Also from Beaver's Pond Press
Avoiding Cancer One Day At A Time: Practical Advice for Preventing Cancer, by Lynne Eldridge, M.D. and David Borgeson, M.S.,M.P.T. (Beaver’s Pond Press, 2006) provides solid, practical advice for preventing cancer by avoiding carcinogens and implementing lifestyle/dietary practices that modify cancer causing factors. http://www.avoidcancernow.com/.
A Bridge for Grandma by Carol McCormick (Beaver’s Pond Press, 2006) is one of the few books written about a child’s near-death experience. The girl meets her grandfather in heaven and when she returns to life, the story of this experience comforts her grandmother. When the grandmother dies, the girl knows she is happy with grandfather. www.carolmccormick.net.
A Mirthful Spirit: Embracing Laughter for Wellness, by Mary Huntley and Edna Thayer (Beaver’s Pond Press, 2007). A description of the benefits of humor for health, with tips for maintaining mirth at home, on the job, and during times of stress. www.mirthfulspirit.com.
Thin Places: Where Faith Is Affirmed and Hope Dwells by Mary Treacy O’Keefe (Beaver’s Pond Press, 2005). An account of the death of Mary’s parents and the “thin places” family and friends have experienced between the physical and spiritual realms. http://www.marytreacyokeefe.com/.
Other Recommendations
Alison’s Gift: The Song of a Thousand Hearts Opening by Pat Hogan (NOSILA Publishing, 1999). The true story of seven-year-old Alison, rendered brain dead in a car accident. After she died in the hospital, her family cared for her body during a home vigil before she was cremated. The book, which inspired Diane Manahan and her family to investigate non-traditional ways of caring for her body, is available from www.crossings.net.
Bach for the Bath by Dan Gibson. The Bach variations played for Diane Manahan at the moment of her death. www.silverlakemusaic.com/pae/bachbath.html.
Becoming Well Within Minnesota, a directory of integrative healing resources in Minnesota. http://www.becomingwell.org/.
Beyond Knowing—Mysteries and Messages of Death and Life from a Forensic Pathologist by Janis Amatuzio (New World Library, 2006). A second book of personal experiences and inspiring stories about families of those whose deaths Dr. Amatuzio has investigated.
Breast Cancer Action. A national organization working to transform breast cancer from a private medical crisis to a public health issue so that more research and funding go toward prevention and universal access to effective treatment. http://www.bcaction.org/.
CaringBridge News. Provides a free website during a health crisis that can keep friends and extended family updated on diagnosis or treatment, and where messages for the patient can be posted. www.caringbridge.org.
Caring for the Dead: Your Final Act of Love by Lisa Carlson (Upper Access Publishers, 1997). A comprehensive guide to home deaths and funeral arrangements with state-by-state legal information compiled by the Funeral Consumer’s Alliance. www.funerals.org.
Choices at the End of LIfe: Finding Out What Your Parents Want Before It's Too Late by Linda Normalder and Kerstin McSteen (Fairview Press, 2001). Two palliative care nurses offer guidelines for family discussions about advanced care planning with useful examples and a glossary of hospice terms.
Coming to Rest: A Guide to Caring for Our Own Dead, an Alternative to the Commercial Funeral by Julie Wiskind and Richard Spiegel (Dovetail, Inc., 1998). A practical guide to a more comfortable, personalized after-death care of a loved one.
Conscious Living, Conscious Dying. A website on vital aging, conscious dying, and alternative death care, with links to Minnesota and national resources. www.lindabergh.org/links.htm.
Crossings: Caring for Our Own at Death. A resource center providing education and inspiration to families for better experiences in after-death care, with or without a funeral director, and for exercising choices that will bring about greater healing following the loss of a loved one. Offers a 37-page step-by-step resource guide for performing a home funeral. www.crossings.net.
Crossing the Threshold: Practical and Spiritual Guidance on Death and Dying by Philip Martyn and Nicholas Wijnberg (Temple Lodge Publishing, 2003). Based on Rudolf Steiner's teachings, this 69-page book includes practical and spiritual guidance on death and dying. It offers advice on the arrangement of funerals, laying out of the body, legal requirements and wills.
Death’s Door: Modern Dying and the Ways We Grieve by Sandra M. Gilbert (Norton, 2006). Brilliant analysis of modern responses to death, combining literary and, cultural criticism, with reflections on the deaths of the author’s baby and husband.
Dying at Home: A Family Guide for Caregiving by Andrea Sankar (Johns Hopkins University Press, 1991; second edition, 2000). An honest examination by a medical anthropologist of people’s experiences caring for terminally ill family members at home.
The Final Act of Living: Reflections of a Longtime Hospice Nurse by Barbara Karnes, RN (BK Books, Inc., 2003). Clear, honest, personal stories and invaluable information, including the common signs of approaching death, grief, living wills, and much more. www.bkbooks.com.
Final Gifts: Understanding the Special Awareness, Needs and Communications of the Dying by Maggie Callanan and Patricia Kelly (Bantam, 1997). Longtime hospice nurses share intimate experiences with patients at the end of life. The “final gifts” are the peace and reassurance offered to the dying by their caregivers, and the comfort and enlightenment offered by the dying to those attending them.
Final Passages. Offers booklets of instructions for a home funeral and courses on personal and legal rights concerning family-directed funerals, cremation, and burial. www.finalpassages.org.
Five Wishes. An inexpensive, thorough 12-page legal living will for making plans in case one is incapacitated, seriously ill, or dying. www.agingwithdignity.org.
Forever Ours: Real Stories of Immortality and Living from a Forensic Pathologist by Janis Amatuzio (New World Library, 2004). A book of inspiring stories about end-of-life experiences by Minnesota’s “Compassionate Coroner.” http://foreverours.com/
From the Start Consider the Finish: A Guide to Excellent End-of-Life Care by Susan R. Dolan and Audrey R. Vizzard (Outskirts Press, 2007. A thoughtful, engaging handbook encouraging families to have conversations about their wishes and providing practical information on preparing for a peaceful death, by registered nurses/hospice volunteers daughter/mother team. www.outskirtspress,com
Funeral Consumers Alliance. A non-profit organization that provides information about affordable and meaningful funerals. http://www.funerals.org/.
Gone from My Sight by Barbara Karnes, RN (BK Books, 2nd edition, 2005). A fifteen-page gem, concisely describing in layperson’s terms the typical stages of the dying process during the weeks and hours leading up to death. www.bkbooks.com.
Grace and Grit: Spirituality and Healing in the Life and Death of Treya Killam Wilber by Ken Wilber (Shambhala; 2nd edition, 2001). Psychologist Ken Wilber’s account of his wife’s five-year ordeal with aggressive breast cancer. Killam, who died in 1989, combined orthodox treatment with therapies like diet, meditation, and psychotherapy.
Graceful Exits: How Great Beings Die by Sushila Blackman (Weatherhill, 1997). Over 100 stories of how Buddhist monks have met death with grace and dignity.
Handbook for Creating a Home Funeral by Jerri Lyons and Janelle Va Melvin, 1998. Guidebook for dignified, legal, ecological, and economical alternatives to conventional funeral practices. www.finalpassages.org.
Health Journeys Resources for Mind, Body, and Spirit. Produces guided imagery audiotapes and CDs by psychotherapist Belleruth Naperstek and other healers. Some are specifically for use during chemotherapy. www.healthjourneys.com.
Hospice Care. A national organization offering valuable information and support for end-of-life and palliative care. www.nhpco.org.
Living into Dying: A Journal of Spiritual and Practical Deathcare for Family and Community by Nancy Jewel Poer (White Feather Publishing, 2002). Personal stories of caring for loved ones at the threshold of death and after, including vigils, building a casket, and practical aspects of caring for a body at home.
Living Consciously, Dying Gracefully: A Journey with Cancer and Beyond by Nancy Manahan and Becky Bohan (Beaver’s Pond Press, 2007). Foreword by Bill Manahan, M.D. An inspiring book that describes a holistic nurse’s integrative approach to breast cancer, Diane Manahan’s extraordinarily full and vibrant life for five years after the diagnosis, her beautiful death at home, and astonishing after-death communications. A supplemental guidebook offers practical suggestions for dealing with a life-threatening illness or death. Includes photos, appendices, and an annotated bibliography. www.nanbec.com.
Living in Process: Basic Truths for Living the Path of the Soul by Anne Wilson Schaef (Wellspring/Ballantine, 1999). A model for living with authenticity and integrating the spiritual into all aspects of one’s life. Includes inspiring real-life stories and wisdom from Native peoples around the globe.
The Needs of the Dying: A Guide for Bringing Hope, Comfort and Love to Life’s Final Chapter by David Kessler (Harper, 1997). A classic guidebook for each phase of dying, endorsed by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross.
On Our Own Terms: Moyers on Dying. A four-part PBS documentary exploring more humane options for end-of-life experiences. 2006. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/onourownterms/index.html.
Pathways Health Crisis Resource Center. A Minneapolis center offering free classes and individual sessions for persons facing cancer and life-threatening or chronic illnesses. www.pathwaysminneapolis.org.
Pink Ribbon, Inc., by Samantha King (University of Minnesota Press, 2006). A critical analysis of the philanthropy, corporate stakes, marketing, and public policy that influence the perception and reality of breast cancer in America.
Rituals of Healing: Using Imagery for Health and Wellness by Jeanne Achterberg, Barbara Dossey, and Leslie Kolkmeier (Bantam, 1994). A practical guide for using the power of the imagination to create rituals that help restore health.
Rudolf Steiner Press. Books by Rudolf Steiner and others on death, life after death, meditation, and spirituality. www.anthropress.org.
This Thing Called Grief: New Understanding of Loss by Thomas M. Ellis (Syren Books, 2006). A short, clear book on the painful but necessary process of grieving a loss by the firectors of the Center of Grief, Loss, & Transition in St. Paul, MN. www.tomellisbooks.com
Well Within. A resource center in St. Paul, Minnesota, that assists people seeking balance and wellness while dealing with health challenges. Offers classes, support groups, Healing Touch, Qigong, massage, art therapy, counseling and more. www.wellwithin.org.
What Dying People Want: Practical Wisdom for the End of Life by David Kuhl (PublicAffairs, 2003). Helpful stories and suggestions for pain management, support groups, and initiating conversations about death, based on the physician-author’s years of working with terminally ill patients.
Who Dies: An Investigation into Conscious Living and Conscious Dying by Steven Levine (Anchor, 1988). A longtime death and grief counselor reflects on what it means to live life to the fullest. Includes excellent recommendations for dealing with pain and preparing to die.
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