A doctor’s perspective on a good death
USA – I was working in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) as a medical resident when I learned that my 89-year-old
personal stories
A selection of personal stories gathered from around the web from people who have lost someone they love, how they cope with bereavement and how they keep their memories alive.
In mourning, I wanted a uniform of grief
My sister was the one to care about clothes. After she died, I began to notice how little we do to signal our grief.
At my father’s bedside, I learned about death
My father spent 10 days dying. He was 84 and he had lost his wife – my mother, whom he adored, and without whom he
How do you tell young children about death?
The passing of a beloved relative makes us face one of the hardest challenges of parenthood: explaining the concept of
Grappling with loneliness and misunderstanding
UK – Women make up 11 million of the 13 million bereaved spouses in the US, forced to cope with major life decisions when they
What death has taught me about life
When my previous partner died about a few years ago it catapulted me forward in every way imaginable. You don’t need that kind
Laughter at my father’s funeral, and a high-five
When my daughter high-fived me at her grandfather’s funeral, I knew everything was going to be okay. While my mother
I light candles, they make me feel somebody is here
‘Why do I light candles?” says Barbara. “I didn’t light them because you were coming. I light candles all the time, because when I
A long and painful goodbye to my dying grandparents
In July, I made my annual pilgrimage to Kottayam in the southern Indian state of Kerala to see my ageing grandparents.
How music can ease the deep ache of grief
Sufjan Stevens’s Carrie & Lowell is a meditation on the death of his mother. Danny Wright explains why the album
I help terminally-ill parents to leave stories behind
Working with cancer patients makes me more determined to experience all that life has to offer, but sometimes the pain is
What happens to my late husband’s digital life?
Since her husband, Iain, died seven months ago, Caroline Twigg has had to face an unexpected problem – what to do with his
On death, loss and the birthday of an angel
When I was a junior in high school, I lost my grandfather to cancer. Poppy was the kindest, most thoughtful and creative man
Dying people’s top 5 regrets may change your life
A palliative nurse who spent years caring for the dying has revealed the most common regrets we have at the end of our
The day my husband chose to die
Liesl Graz’s husband, Gerard, wanted to die with professional help rather than face a slow, painful decline. She recalls their last
The letter from my father five years after he died
My father never wrote me real letters. My mother was the letter writer in the family. Blue aerogrammes filled with choice tidbits
25 lessons I’ve learned since my mother’s death
One of the most trying times of my life happened six years ago when my mother lost her courageous battle with Stage IV
It’s amazing what the living expect of the dying
For much of my life, there was something about my mother I felt almost allergic to. Yet, as she approached death, for the
