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Having trouble viewing this email? Click here to view in your browser. Nora had been experiencing
horrific side pain from a recurrence of shingles. At age 93, she was debilitated and moved from her lifelong home to a skilled nursing facility. She appeared to be deteriorating, so her nephew Tom (Nora's healthcare proxy) thought it was best to have her transported to the ER and determine if there were any reversible causes. Was she dehydrated? Did she have a urinary infection?
The emergency staff descended on Nora like vultures, slapping a blood pressure cuff on her arm, sticking her with needles, and asking more questions than she could answer. It was like awakening from a dream state and living in a nightmare. Nora was given the impression that something was wrong with her, and she had to get better. Nora wasn’t buying it, but she acquiesced to her nephew’s
wishes.
Nora received IV fluids and had a catheter inserted to obtain urine. Her laboratory studies confirmed that she was dehydrated, and her urinalysis and chest x-ray were negative for any infection. Nora was cleared to return to her skilled nursing facility for continued pain management. Nora was
dumbfounded by all the fuss being made about her health, and she wondered why she couldn’t be left alone.
Winter is the perfect time for caregivers to reflect upon the lives of their loved ones and what matters most to them. These five images will give you solace for a long winter’s
nap:
WHEN OPTION B IS OPTION A
If Option A is grieving indefinitely, "Option B" is a
book that offers a different approach and perspective. It provides three lessons for how to move beyond grieving. Most people cannot fathom getting over the loss of a loved one until they open up their hearts broadly.
There is an impermanence and continuity to living, loving and grieving as appreciated by the lyrics of "The
Rose:"
Some say grief it is a river, that drowns the tender reed. Some say grief it is a razor, that leaves your soul to bleed. Some say grief, it is a hunger, an endless aching need. I say grief, it is a flower, and you, its only
seed. By using your heart’s ability to trust, to acknowledge and to let go of grief, "the rose" demonstrates that love never dies.
February 7, 20188am - 2:00pmThe 4 Seasons to Caregiving Symposium Del Webb Medical Center – Auditoriums A & B 14502 W Meeker Blvd. Sun City West, AZ 85375
Is Palliative Care Right For YOU? by Kevin J. Haselhorst, MD The key to making medical decisions is understanding palliative care: Palliative Care is the bridge between advance care and end-of-life
care.
When you no longer have your health, how will you spend your time and money?
Is quality of life more important than staying alive at any cost?
This booklet will teach you: - What palliative care means in practical terms
- The value of making your own medical decisions
- How to gain peace of mind with chronic
illness
Command respect during your next doctor visit by saying, "I receive palliative care."
Learn more at KevinHaselhorst.com
MUSIC THERAPY: A FIELD OF BUTTERFLIES
Attending the Brookdale community Butterfly Release at the Margaret T. Hance Park to honor loved one’s who passes this year made me appreciate and recognize a different perspective on music therapy. Music, like a butterfly, is not fleeting. It hovers in the landscape and exists as everlasting and evergreen. It can lift the heart, prompting
children to rise from their seat and start chasing butterflies spontaneously. Inevitably, one song will tap us on the shoulder, like a butterfly landing there, triggering an everlasting memory of a loved one.
The angelic voices of music therapists Mary and Ellie singing "Somewhere over the Rainbow" at the ceremony offered this proposition: "Someday I'll wish upon a star and wake up
where the clouds are far behind me." Duh! I tend to look at the clouds on the horizon and often forget that many of my dreams have come true. It dawned on me that the clouds were far behind me when I acknowledged my dad as my hero five years before he died. The butterfly landing on the woman’s shoulder reminded me that dad was the "Wind Beneath My Wings." #TributeTuesday Share a tribute to a loved one who has died, or to mark the anniversary of their death.
From December 12th: #TributeTuesday: I'm in awe of death doulas who help patients navigate the "birthing" process at the end of life from a scary experience to
a sacred moment.
#WishfulWednesdayHave a wish for the weekend? Post your plan on Wednesday. Practice expressing end-of-life wishes during the prime
of life. From December 6th: #WishfulWednesday: Plan to not be one of those "givers" who takes care of others and neglects to take care of him/herself.
How to Approach Living While
Dying
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Living While Dying Please support this film that makes “living while dying” easier for everyone to engage.
Help spread the word about this Generosity
fundraiser! UPDATE
Immense Possibilities is a weekly public TV and internet series that featured an interview with Cathy Zheutlin
about Living While Dying.
Watch the interview: (10 minutes) Watch on Vimeo
Cathy needs to raise more money for the music, the sound mix and the color corrections.
Please help get the word out to others you think might want to back this project!
Only have time for 24 seconds?
As Cathy explores the reality of her loved ones facing death, she turns the camera around and looks at herself.
How will she approach living while dying?
The end result of the film is to have viewers ponder and pick their own rite of passage.
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