When You Are Dying

Knowing that life is coming to an end can bring so much to the surface.

You may want a place where you can speak openly about what is happening, explore fears or uncertainty, inquire into your faith or spiritual connection, or simply have someone alongside you who is willing to be present with whatever is here. End-of-life support can provide a space for this.

There may be things you want to express, relationships you want to tend to, memories you want to share, or conversations that have remained unfinished. There may also be no particular task at all. Sometimes what is needed is simply a space to be heard, to be accompanied, and to meet this time in your own way.

There can be a preciousness in the time that remains — in a shared moment, a familiar ritual, a gesture of love, or simply being together.

When Someone You Love is Dying

When someone we love is dying, we are living through a profound transition too.

There can be tenderness and closeness alongside fear, grief, exhaustion and the practical realities of caring. You may find yourself moving between being the person who is supporting another and needing somewhere to be supported yourself.

This can be a space for you to speak honestly about what you are experiencing, to make room for your own feelings and needs, and to explore how you want to be with yourself and with the person you love during this time.

There is no expectation that you will know what to say or how to do this. Sometimes what matters most is simply having somewhere to pause, breathe and be met in your own experience. We can begin with whatever is here.

When Death Opens Deeper Questions

Our enquiry into death does not always begin when we are dying.

Sometimes it begins with an illness, an experience of loss, growing older, a spiritual experience, or simply the recognition that life is finite.

Death can bring us into questions that reach beyond the circumstances of dying. What matters? What are we holding onto? What is this? Who am I really? What does it mean to live fully? What are we afraid to lose? Who are we beneath the identities and stories through which we have known ourselves? What does it mean to let go? These questions may not have clear answers, and they do not necessarily need to.

They can become an invitation to slow down, turn towards our experience and discover what is here when we allow ourselves to stay close to the question.

Walking Alongside You

My own long-standing practice and inquiry into death, dying, and what it means to let go have deeply shaped the way I hold this work.

For many years, I have explored these questions through Buddhist contemplative traditions, including Theravada, Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism, as well as non-dual teachings. I have spent extended periods in silent retreat and trained in India for three months in Tibetan Buddhist death practices.

These experiences have given me a deep respect for death as something we can turn towards with presence, curiosity and openness. They have also shaped my understanding of impermanence, letting go, and the preciousness of being alive.

Alongside this, I have had the privilege of accompanying people through death and dying and supporting those close to them.

I don't bring a particular belief system that you need to adopt. Your relationship with death, spirituality, faith and meaning is your own. There is space here for your questions, your beliefs, your uncertainty, and whatever else arises.

It is a privilege to walk alongside people during this precious and deeply human time. This is work that is very close to my heart.