Musings on Mortality: To die or not to die? The answer isn't so simple
"To be or not to be, that is the question," Hamlet articulates in Shakespeare's play "Hamlet." We can reword this question for those of us in the grip of the medical industrial complex: To die or not to die, that is the question. We have achieved the capacity to stave off death and we... Read more. #DeborahAlecson #death #thanatology #medicalindustrialcomplex #lungcancer #chemotherapy #terminallyill #healthinsurance #pancreaticcancer #dyingtime #oncologist
Thanatology and Poetry: A Conversation Between Deborah Golden Alecson and Thomas Fink
Thomas Fink: The thanatologist Deborah Golden Alecson is the author of Complicated Grief: A Collection of Poems (Finishing Line Press, 2014), We Are So Lightly Here: A Story About Conscious Dying (IntoPrint, Second Edition, 2014), Lost Lullaby (IntoPrint, Second Edition, 2014) and Alternative... Read more. #DeborahAlecson #ThomasFink #AutisticSpectrum #LostLullaby #WeAreSoLightlyHere #ConsciousDying #JohnDonne #thanatology #religion #deathwithdignity #deathphobic #deathanddyi
Musings on Mortality: Plan a dignified death on your own terms
Many people have expressed to me their desire for a dignified death for themselves and their loved ones. This is a challenge in a death-phobic culture where life at all costs (physically, emotionally and financially) is the norm. Too many of us know someone whose dying time was... Read more. #DeborahAlecson #thanatology #death #advanceddirectives #powerofattorney #healthcare #endoflife #TheFiveWishes #POLST #MOLST #terminallyill
Musings on Mortality: It's OK if grief creeps in during holidays
I was recently invited to speak at a Death Cafe in Kingston, N.Y., about grief and the holidays. The Death Cafe is a movement throughout the country where people come together of their own free will to talk about death, loss, end-of-life care, etc. These are not macabre gatherings and usually... Read more. #DeborahAlecson #thanatology #grief #holidays #death #loss #endoflifecare #Christmas
Musings on Mortality: Maybe if we celebrated death we wouldn't fear it
Mexicans really know how to have a good time when it comes to death. Their Dia de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead, celebrated on Nov. 1 and 2, is a time to party and honor ancestors. They entice their deceased loved ones with sumptuous foods and special activities to come out and play... Read more. #DeborahAlecson #thanatology #DiadelosMuertos #BerkshireEagle #DayoftheDead #calacas #calaveras #angelitos #Mezcal #Abrahamicreligions #Judaism #Christianity #Islam #AdamandEve #G
Musings on Mortality: Death-phobic culture lingers in 'grey zone'
Recently, I experienced what I can only call a parallel universe. I was in a neonatal intensive care unit to visit a mother and her extremely premature and critical newborn. This newborn... Read more. #neonatalintensivecareunit #ICU #deathphobic #medicaltechnology #mortality #empathy #compassion #grayzone #neonatologist #thanatology
Musings on Mortality: Life-or-death decisions in the 'grey zone'
The "life-at-all-costs" mentality that we have in our death-phobic culture applies not only to the elderly, but to newborns as well. Not surprisingly, the two most lucrative sources of medical... Read more. #neonatalintensivecareunit #ICU #deathphobic #medicaltechnology #mortality #empathy #compassion #grayzone #neonatologist #thanatology
Can We Ever Be Prepared to Die?
Ms. Alecson examines this contemporary and socially relevant discourse. Recorded in Palo Alto, CA on May 27, 2015. #medicalethics #conscious #family #dying #thanatology #death
Taylor & Francis Online: Converting Loss Into Language
Converting Loss Into Language DOI:10.1080/02682621.2014.980990 Deborah Golden Alecson MS Special Education Adjunct Instructor, pages 127-130 Professional publication. Paid Subscription required. Click here to read more. #death #dying #bereavement #excelsiorcollege #thanatology
Conscious Dying with Deborah Golden Alecson
Hospice Care in the Berkshires Presents "Inside Hospice Care" with host, Jane Salata, speaking with author, thanatologist, poet and educator, Deborah Golden Alecson, on the topic of conscious dying. Recorded in 2008. #hospicecare #eldercare #palliativecare #conscious #death #dying #thanatology #medicalethics #berkshires
