Death by Joy
DEATH BY JOY is an escorted journey to the next world. Your guide is Mary, a quirky, selfless, funny, and irrepressible fifty-five-year-old who is told she will be dead in weeks without aggressive medical intervention. But Mary chooses to forgo that route. The physical has a time and place; what matters more to Mary is that essence—call it […]
What’s for afters?
Much attention has been accorded to Eben Alexander’s account of his recent near-death experience. While NDEs are two a penny, this NDE was experienced by a Harvard-educated neurosurgeon, no less. This lent Alexander’s NDE a clear edge in terms of credibility. It is easy enough to write off the NDEs of ordinary people as delusions. […]
There has to be dignity in death
Lynne Watson, a celebrant, has brought to our attention a powerful and poignant article in the Daily Mail. Thank you, Lynne. It’s about a doctor, Kate Granger, who is 29 and dying of cancer, has said no to any more chemotherapy. Here are some extracts to give you a taste: As a doctor, I am very […]
Don’t bring your work home
Dr Melvin Morse is a leading researcher into the near-death experiences of children. He is the author of Amazing Revelations of What it Feels Like to Die. You can find his website here. Dr Morse has just been arrested for allegedly waterboarding his 11-year-old daughter. According to the Times, “Police did not say if Dr Morse’s punishments […]
Allowing death to arrive naturally, as desired
The sage doctor who stood at the bedside as I held my dying grandmother said, “We seem to die one organ at a time.” I, however, have come to believe that we are too focused on the failing of the organs to rightly perceive the dying of the person. Death comes in many different ways, […]
This morning I stood at my grave…
Posted by Charles Philip Gould, one of the architects and strategists of New Labour, died of cancer at the end of last year. Before he died he bought himself a grave at Highgate cemetery. Below is an extract from his final book, which he finished dictating hours before his death. When I was recovering from […]
Modern dying is a trainwreck
There’s a good TED talk here by Peter Saul. Dr. Peter Saul is a Senior Intensive Care specialist in the adult and paediatric ICU at John Hunter Hospital, and Director of Intensive Care at Newcastle Private Hospital in Australia. After spending time as the Head of Discipline for Medical Ethics at Newcastle University, he is […]
Publishing event of the year!
The Natural Death Handbook, Fifth Edition A thoroughly updated and revised edition of the Natural Death Centre‘s celebrated handbook. Now presented alongside a new collection of essays on death, dying and funeral practices by doctors, historians, authors, poets, theologians and artists including Richard Barnett, David Jay Brown, Dr Sheila Cassidy, Charles Cowling, Bill Drummond, Stephen Grasso, […]
Quote of the day
“Now deep in my bed I lie and the world turns on the other side” John Hirst
What does dying feel like?
Philip Gould, one of the architects of New Labour, is dying of cancer. In a way, he says, it’s a privilege to be in his position – to have a deadline, to be given a chance to sort everything. “I do really feel I know where I am now.” Don’t get me wrong, he says […]
