned lessons …

Hospice nurse and en…

Hospice nurse and end of life doula Trish Rux believes that considering our death helps us to live life more fully.  After being at the bedside of hundreds of dying patients, she’s learned lessons that have shaped how she lives.  Trish believes most caregivers are reluctant to ask for help, especially the small things that can make a big difference. She recommends building a caregiving group who can be part of the support group from the beginning, before things get intense.  Having advance care planning discussions that focus on the specifics of end of life wishes is one of the doula role…

Tracy Heath is taking a holistic approach to serious illness and dying, finding a healthy balance of emotional, physical, and financial well-being.  Although her family never discussed end of life is…

Tracy Heath is takin…

Tracy Heath is taking a holistic approach to serious illness and dying, finding a healthy balance of emotional, physical, and financial well-being.  Although her family never discussed end of life issues, Tracy made her way to Estate planning work. Tracy lost both her parents while Tracy was still in her 20’s, had small children, and was working a full time job. Her family experienced the impact of four deaths within three years.  Tracy learned many of the hard lessons that caregiving teaches, including the value of advance care planning.  Using a unique combination of financial acumen an…

Hospice aides hold a special place on the hospice team, bringing their hearts to the hard work of personal care for seriously ill patients.  Kathleen Schrek shares the stories that have inspired her,…

Hospice aides hold a…

Hospice aides hold a special place on the hospice team, bringing their hearts to the hard work of personal care for seriously ill patients.  Kathleen Schrek shares the stories that have inspired her, tested her, and taught her to take care of herself.  As a trained Hospice Aide, Death Doula, and Social Worker, Katie has experienced the full span of working with the dying.  As an individual who has experienced a very personal loss, she knows the cost of grieving.  Katie describes the lessons she’s learned about maintaining healthy boundaries, not only to care for herself, but to protect p…

During her caregiving experience, author Alexandra Grabbe came to know her mom on a deeper level and found joy in their last days together.   Alexandra juggled caregiving responsibilities and managin…

During her caregivin…

During her caregiving experience, author Alexandra Grabbe came to know her mom on a deeper level and found joy in their last days together.   Alexandra juggled caregiving responsibilities and managing her business, trying to give her best to both jobs.  Her mom Beatrice was a fierce career woman who knew her mind.  Alexandra experienced all the challenges that come with solo caregiving - overwhelm, fatigue - and yet was able to find the beauty as well.  Beatrice talked with people that her daughter couldn’t see, a phenomenon known as deathbed visioning.  Daughter and mother got comforta…

Today’s guest Alexandra Dionisio offers an honest look at the work of a pediatric death doula, describing how she has learned to sit with hard truths and face them with an open heart.  As the host …

Today’s guest Alex…

Today’s guest Alexandra Dionisio offers an honest look at the work of a pediatric death doula, describing how she has learned to sit with hard truths and face them with an open heart.  As the host of the Learning To Say Goodbye podcast, Alexandra is exploring death, grief, and spirituality.  After losing four people she loved in quick succession - none of whom she got to say goodbye to - Alexandra transformed her grief into a mission.  Her work now focuses on helping families say the goodbyes she never could and honoring endings.  Alexandra acknowledges the challenges of working with a f…

Grief expert Melissa Lunardini is featured in this conversation about the potential and pitfalls of AI use in grief care. Being able to leverage Technology for grief support can be a huge help, but a…

Grief expert Melissa…

Grief expert Melissa Lunardini is featured in this conversation about the potential and pitfalls of AI use in grief care. Being able to leverage technology for grief support can be a huge help, but as with any tech use, that support needs to be safe and appropriate.   Here are some highlights from this episode: Melissa believes it’s very important to recognize that while AI is technology, not all technology is AI.Text-based support (texting) is NOT AI; it’s simply SMS messaging that comes to a Smart Phone.  For many people who need support, receiving a text is the best way to access…