Death: The Last Moment

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Eyasu Etsub (CC0)

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Original Air Date: 
November 23, 2014

In this hour, we explore the medical, spiritual and psychological questions about the moment of death. One hospice worker shares the story of how her fear of sickness and death turned to wonder at the mystery of our final moments. A Buddhist chaplain talks about preparing - now - to meet our final moments mindfully.

Also, as resuscitation science makes it ever-more possible for us to bring back people whose hearts have stopped, we take a look at the growing scientific debate over near-death experiences. Do these extraordinary experiences reveal a transcendent reality, or are they simply the biochemical product of a brain that’s shutting down?

You can take a look at Steven Spiro's resources for conscious dying here.

And here's a taste of listeners' answers to "Which Death Would You Choose?"

Being with Death

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"I was very uncomfortable with death for most of my life," says Karen Reppen says she ran from death and dying for most of her life. But after she decided to face her fears head-on by getting a job in hospice, she started to see the moment of death as a source of wonder and joy.

"Death Doesn't Bother Me, Anyway" Pt. 3

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In the third installment of the story of the end of Dan Pierotti's life, his wife Judy talks about Dan's last days, and final moment.

Blurring the Line Between Life and Death [Video]

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“Advances in resuscitation science are beginning to challenge our understanding of what death really is,” says Sam Parnia. He's the director of cardiopulmonary resuscitation research at SUNY NY. Parnia says it's now possible to bring people back to life much longer after cardiac arrest than medicine had previously thought.

Can Science Explain Near-Death Experiences? [Video]

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Scientists believe that near-death experiences are real, but there is much debate why they occur and what they might mean. Here's a quick primer on some of the leading thinkers in the field.

Can Hallucinogens Help with End-of-Life Anxiety?

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Psychiatrist Charles Grob is studying how psilocybin — the psychoactive component of magic mushrooms - can reduce death anxiety for end-stage cancer patients. His results, published in the Archives of General Psychiatry, show that giving psilocybin to terminally ill people may help patients anxiety and depression about the end of end of life.

Christian Wiman Reads "For D."

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A few years ago, poet Christian Wiman picked up his pen after a three-year hiatus, when he fell in love and was diagnosed with cancer. Listen in as he reads a poem from "Every Riven Thing," the book of poems that followed. You can also hear our interview with him about the collection.

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Airdates
August 16, 2015
November 23, 2014
Last modified: 
June 10, 2021