Facing Mortality

Facing Mortality – Dying, Death and Grief

We all want to experience a good death – for ourselves and for our loved ones, but at this time, this desire appears to be a hope rather than standard practice in the medical field. Across historical time, the mores surrounding death have changed dramatically. People in Western cultures used to die at home, and family, friends, and clergy were responsible for their care. Over time, the location of death has transitioned to the hospital and medical professionals have assumed primary responsibility for the dying. Thus today, death is managed from a biomedical perspective, which tends often to eclipse the psychosocial and spiritual aspects of the experience.

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Being able to recognize and understand the psychosocial phases of living with a terminal illness and the bereavement process can help the dying and their caregivers to be prepared for what is to come as the illness progresses, as well as what one can expect after the loss. Some theoretically driven interventions can be self-taught and administered, which can help people regain a sense of control of their situation in life and death. These interventions promote autonomy which patients themselves indicate is vitally important to them.