"Dying isn't a medical issue; it's a part of the human experience." -Shoshana Ungerleider, M.D. While working in an intensive care unit as a resident, Shoshana Ungerleider found herself confronted with the aftereffects of a death-phobic society. End-of-life discussions were far too uncommon, both inside and outside the ICU. In this high-stakes environment, individuals and families were often forced to make critical decisions about medical care amid crisis and confusion. Ungerleider envisioned a different approach—one where discussions of death weren't viewed as an admission of defeat or tragedy but as an opportunity for open, compassionate conversations about what it truly means to live well until the end.
"Young people today don't grow up with a sense that this [death] is a part of life." -Shoshana Ungerleider, M.D. As a 30-something-year-old psychotherapist, the images I associate with death and dying include a cold hospital bed circled by white curtains. Yet, Ungerleider shares with me that 100 to 150 years ago, people often died in their homes surrounded by friends and family members with ritual and planning. In those days, without the scientific and medical discoveries we have today, no choice was left but to accept that life would end on life's terms. Today, we have lost a cultural understanding of how to face dying.
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