Category: Uncategorized

End of Life, EOLPodcast, Uncategorized

Ep. 110 Threshold Choir: Singing to Comfort the Dying

kwyattmd

Learn how small choirs around the country are bringing beauty and solace to the bedsides of dying patients.

PodcastThreshold

ThresholdCollageIn this episode I share an interview with Kate Munger and Marti Mariette who have helped to spread the “threshold choir” movement across the U.S. and the world. You’ll hear clips of their beautiful singing! Learn more at www.thresholdchoir.org.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

IMG_0723I’m still traveling in Italy and you can keep track of my journey by following me on Instagram (kwyattmd) or Facebook (Karen Wyatt MD). I’m supposed to be getting some research and writing done for my new book on grief … but we’ll see how it goes. I might be just eating my way through the country!

Patreonbecome2xYou can support this podcast and the EOLU Interview Series with a small donation of $1 or $2 per month! As a thank-you gift you’ll receive a the Top 10 Interviews from EOLU, a recorded Q&A session each month (where I’ll be answering YOUR questions), and a chance to have me promote your work on this podcast! Learn more at Patreon.com/eolu.

FEATURED PRESENTATION:

Today I welcome my special guests Kate Munger, the founder of the Threshold Choir movement, and Marti Mariette, who is the director of the Santa Cruz Threshold Choir. They will share with us:

  • How and why Kate started the first Threshold Choir
  • The benefits of bedside singing for patients and their families
  • The benefits experienced by the singers themselves
  • How to start or join a Threshold Choir in your area
  • Samples of some special Threshold Choir music!

Get the Threshold Choir CDs here.

Tune in each Monday for a new episode and be sure to leave a review on iTunes to help me share this podcast far and wide!

Until next time …

Face Your Fear.                  BE Ready.                     Love Your Life.

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End of Life, EOLPodcast, Grief, Uncategorized

Ep. 96 A Caregiver’s Letter to His Dying Wife with Joe DiNardo

kwyattmd

Learn how this caregiver coped with his wife’s illness and rose above grief to experience unconditional love.

PodcastDinardo

JoeDiNardosmallIn this episode I share an interview with Joe DiNardo who talks about his book A Letter to My Wife and discusses how his long-term practice of mindfulness meditation helped him cope with being a caregiver and grieving his wife’s death.

www.alettertomywife.org

Thank you to all of my supporters on Patreon.com/eolu who have helped keep this podcast on the air! We just had our first “Hospice Happy Hour” hangout last week and it was a great success.

Patreonbecome2xIf you are interested in joining the hangouts or in having me promote your website, book, product, organization, or cause on this podcast, sign up to contribute just $1 or $2 per month and become a patron – Patreon.com/eolu!

My guest this week is Joe DiNardo, an attorney from Buffalo NY, who served as a caregiver for his wife Marcia during her cancer diagnosis, treatment and eventual death. As a long-term practitioner of Vipassana meditation, Joe found that his mindfulness meditation practice helped him through the difficult challenges of caregiving and grief and he has much wisdom to share with us from the perspective of a family caregiver.

DinardobookcoversmJoe is also the author of the newly released book A Letter to My Wife, which follows his journey with late wife Marcia, from cancer diagnosis through death. The website states that “His practice of mindfulness is explored throughout this heartfelt dedication and serves as the foundation for his recommendations on coping with loss and healing. His story, which includes both practical advice and profound wisdom, is a real-life example of how powerful and guiding meditation can be during life’s painful and challenging chapters. ”

In this interview you will learn:

  • What Joe learned about being a caregiver from accompanying Marcia through illness
  • His best advice for other family caregivers
  • How he discovered the practice of meditation and began to apply it to his life
  • How mindfulness meditation helped him on a daily basis during Marcia’s illness and throughout his own grief process

You can purchase A Letter to My Wife at Amazon.com: Get the book here!

Tune in next week when we will learn how to start a meditation practice with my guest Gia George who is a yoga and meditation teacher, singer-songwriter, and my daughter!

Until then remember:

Face Your Fears.                    BE Ready.                   Love Your Life.

Love,

karen-signature

 

End of Life, EOLPodcast, Uncategorized

Ep. 45: How to Get Free of Your Fear of Death

kwyattmd

Join Dr. Karen Wyatt as she discusses How to Rise Above the Fear of Death. She talks about why it’s important for our entire society to face our fears of death and get a handle on them. Then she offers 6 suggestions for getting over the fear of death:

  • Think about death – daily if possible.
  • Write about death – keep a journal and record your process of facing your fears there
  • Read about death – start reading some great books that have been written recently about death. You can download a list of books at the link below this message or go to this webpage: Recommended Reading.
  • Learn about death – take a class or workshop, listen to End-of-Life University interviews.
  • Talk about death – join a Death Cafe or download the Conversation Project Starter Kit 
  • Work with death – become a hospice volunteer. Go to the NHPCO website to find a hospice near you.

You can hear about some great books to read by listening to Episode 33 or you can download a list right here: EOL Book Club Template.

Remember to go to Patreon.com/eolu if you’d like to support this podcast and the EOLU Interview series with a small monthly donation.

Meanwhile:

Face Your Fears.            BE Ready.            Love Your Life.

See you next week!

End of Life, EOLPodcast, Uncategorized

Ep. 25 Choosing Death by VSED with Phyllis Shacter

kwyattmd

Join Dr. Karen Wyatt and her guest Phyllis Shacter, an advocate for natural dying through voluntary stopping of eating and drinking (VSED.) Phyllis will discuss the story of her husband Alan who made the choice to stop eating and drinking rather than progress into the later stages of Alzheimer’s disease. In this interview you will learn:

  • factors that must be considered before making a decision for VSED as a means of dying with dignity
  • the role a caregiver must play in this type of decision
  • a personal perspective on the process of dying when a choice for VSED has been made
End of Life, EOLPodcast, Hospice, Uncategorized

Ep. 19 The Future of Hospice Care in the U.S. with Donald Schumacher PsyD

kwyattmd

Dr. Wyatt interviews Donald Schumacher, President and CEO of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization.

In this interview you will learn:
-How hospice care is growing in the U.S.
-What still needs to change in end-of-life care
-What you can do to promote better end-of-life care for yourself, your loved ones, your community and our nation

End of Life, EOLPodcast, Uncategorized

Ep. 16 Getting the Best Care Possible at the End of Life with Ira Byock MD

kwyattmd

Dr. Karen Wyatt interviews palliative care physician Dr. Ira Byock about his vision for improving care at the end-of-life.

This interview will focus on:
-Defining the “best care possible” for you and your loved ones
-Why preparation for end-of-life care is important
-How to advocate with your healthcare providers for the quality of care you want