BY DAY 7
Respond by Day 7 to at least two colleagues in one or more of the following ways:
- Provide additional resources or media on addressing fears.
- Compare your colleague’s fear with your own.
- Offer alternative viewpoints and insights.
- Ask for clarification.
MARY
The picture attached to this post is a representation of the fear I had when I was younger about death. However, I also included a picture of what hope and rejoicing that it turned into because I believe now that I will spend eternity in Heaven with my Savior, Jesus. I used to be consumed with fear about death, not knowing where I would go when I died and not sure if I would be accepted into Heaven when I did die (as this is what my family believed). It was through therapeutic intervention with a therapist, meditating on the Word of God, and through additional support of my pastors that allowed me to overcome that fear.
Over the course of my life, I have experienced death in many ways. For example, at a very young age I had two grandparents die; one with cancer. Our family never talked about how you get cancer and losing my grandfather to cancer was very scary. I spent many years wondering if I too would die from it. The unknowns bothered me more, but I was a shy child and very quite and I never asked about how he got it. Our family’s culture was bedded in religion, but as a young child I didn’t really understand it. I just remember my family saying that he was in Heaven and not in pain any longer. I also had friends in high school die in automobile accidents that caused fear about dying to settle into my mind for many years.
Even though I have recently faced the loss of my mother and work in the healthcare setting, I am more at peace with death and again, it is from the modalities listed above. In my work with patients with cancer, we face many topics in group work and individual therapy, which is very helpful for the patient, as they get emotional support and have peer feedback who have or are experiencing cancer as well (Beder, 2006). In a rural setting, there are few resources such as counselors/social workers to provide therapy, so in the cancer center setting, I and other social workers provide much needed psychiatric support regarding death and the dying process to patients and caregivers (Beder, 2006). It is not enough to just help the patient and family and/or caregivers adjust to the new life they will have, but it is essential to talk to all of them about the patient’s rights and wishes when they are faced with dying.
Culture, plays a very important role in how our groups members view death and their rights to live out the remaining days of their life (Gire, 2014). That is why I believe that attending groups and once a feeling of safety has developed in the group, it allows all of the individuals to talk about their beliefs and be supportive of one another. As the patients and caregivers talk, some are able to overcome their fear of dying and find new ways to enjoy their lives in the now (Morrow, 2023), while others may need to have more one-on-one support. The timing is also important; for example, Beder (2006) identified that interventions are more effective while people are going through treatment because of the denial and chaotic life changes that occur during this time. Most often, facing their fears together and individually gives them more hope and peace about their situation and the future that is unknown for them.
References
Beder, J. (2006). Hospital social work: The interface of medicine and caring. Routledge.
Gire, J. (2014). How death imitates life: Cultural influences on conceptions of death and dying. Developmental Psychology and Culture, 6(2). https://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1120&context=orpc
Morrow, A. (2023). 6 Reasons Why death is scare: How to cope with an unhealthy fear of dying. https://www.verywellmind.com/scared-to-death-of-death-1132501
JEFFERSON
As I age, my view on spirituality changes as I begin to think about my life in a new way and reflect on the meaning of life. Cultures vary in how they view death and what happens when a person dies. Some cultures conceptualize death as involving different conditions, passing while sleeping, illness, and reaching a certain age. Thinking about the uncertainty that could happen in the future or when it is time to transition to another life is fearful. My relatives always tell me that death is part of my life and natural and unnatural. I have had several experiences of death; people die in their sleep due to illness and accidents. When I think about these events, I believe that we only live once and perhaps that it is part of life everyone must go through. The picture I drew represents my fear of death. When we die, I feel fear that we become nothing. All the hard work and achievements obtained may become nothing and just become a history or treasure to the people who will be left behind. Additionally, I think about what would happen to my loved ones after death.
The intense fear of death or the dying process may also be attributed to what media conveys and people in the surrounding based on beliefs and cultures. I think it is typical to think about the fear of death. However, even though I fear death, I focus on the present and do not think about many things that might occur. I try to do more things like what I enjoy most than I used to. I try to eliminate the fear by talking to family or friends that could put me at ease and educate myself to accept the facts that could eventually happen.
