Final Gifts: Understanding and Helping the Dying

For everyone who has been or ever will be close to someone who is dying, this book is aimed at helping them to understand not only what the experience of death is like, but also how to interpret the symbolic messages by which the dying attempt to communicate their needs to us. In many cases, the dying need to pass on some vital message before they feel able to "let go". Often, communication can break down entirely, with neither side feeling able to reach the other or to express feelings honestly. The authors draw on their many years of hospice nursing to show that by keeping an open mind and by listening carefully to dying people, friends and relations can begin to understand not only what they need to tell them, but also what the experience is like.