4. Conversation with Hospice Nurses

Rev. Janaki Carrera, RN & Lisa Olko, RN, two experienced hospice nurses, will offer compassionate insight into what happens physically as life draws to a close — helping families understand what is normal, what is often feared unnecessarily, and how comfort care supports dignity and peace.

Topics include hospice readiness, navigating difficult decisions, symptom management, bedside presence, communication, and what brings the most peace at the end of life.This session replaces fear with understanding — and uncertainty with confidence.

Preparation reduces anxiety. Understanding brings peace. Presence becomes an act of love.

One of the greatest sources of fear around death is simply not knowing what to expect.

🌿 Understanding the Physical Process

• What typically happens physically as life draws to a close
• Changes in breathing, appetite, sleep, and awareness
• What families often fear unnecessarily
• How comfort-focused care supports dignity and grace
• Recognizing when someone may be ready for hospice

🌿 Communication & Decision-Making

• Having difficult but loving conversations
• Supporting patient autonomy and expressed wishes
• Navigating family dynamics and differing opinions
• Listening deeply at the end of life
• Clearly articulating your wishes now to prevent future confusion

🌿 How to Sit at the Bedside

• What to say — and what not to say
• The power of silence
• The role of touch and calm presence
• What to understand when someone appears unresponsive
• How hearing may still be present

🌿 What Brings the Most Peace at the End?

• What creates peace
• What creates distress
• What families later say they are most grateful for
• How preparation and presence transform the experience

This session offers practical wisdom, emotional reassurance, and guidance grounded in real clinical experience.

When we understand what is natural, fear softens.
When we communicate clearly, families feel steadier.
When we sit with presence, love becomes the medicine.

Preparation reduces anxiety. Understanding brings peace. Presence becomes an act of love.

🌿 About the Full Series of End-of-Life Preparation

Death is a natural part of life — yet most of us feel unprepared to face it, whether for ourselves or for someone we love.

The End-of-Life Preparation Series is a thoughtfully designed journey offering practical guidance, emotional resilience, relational clarity, and spiritual reflection. Through expert conversations, compassionate dialogue, and structured preparation, participants are supported in replacing fear with understanding and uncertainty with steadiness.

This is not a morbid series. It is a life-affirming one.
When we prepare thoughtfully:
• Anxiety decreases
• Families communicate more clearly
• Decisions become less reactive
• Love becomes more fully expressed

🌿 Who Is This Series For?

• Individuals preparing for their own future with intention
• Caregivers supporting aging or ill loved ones
• Ministers and spiritual companions
• Families wishing to reduce confusion and conflict
• Anyone seeking peace of mind around life’s final chapter

No crisis is required to begin preparing.
In fact, preparation is most powerful before crisis arises

🌿 Our Intention

This series is offered in a spirit of compassion, education, and empowerment.

We do not rush decisions.
We do not create urgency.
We create clarity.

By facing what is inevitable with openness and wisdom, we often discover something unexpected:

We begin to live more fully now.

Preparation lightens the heart.
Clarity steadies the mind.
Love continues — before, during, and beyond death.