“Death is the Medicine. We often think about medicine as a thing that staves off death, that keeps us from death, that battles death. And it’s a pretty powerful thing to invert that and to think that death itself is actually the medicine.” — Michael Hebb
It’s not unusual to fear death. It is the great unknown, after all. It brings the ultimate sadness and enormous loss. But to carry that fear always, obsessively, makes it a phobia. And that phobia has a name: Thanatophobia.
With COVID-19 very much a part of our lives, we have collective feelings of being uncomfortable or out of sorts. This feeling can be attributed to a global grief, and the antidote is being tender with ourselves – and others. Stressed out has become the new normal, and, clearly, it’s not healthy.
“Teaching my children, and myself, that you can’t always have things your way.” Emily Dagostino writes about teaching her children to be brave. Read the full article here > > Tags community, Death Conversations, Death Culture
This is an intimate and honest conversation with palliative-care pioneer Larry Librach throughout his own journey from cancer diagnosis to his death in 2013. Librach dedicated his life to helping patients navigate their final stages—with this book, author Phil Dwyer compassionately documents how Librach faced and prepared for his own death. http://conversationsondying.com/ Tags Books on Death, … Read more
For those with a life-ending diagnosis, there is so much to process. But one of the hardest things may be telling those you love. Click here to read the full article >> Tags Death Conversations, preparing for death, talking about death, terminal illness
An Update on the WYD Documentary Project
Who are we? Does consciousness continue after death? The more I looked into dying, the more intriguing it became, and I realized we are just not talking about these things.
— Johanna J. Lunn
No matter how organized a person, there are still things to be handled after someone dies. Items accumulated in a lifetime have to go somewhere, and family members left behind are given the task of cleaning and clearing out the home of someone they’ve lost.
“We are not used to this kind of collective grief in the air.”
In her new book, Edwidge Danticat contemplates close encounters with death.
Newsletters are few and we promise never to spam you or share your contact information.
For updates on our documentary and where you can see it, as well as new articles and podcasts from the WYD team – sign up!
Newsletters are few and we promise never to spam you or share your contact information.
