When You Die

When we hear the word "witch" we think of fairy tales . But witches (yes they are real!) are rooted in the "natural" instead of the supernatural. Sian Sibley is a traditional witch, animist and a lover of the green world. She embraces ecological death culture and draws on the ancient beliefs to create sustainability  in modern life. 

Using her skills as a CEO in health care management combined with her experience as a caregiver, Jennifer O'Brian shares advice from her latest book Care Boss, about how to balance providing a dignified death for our loved ones with a smooth transition from caregiver to griever.

Social media star Nurse Penny Smith talks about her new book Influencing Death, her transformation from addiction to celebrated hospice nurse, the state of hospice, and so much more.

Dr. Kathryn Mannix, a palliative care physician and bestselling author, shares fascinating insights from her extensive experience in compassionate end-of-life care. She discusses the differences between palliative care and hospice, advocating for earlier intervention to enhance patient comfort. Mannix offers practical advice on initiating difficult conversations about death and addresses common fears surrounding dying. With real stories, she normalizes the dying process while emphasizing dignity and person-centered care, leaving listeners with profound reflections on what happens after we die.

While grief is universal, it is also personal and unique to each to each of us. Gabby Jimenez is a hospice nurse, and end-of-life doula, and educator who uses her experience to improve end-of-life care and support grief. She talks about the need to address unresolved grief, otherwise it can be come staked, one experience after another like a pancake; the role of ritual and ceremony to help process grief; the importance of education; and so much more. Gabby can be found at www.TheHospiceHeart.net

Death is in the cards, so why not deal yourself a hand and have a laugh? That's what the Death Deck is about. Created by Lisa Pahl and her business partner Lori LoCicero,  The Death Deck offers a creative way to have those difficult conversations. As a Hospice and Emergency Medicine Social Worker, Lisa saw first hand how people avoid the topic of death, even those who work in end of life care. She joins Kelley Edwards for a chat about how important it really is to have these conversations before it's too late. 

Hospice physician, Dr. Karen Wyatt has been widely recognized for her compassionate presence with patients and her deep understanding of the spiritual aspect of health, illness and dying. In this episode, Johanna Lunn talks with Hospice physician Dr Karen Wyatt about Seven Lessons for the Living from the Dying, a beautiful book about Dr Wyatt's entre into hospice work after her father died and the many life-giving lessons she received from her patients.

Carol Reid and her husband were looking forward to spending their retirement together. But when Jim was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia , Carol found that although she had worked as a palliative care nurse, it did not prepare her to deal with the gradual loss of her own loved one. 

Michael Brooke is a skateboarding historian and publisher who worked as an Assistant Funeral Director during the Covid pandemic. These experiences inspired his recent book Endless Wave: Skateboarding, Death and Spirituality and the creation of Time for My Story which works with individuals to record stories and memories of their life though words and pictures. The result is a beautiful magazine to be shared with family and friends. Endless Wave is available for free at: http://www.timeformystory.com/Endless-Wave/

Briana Simmons is a lifecycle facilitator for black and LGBTQIA+ communities. She is also the founder of Unearthing Tradition, and works to reclaim dignified life cycles, and offering lifecycle support that creates unapologetic healing spaces for black folks.