This week is National Palliative Care Week and the theme this year is Dying to Talk; Talking About Dying Won’t Kill You. This series of videos/blogs is to help you be more PRESENT when with your loved who is on their end journey. Today we look at the N,which stands for New.
There will be experiences on this journey for your loved one & yourself that are new – even if you have experienced the end journey of another loved one & even if you are well informed as to what to expect.
For my Mum & I on her end journey, we had to learn how to be in a relationship together that had a completely new dynamic to that which we had had previously. And it took a fair bit of give & take on both sides. There were tears for both of us at various times & loving, gentle communication with each of us explaining our perspectives helped us understand the other’s position & work through the challenges that we had.
For my Mum, the greatest issue for her was her loss of independence – even though at times she knew that some of the choices were sensible in terms of relinquishing things to me – it was still a very great loss that she grieved. It was also part of her journey to accepting that her physical life was coming to an end.
Sharing an end journey with a loved one needs a whole heap of love, patience & understanding from us.
If you are needing support, I do offer mentoring & a safe space to share for loved ones.
Peace & blessings, Sharon