The Art of Conversation Through Serious Illness:Lessons for Caregivers PDF Download

Author: Richard McQuellon
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 9780195389227
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 160

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Book Description
Every day, thousands of people receive a diagnosis of serious, life-threatening illness, and their families and friends suddenly become caregivers. Despite the best of intentions it is not always easy to communicate well under these circumstances, or find deep empathy for something one has never before experienced. When is it best to speak, and when to be silent? How can someone provide real comfort, and how can relationships with loved ones facing serious illness be enhanced in this most difficult time?This book is about how to be an encouraging caregiver and friend under the most difficult circumstances, when the possibility of death is all too real The authors believe that open dialogue must not be avoided until the last minute when opportunities will be limited, but that caregivers and loved ones can embrace this time, mortal time, honestly as a way to sensitively and compassionately engage with those for whom a central fact of life is realized--that all of our lives are time-limited.In The Art of Conversation Through Serious Illness, the authors consider how to best listen to and speak with one facing life-threatening illness, with lessons on being a primary conversation partner, becoming properly empathic and receiving empathy, maintaining everyday conversation, using platitudes appropriately, understanding healthy denial, and talking about dying. Offering bedside guidance usually only available to professionals and peppered with insightful anecdotes from the authors' own experiences, this gentle, succinct book is appropriate for anyone going through this uniquely difficult yet universal life experience.

Author: Richard P. McQuellon
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0197500315
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 192

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Book Description
Every day, thousands of people are diagnosed with cancer or other life-threatening illnesses. Despite the best of intentions, it is not always easy to communicate well under these circumstances or find deep empathy for something one has never experienced. When is it best to speak, and when to be silent? How can someone provide real comfort, and how can relationships with loved ones facing serious illness be enhanced in this most difficult time? Written by a psychosocial oncologist and psychologist-theologian, The Art of Conversation in Cancer Care: Lessons for Caregivers offers practical suggestions for health professionals, families, and friends about talking to one who has cancer. This revised and updated second edition is organized around the themes of mortal time and healing conversation with cancer patients and their caregivers. Mortal time is not so much a specific period, but rather, the psychological experience encountering mortality that often accompanies the diagnosis of cancer. The first section of the book articulates the many ways people experience mortal time, including a range of adaptive and less adaptive methods. Next, the basic elements of healing conversation are delineated, with an emphasis on the hope that can spring from talking with a trusted companion. Empathy, listening carefully, and responding thoughtfully and compassionately are discussed. In the final section, the authors offer guidance for caregivers. This section includes material on the risks and costs of companionship as well as personal virtues that help a person navigate the demands of mortal time with their loved one. The authors discuss resilience and the consequences of absorbing suffering including empathy shift where the cancer caregiver becomes less empathic with minor illnesses in others. They conclude with the power of healing conversation in mortal time as a source of hope. Throughout, numerous patient vignettes illustrate the art of conversation in cancer medicine.

Author: Richard McQuellon
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199750785
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 160

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Book Description
Every day, thousands of people receive a diagnosis of serious, life-threatening illness, and their families and friends suddenly become caregivers. Despite the best of intentions it is not always easy to communicate well under these circumstances, or find deep empathy for something one has never before experienced. When is it best to speak, and when to be silent? How can someone provide real comfort, and how can relationships with loved ones facing serious illness be enhanced in this most difficult time? This book is about how to be an encouraging caregiver and friend under the most difficult circumstances, when the possibility of death is all too real The authors believe that open dialogue must not be avoided until the last minute when opportunities will be limited, but that caregivers and loved ones can embrace this time, mortal time, honestly as a way to sensitively and compassionately engage with those for whom a central fact of life is realized--that all of our lives are time-limited. In The Art of Conversation Through Serious Illness, the authors consider how to best listen to and speak with one facing life-threatening illness, with lessons on being a primary conversation partner, becoming properly empathic and receiving empathy, maintaining everyday conversation, using platitudes appropriately, understanding healthy denial, and talking about dying. Offering bedside guidance usually only available to professionals and peppered with insightful anecdotes from the authors' own experiences, this gentle, succinct book is appropriate for anyone going through this uniquely difficult yet universal life experience.

Author: Richard P. McQuellon
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0197500293
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 161

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Book Description
"We use "mortal time" in our work to mean the experience of human beings confronting the prospect of death. This confrontation can stimulate intense feelings, a flurry of thoughts, and erratic or unusual behavior. In the broadest sense, mortal time is entered whenever death comes near, and that can happen either directly or vicariously. Hearing the words, "you have cancer," and signing a medical consent form where death is a possible medical "complication," are direct experiences of mortal time. Learning of a loved one's cancer diagnosis, losing a family member in an automobile accident, or reading about a missing child are vicarious experiences of mortal time. The power of tragedy in the theatre can brings us into the experience of mortality. King Lear's madness in the face of betrayal propels him toward an untimely death. The focus in this book is on the particular and powerful experience of entering mortal time when someone receives a diagnosis of cancer, a life-threatening illness. As we noted in our introduction to this second edition, the experience of mortal time in cancer medicine has changed with new treatments. A cancer diagnosis could mean an illness where rapid progression toward death is looming, or where there is only the distant possibility of death. Now there is a third option: the prospect of longer survival with metastatic disease due to the promise of additional therapies, facilitated by next generation genome sequencing. This means, a lengthier period of mortal time and uncertainty for many cancer patients. MORTAL TIME: HOW LONG DOES IT LAST? There are, of course, many instances in which people far exceed their statistically predicted life span. This holds true whether it be the prediction of a physician in the midst of treating an illness or the projected life span of an insurance life-expectancy table. In Part II we give an example of how misleading statistics can be when we discuss the idea of false hope. When mortal time looms with the diagnosis of cancer, it may stretch from days to years, with patients encountering both helpful treatments that lead to periods of remission and recurrences of disease requiring additional treatment. Some patients may never experience a time when it is apparent that they are dying until the last days. The interval between living and dying that we are concerned with here is not primarily chronological time, measured in days, weeks, and months. The hallmark of mortal time is the person's unique biological, psychological, social, and spiritual experience of the prospect and meaning of death, a prospect that confronts their caregivers as well. Mortal time is "kairos" time, the ancient Greek word meaning the time of decisions. When someone enters mortal time directly, their caregivers enter the same time zone vicariously. What they do together in mortal time, especially how they speak and listen to each other, affects the quality and meaning of life for all involved, in the moment and beyond"--

Author: Richard McQuellon
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 9780199752867
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 160

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Book Description
Every day, thousands of people receive a diagnosis of serious, life-threatening illness, and their families and friends suddenly become caregivers. Despite the best of intentions it is not always easy to communicate well under these circumstances, or find deep empathy for something one has never before experienced. When is it best to speak, and when to be silent? How can someone provide real comfort, and how can relationships with loved ones facing serious illness be enhanced in this most difficult time? This book is about how to be an encouraging caregiver and friend under the most difficult circumstances, when the possibility of death is all too real The authors believe that open dialogue must not be avoided until the last minute when opportunities will be limited, but that caregivers and loved ones can embrace this time, mortal time, honestly as a way to sensitively and compassionately engage with those for whom a central fact of life is realized--that all of our lives are time-limited. In The Art of Conversation Through Serious Illness, the authors consider how to best listen to and speak with one facing life-threatening illness, with lessons on being a primary conversation partner, becoming properly empathic and receiving empathy, maintaining everyday conversation, using platitudes appropriately, understanding healthy denial, and talking about dying. Offering bedside guidance usually only available to professionals and peppered with insightful anecdotes from the authors' own experiences, this gentle, succinct book is appropriate for anyone going through this uniquely difficult yet universal life experience.

Author: Lawrence G. Calhoun
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 0415898692
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 186

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Book Description
From the authors who pioneered the concept of posttraumatic growth comes Posttraumatic Growth in Clinical Practice, a book that brings the study of growth after trauma into the twenty-first century. Clinicians will find a framework that's easy to use and flexible enough to be tailored to the needs of particular clients and specific therapeutic approaches. And, because it utilizes a model of relating described as "expert companionship," clinicians learn how to become most empathically effective in helping a variety of trauma survivors. Clinicians will come away from this book having learned how to assess posttraumatic growth, how to address it in treatment, and they'll also have a basic grasp of the ways the changes they're promoting will be received in various cultural contexts. Case examples show how utilizing a process developed from an empirically-based model of posttraumatic growth can promote important personal changes in the aftermath of traumatic events.

Author: Joanne Reynolds
Publisher: Tate Publishing
ISBN: 1607999684
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 350

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Book Description
When the clouds of serious illness or injury cover your world in darkness, it can be hard to find any blessings. But there is light to be found. Every day, millions of people are engaged in the difficult and demanding work of care giving. This job is one that many are completely unprepared for and that most will perform at least once. Caregiversthe family and friends of the patientmust assist their loved ones in numerous ways while engaged in their own struggle with the patients' medical journeys. With so many things happening, caregivers can feel lost as to what to do. Joanne Reynolds has been a caregiver multiple times. Here, she shares the ten crucial lessons she has found are important to the care giving process. Learn how to: distinguish between and handle the five stages of grief; connect the mind, body, and spirit; deal with the diagnosis; be an advocate for the patient; find emotional support for the patient and caregiver; manage the stress of care giving; improve communication with doctors, the patient, and the patient's team; and more! With advice from other caregivers and experts as well as examples from Joanne's experiences, caregivers will come away prepared for the storm ahead, ready to weather even the darkest times with the help of the ultimate Caregiver. These lessons will guide the caregiver's Search for Light, leading them to the blessings that can be found amidst the darkness.

Author: Karen Speerstra
Publisher: Augsburg Fortress Publishers
ISBN: 1506478875
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 240

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Book Description
The Divine Art of Dying aims to empower people who are dying to live as fully as they can until life's end. The book includes reflections from Karen Speerstra's hospice journal and essays written jointly by Speeratra and Herbert Anderson on learning to wait, letting go, giving gifts, and telling stories. Each chapter has suggestions for caregivers.

Author: Katy Butler
Publisher: Scribner
ISBN: 1501135473
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 288

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Book Description
This “comforting…thoughtful” (The Washington Post) guide to maintaining a high quality of life—from resilient old age to the first inklings of a serious illness to the final breath—by the New York Times bestselling author of Knocking on Heaven’s Door is a “roadmap to the end that combines medical, practical, and spiritual guidance” (The Boston Globe). “A common sense path to define what a ‘good’ death looks like” (USA TODAY), The Art of Dying Well is about living as well as possible for as long as possible and adapting successfully to change. Packed with extraordinarily helpful insights and inspiring true stories, award-winning journalist Katy Butler shows how to thrive in later life (even when coping with a chronic medical condition), how to get the best from our health system, and how to make your own “good death” more likely. Butler explains how to successfully age in place, why to pick a younger doctor and how to have an honest conversation with them, when not to call 911, and how to make your death a sacred rite of passage rather than a medical event. This handbook of preparations—practical, communal, physical, and spiritual—will help you make the most of your remaining time, be it decades, years, or months. Based on Butler’s experience caring for aging parents, and hundreds of interviews with people who have successfully navigated our fragmented health system and helped their loved ones have good deaths, The Art of Dying Well also draws on the expertise of national leaders in family medicine, palliative care, geriatrics, oncology, and hospice. This “empowering guide clearly outlines the steps necessary to prepare for a beautiful death without fear” (Shelf Awareness).

Author: Richard P. McQuellon
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190091037
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 208

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Book Description
Nell M. came to her therapist with an unusual problem. She was disappointed that her metastatic breast cancer was not progressing as predicted. She had hoped breast cancer would lead to death, preventing her from witnessing her spouse's mental deterioration from Alzheimer's disease. This is how Nell's story began. As Nell became increasingly aware of her death on the near horizon, the therapy sessions with the author were recorded and transcribed. The Nell Dialogues: Conversation in Mortal Time consists of twelve of Nell's illness narratives that explore the challenges of managing the physical and emotional demands of cancer, relationship issues with family and health care professionals, and disturbing, anxiety provoking thoughts as well as the mourning that accompanies the end of life. These dialogues trace Nell's acceptance of, and struggle with, the practical obstacles to achieving a good death. They also offer a window on the world of patients and their caregivers facing a life-threatening illness together. A commentary by the author accompanies each dialogue, giving the reader insights on the therapist's thinking during the counselling sessions and offering context and lessons learned from them. Nell's vibrant voice is a beacon throughout the narratives, sometimes sad, yet always hopeful for a good death. Her ability to navigate the difficult territory of mortal time and dying informs the reader about how death might be approached with grace and dignity.