This is Good Grief’s second reflection on our consumer survey which asks: What is your biggest question about dying and what is your biggest fear? We’ve had 35 responses until sharing this story now. But the survey is on-going, so we’ll continue to share the results – since it will help … Read more
by Sandra Moon. This article was updated on April 13, 2023. It discusses end of life conversations. ‘I feel his organs are shutting down,’ my mother said on the phone. But how? Two days before Mum had rung me to ask for help getting Dad to the emergency ward at … Read more
This article was updated on April 6, 2023. It discusses belief diverse funeral services. By Sandra Moon In Australia, according to the 2016 Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data, the religion with the largest affiliation is Christian with twelve million two hundred thousand people. At just about half that number, … Read more
This article was updated on April 3, 2023. It discusses DIY coffins. By Sandra Moon Are you with me in thinking the funeral industry is incredibly expensive? Does giving choice and power to the dying seem like a good idea? With all this in mind would you, could you build … Read more
Last Days, a HammondCare program designed to help people with “knowledge and tools to navigate a person’s last days”was launched in February and is now taking registrations from people in the community. Last Days provides “practical and effective education to improve knowledge and confidence for those caring for someone in … Read more
Your Advance Care plan tells people what your wishes for your medical care are, when you can no longer speak for yourself. An Advance Care Directive is the formalised version of your plan. Advance Care Planning Australia is holding events across Australia during Advance Care Planning Week. Get more information. … Read more
This article was updated on March 11, 2023. It discusses death and palliative care in nursing homes. We’re still hearing uncomfortable stories from readers about the deaths of their elderly in nursing homes. Sometimes only a little thing went wrong, making the family sad for the dying person, and undoing … Read more
This article was updated on March 9, 2023. It discusses a final farewell. Today we’d simply like to share a lovely, very real story by our LinkedIn connection Christine Pedley who lives at Ferntree Gully, Victoria. Christine has been an authorised marriage celebrant for 11 years. She “co-creates ceremonies that … Read more
by Sandra Moon. This article was updated 7 November, 2022. It features sustainable burials. As a child I was intrigued by a Native American tradition of placing their deceased on a platform in a tree. It seemed so natural to me to decompose through exposure to the sun, rain and … Read more
This article was updated on 2 September, 2022. It discusses preferences of places to die. The work of Dr Katrin Gerber has caught our eye. This is because whenever the question comes up about choosing where someone wants to die, it can be hard to gauge accurately, and Katrin has … Read more
This article was updated on 31 August, 2022. It features a funeral photographer capturing kindness. As Good Grief! roams, peeping in quiet corners, delving into resources from country to country and looking at new and old ways of doing death, this one has popped up, right on our doorstep, only … Read more
This article on advance care planning and dementia patients was updated on 23 August, 2022. A patient who doesn’t have legal capacity because of dementia, even the early signs of it, can’t sign documents such as wills and the assigning of their power of attorney. But what about their advance … Read more
This article on choosing the executor of your will was updated on 19 August, 2022. Choosing the executor of your will is one of the most important decisions you will ever make. But what does an executor actually have to do? Who makes a good executor? And what do you … Read more
‘Where will I be buried?’ was updated on August 12, 2022. This issue may seem odd to some – but to others it’s very important. In Australia the final resting place has deep significance for Aboriginal people. But I knew a non-Indigenous woman who was troubled by not knowing where … Read more
Death doulas are becoming increasingly popular in Australia – so what exactly do death doulas do? Because theirs is only an emerging field, roles and what we can expect from people who define themselves as ‘death doulas’ can vary. But what is becoming increasingly clear is that more and more … Read more
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