WELCOME TO OUR BLOG
Welcome to the SevenPonds.com blog – a community-driven extension of SevenPonds.com! I hope you find comfort and community in the resources and stories featured here. I’m always happy to hear from readers and can be reached at suzette@sevenponds.com.
FEATURED
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Final Messages of the Dying: Finding meaning in metaphors and symbolic language -
Will I Die in Pain?: For patients living with a terminal illness, the fear of pain is very real -
When A Child Has A Terminal Illness: Reflections on a short, full life, part two
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Categories
Tag Archives: terminal illness
Spinning Out of Control
Life doesn’t stop because someone in the family is terminally ill.
One of the difficulties that people living with a terminal illness must deal with is the fact that life goes on much as it did before. Despite the “new normal” of doctor appointments and lab tests and physical changes associated … Continue reading
Is Your Dying Loved One Craving Sweets? Let Them Eat Cake!
Sweets and other favorite treats can nourish the soul when the body is shutting down
When asked what she wanted for lunch, Shirley quickly replied, “Ice cream!” She winced when her daughter reprimanded her. “Mom, you know you have to watch your sweets. You have to eat something healthy.” At age 92, Shirley was dying … Continue reading
What Is Anticipatory Grief?
People living with terminal illness face grief and loss long before death occurs
When psychiatrist Elisabeth Kubler-Ross released her seminal book “On Death and Dying” in 1969, she based her writings on the experiences of people who were facing certain death. Through a series of interviews and conversations with terminally ill children and … Continue reading
When Pretense Is All That’s Left
For some people who are seriously ill, keeping up appearances is more important than support
Some time ago, a friend told me about an acquaintance whom she hadn’t seen for a long time. The acquaintance had a long history of health challenges, but as far as my friend knew, she was doing well. Then the … Continue reading
Caring for a Dying Loved One? Be Gentle With Yourself.
Dying is unpredictable and messy. Don’t blame yourself if it doesn’t go according to plan
Tani Bahti, RN, CT, CHPN, offers practical on-hand guidance to demystify the dying process. An RN since 1976, Tani has been working to empower families and health care professionals to have the best end-of-life experience possible both through education and … Continue reading
Enhancing Communication About Goals of Care Through Video Interventions
How videos can improve communication at the end of life
In a 2023 study conducted jointly by Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, researchers uncovered a promising strategy to facilitate crucial goals of care discussions among elderly hospital patients. The study revealed that showing patients videos depicting real-life scenarios … Continue reading
