by KathyKastner | Dec 30, 2019 | Personal Stories
My bro died at home, on Palliative/Hospice Care Although we did not know it at the time, my brother’s ‘end’ started November 2018, with a brain tumour diagnosis. Surgery before Christmas that year was deemed ‘successful’ and John was in...
by KathyKastner | Feb 19, 2018 | Blog, Personal Stories
Of the three siblings, Ricky – the sole daughter – was closest to her mother, Anna. “When my marriage ended, my kids and I lived with my mother. We all adored her.” In the last three years of her life Anna- who died at age 91 – was beset by Dementia. “It was more than...
by KathyKastner | Feb 19, 2018 | Blog, Personal Stories
“My mother was ‘dying’ for about 10 years – with her sickness, she seemed often on the brink of death, and then she’d rally. We’d all said our goodbyes a number of times. But on the day she actually died, my father was in her bed, his arm around her, holding on to...
by KathyKastner | Aug 9, 2015 | Blog, Inspiration, Personal Stories
Dealing with grief and End of Life as a Personal Support Worker Guest Post by Natrice Rese It’s something that you are prepared for as a student. It is understood that as a caregiver, a PSW, you will maintain a distance, a separation, a formal kind of...
by KathyKastner | Mar 3, 2015 | Blog, Personal Stories
Personal Support Workers (PSWs) Rock and Rule Anyone who’s needed practical help with daily living when in a health situation knows that it’s not the doctor or nurse you turn to or rely on. Whether at home, or in a health facility, the day to day care delivery falls...
by KathyKastner | Feb 16, 2015 | Blog, Inspiration, Medical Decisions, Personal Stories
Living, knowing you are going to die Drawn, as I am, to learning ever more about how we die, and how ‘one’ dies, this David Dow title, “Things I’ve learned from Dying ” had me at ‘hello’ Dow – who is very much alive – is a death row lawyer in...
