15 Jan Hospice for the Living?

In recent work with clients it’s become increasingly clear to me that the whole idea of hospice is unnecessarily limited in our society. Hospice provides care, nurturing, and support for the dying, This occurs in an environment of honor, respect, acceptance and deep sensitivity.

Hospice is a beautiful gift to those who are soon to die. But why do we limit that gift to terminal patients? Doesn’t every living human need and deserve the same thing?

My experience suggests that that many of us would actually heal and thrive if we just had the time, space and opportunity to held in the hospice way.

Furthermore, those who suffer from chronic pain and related conditions, but who aren’t terminal, may need hospice even more than those for whom the end is near.

There is nothing more challenging than a life in which all the good stuff is obscured by relentless and unavoidable suffering. The people close to us who endure such agony often long for us just to be present with them, to offer communion. They relax so much when clear that we don’t need to shield ourselves from their pain, and that we won’t offer any uninvited attempts to fix or change them.

So – is there anyone you know and care about who would respond well to hospice for the living? Are you willing and able to offer that to them? If not, what’s in the way? Or, perhaps, is it you who are in need of such support but haven’t yet found a way to ask for it? I can’t imagine more potent and meaningful questions.