Companioning the Dying : A Soulful Guide for Counselors and Caregivers

This guide for counselors and lay caregivers explores the art of caring for the dying and their families. Based on the tenets first articulated by renowned grief educator Dr. Alan Wolfelt, this respectful and gratifying guide to caregiving includes personal accounts that debunk the myth of the "good death" and teach caregivers to find the transformative potential of every moment in every experience. Written with wit and illustrated throughout with the author's poetry and artwork, it includes advice for comforting patients and their families as well as advice for dealing with the internal stress common to the profession. The guidance provided will help counselors feel affirmed in their abilities to "be with" the dying and support them and their families.

Greg Yoder is a licensed professional counselor at a hospice in Arizona. He has companioned hundreds of terminally ill people making their transition through the dying process. He lives in Tucson, Arizona. Alan D. Wolfelt is a speaker, a grief counselor, and the director of the Center for Loss and Life Transition. He is the author of Companioning the Bereaved, Creating Meaningful Funeral Ceremonies, Healing the Bereaved Child, Healing Your Grieving Heart, Understanding Your Grief, and many other bestselling books on healing in grief. He lives in Fort Collins, Colorado.