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the dying from unnecessary measurements of pulse
and other vital signs. It is essential that the dying’s
energy be allowed to flow, that the dying be allowed
to fully launch. The body and breath will do the work
of departing no matter what we may do or not do.
There are no mistakes. Every death is unique.
I call the last subtle energy realm, “Breaking Into
The Light.” This is the time when, as all major
religions teach, the dying person leaves their body
and enters an exquisite light field. If the doula
feels drawn, he or she can center awareness in
their third eye, toward the pineal gland, and open
themselves to the beautiful promise of entering
that light-field with their patient.
The last three months of life are generally an
awkward time when nobody knows what to say.
When told they are terminally ill, most people
fixate on how to stay alive. This is so human. We
are wired for survival. And the medical system
is a great partner in this realm. Yet while we are
surviving, no one asks why we want to live longer.
No one asks us about our essential well-being or
objectively assesses the quality of the extra life
gained. Those who choose another round of chemo
or surgery can suffer so much from the treatments
that they lose sight of what they wanted to live for.
An important question is if the person is in pain.
Often, the dying person isn’t suffering. Often we
decide to medicate the dying person because we
cannot tolerate what's going on within ourselves.
I have developed a "Best Life Care for Best Three
Months of Life" training model where we ask
questions about our priorities, as though we have
three months to live. We expand the timeline around
what we call death and dying, allowing people the
opportunity to fulfill what they care about and value
most in a longer period of time—while they have
enough physical and mental energy to do what they
desire to do. We help people identify the steps that
they would take to move from their current reality
to a realized vision of their spiritual life goal. Maybe
they're not the best months of their life but they are
the best last months they could possibly have.
The “Sacred Passage: End of life Doula” certificate
training, if integrated into system training, would
be tremendously effective to help achieve what
everyone wants: an improvement in patient care
and satisfaction; a decrease in cost around the last
three months of life; and an enriching increase in
staff satisfaction through elevating their calling to
that of a spiritual practice.
The Conscious Dying Institute furthers the evolution
of human consciousness through restoring death
to its sacred place in the beauty, mystery, and
celebration of life.
From a conversation with John Wadsworth
TARRON ESTES is founder of The Conscious Dying Institute. She is an End-Of-Life-Educator,
Organizational Learning Consultant, Caritas Coach, an Associate Faculty with Dr. Jean Watson's The
Watson Caring Science Institute. She designs and facilitates "Sacred Passage: End of Life Doula
Certificates" in the United States and Canada.
Tarron graduated from the University of New Hampshire with a Bachelors in Creative Writing and
Journalism; Professional Coaching Certificate, Leading Learning Communities; Certified Massage
Therapist, Regina School of Massage; Alaya Process Certification in Somatic Psychology.
Tarron lives in Boulder, Colorado, where she hikes, bikes, writes, designs, collaborates and cooks up
fun things with people she loves.
WWW.CONSCIOUSDYINGINSTITUTE.COM
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