Best Life Best Death

After Loss Professionals such as Rachel Donnelly play a unique role for all there is to be done after someone has died. Different from an attorney, more nuanced than an organizer, and with the know-how to do far more than just drop things off at a thrift store, Rachel can act as the ”air traffic controller” to manage the entire project of settling an estate. Whether it involves going through proba...

The range of unique urns is as wide as the artists who are making them! This week I talk with woodworker C.C. Boyce, who developed a two-part wooden urn suitable for the cremated remains of people or pets. They come in various woods and sizes, and there is space in the bottom for cremains and space on top for a  plant. Hear how she got into this work and why one of her pieces might fit beautifully...

In Part 2 of our conversation, Sam and I talk further about compassionate options at the end of life. How have various state Medical Aid In Dying laws been passed? What part do data, numbers and personal stories play in helping us to better understand the issues? Why talk to your doctor about your values and options *now*? What compassionate end-of-life choices are there for those with dementia, a...

This week and next, Sam and I dive and digress into several aspects of the end of life. How do we die? How did the organization Compassion & Choices come to be? What is Medical Aid in Dying? What do I need to know about Advance Directives? How do the choices that I write down now impact my future? The organization Compassion and Choices has deep roots and a wide spread of branches, offering us...

This week I talk with Kayla Nakano, one of the founders of a podcast about pet loss. Kayla and I talk about these loving relationships and the complex grief that can accompany their death – which is almost always so much sooner than we would like. What helps people through the loss of a beloved animal companion? What is “normal” for this type of loss? And how can we support friends and family thro...

This week Kim Mooney (thanatolgist and founder of Practically Dying) and I continue our conversation about “exit ramps.” Listen to learn about: palliative sedation, voluntary stopping of eating and drinking (VSED) and Medical Aid in Dying (MAID). What do each of these terms mean? What are the laws in various states? How do these processes work? What might these choices mean - legally, medically an...

This week I talk with Kim Mooney, long-time end-of-life educator and expert in the field. If you want to hear a couple of high-energy, fast-talking women discuss how we die… you’ve come to the right place! In Part 1 this week, Kim and I get into: keeping bodies alive vs people thriving; palliative care and hospice; exit ramps at the end of life - what are the various trajectories of how we die? An...

Rob and I discuss drugs like psilocybin, MDMA and ketamine. How are they impacting the therapeutic world and the end-of-life world? What can come from ketamine-assisted therapy? What might a few sessions of this look like? What are the origins of these plant medicines and how are doctors, therapists and the pharmaceutical industry working with them lately? Rob says that he sees people experience &...

Avani Dilger's career and calling in working with addiction, trauma, connection, and the existential questions that we all seek to explore began early in her life with the deaths of two friends. I would say that nearly everyone I know has been touched by addiction, so the questions we ask in the episode are vital to all of us: What is it that people seek through addiction? Why is this such an...

One of many online “story capturing” programs, I gave my dad a gift of Storyworth last Christmas. How did it work, what did he have to do, how did it all come together, and was it worth the time, cost and effort? I'll tell you about our experience plus a few thoughts about why I think sharing our stories matters. As author Charles deLint says, "We're all made of stories. When they fin...

Today’s conversation is with the two of the Founders of Titan Casket, Scott Ginsberg and Joshua Siegel. As they say on the Titan website: “Titan Casket was founded with a singular mission: to offer designer caskets at revolutionary prices, while driving affordability and transparency in the funeral industry.” What are they doing? How it is different? How is this business model changing the funeral...

The mission of the Rocky Mountain Refuge for End of Life Care is "to offer a dignified alternative to dying alone on the street for those with terminal illness." In this podcast, you’ll learn from the interim executive director, Brother James Partick Hall, about the often challenging end-of-life trajectories for unhoused people in the Denver community. JP shares clear information plus mo...

Barbara Karnes, RN and I talk about the ins and out of the holiday season – the awkwardness at times, group gatherings, being alone. What things can be helpful if grief is in your heart? How do we support ourselves, ask for help, and reach out to others? As we chat, Barbara and I end up taking this well beyond December, with Barbara encouraging us to consider how we might live with a mindset of “m...

This podcast is all about the role of being a caregiver: what situations put us in this role, who is finding themselves doing the bulk of caregiving, why does caregiving feel different in this era, and what can we do to support caregivers? Barbara is a practical, heartful end-of-life educator, and when you combine her wisdom with my curiosity - it's a good listen! As Barbara says, "I think we need...

Greg Dale of Artful Ashes (Seattle, WA) says simply: ”We create beautiful, tangible treasures. Something that people can hold and remember the good times.” How do they do this? By creating unique blown glass art from cremated remains! Find out how this unique glass art business got its spark to begin, how people come from all over to participate in the ceremonies of making these pieces, and about...

Theresa and I run the gamut in this conversation, from her many experiences as a nurse to her sudden role as a breast cancer patient. Her book -- Healing: When a Nurse Becomes a Patient -- forms the basis of our wide-ranging conversation. We cover her experience plus compassion, empathy, overwhelm, our for-profit medical system, and the varied challenges/obstacles/mazes that patients face. This di...

“We kind of are a ‘just say yes’ funeral home!” says Seth Viddal of The Natural Funeral. Seth is full of information about what they offer at their location in the Front Range of Colorado, and I was fascinated to learn all about it. He and I discuss water cremation, flame cremation, natural reduction, burial, green burial, private land burial, and open air pyre cremations. This episode may pique y...

What does a singer/songwriter have to do with Best Life Best Death? Just listen, as Peter Mayer  offers an uplifting reminder of the beauty in the everyday and thoughtful reflections on our place in the cosmos. He plays an acoustic version of “You’re Not Just a Wave, You’re the Whole Ocean Wide” – a remarkable unrecorded song, based on a metaphor from "Tuesdays with Morrie." Plus a simple, ac...

Alexandra Jo and I dig into the work of Parting Stone, a company which creates beautiful, solid, rock-like pieces from cremation remains. We talk about what they look and feel like, as well as how these stones support “the creative ways that people can ritualize grieving." We digress into talk about playing in cemeteries while growing up, disenfranchised grief (what's that? - you'll soon learn), a...

Enjoy this fast-paced conversation with hospice nurse, end-of-life doula, and conscious dying educator Gabrielle Jimenez of The Hospice Heart. Gabby has so much to offer, and we discuss some of the questions in her most recent book, "What Would Gabby Say?" She talks about the power of learning about what to expect around death, the transformation that comes in facing and sharing our grief, and her...

This week I have a striking conversation with Dana Frost of the Forced Joy Project. In the depth of her husband’s illness, Dana and Brad decided that they were going to need to find a way to “force some joy.” No matter how bad the day was, together they kept finding moments of humor, connection and yes – joy. We talk about her life experiences, why stories about the people we love matter, and how...

“In the Best 3 Months course , you lead us through big picture questions that ultimately ask: Are you going in the direction you want to be going?” When my podcast guest -- Muralist and Live Artist Taylor Gallegos -- made this comment, I could not have been happier. For me, this is what it’s all about: reflecting, talking, learning from one another, and authentically clarifying: what’s my directio...

Pediatric expert Bonnie Compton and I discuss the death of children. Combining years of experience as an end-of-life doula, child and adolescent therapist, and parent coach, Bonnie brings compassion and practical advice to this difficult subject. Our conversation includes: What can be done to support bereaved parents? How do such deaths affect grandparents/siblings/friends? How can support be aske...

In episode #56, I talk with Marcy Lindberg, Co-Owner with her husband of Stardust Memorials. Specializing in the online sales of cremation remains and cremation jewelry, Marcy shares so much dynamic and useful information on subjects like: choosing an urn; scattering ashes at land or sea; biodegradable options; selecting memorial jewelry; buying online; and the benefits of preplanning. Listen and...

This week’s podcast speaks to the heart about music at the end of life. My guest, Jan Booth, says: “Music can support and bolster people, especially in hard times. It can be inspiring; it can bring people together; it can foster connection; it can change the dynamic in a room, or in a house, or in someone’s internal state. Music can bring a sacred quality to the end of life; it can shift the energ...