Kathryn Mannix

In this unprecedented book, palliative medicine pioneer Dr Kathryn Mannix explores the biggest taboo in our society and the only certainty we all share: death. A SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER Told through a series of beautifully crafted stories taken from nearly four decades of clinical practice, her book answers the most intimate questions about the process of dying with touching honesty and humanity. She makes a compelling case for the therapeutic power of approaching death not with trepidation but with openness, clarity and understanding. With the End in Mind is a book for us all: the grieving and bereaved, ill and healthy. Open these pages and you will find stories about people who are like you, and like people you know and love. You will meet Holly, who danced her last day away; Eric, the retired head teacher who, even with Motor Neurone Disease, gets things done; loving, tender-hearted Nelly and Joe, each living a lonely lie to save their beloved from distress; and Sylvie, 19, dying of leukaemia, sewing a cushion for her mum to hug by the fire after she has died. These are just four of the book's thirty-odd stories of normal humans, dying normal human deaths. They show how the dying embrace living not because they are unusual or brave, but because that's what humans do. By turns touching, tragic, at times funny and always wise, they offer us illumination, models for action, and hope. Read this book and you'll be better prepared for life as well as death.

In this unprecedented book, palliative medicine pioneer Dr Kathryn Mannix explores the biggest taboo in our society and the only certainty we all share: death Told through a series of beautifully crafted stories taken from nearly four decades of clinical practice, her book answers the most intimate questions about the process of dying with touching honesty and humanity. She makes a compelling case for the therapeutic power of approaching death not with trepidation but with openness, clarity and understanding. With the End in Mind is a book for us all: the grieving and bereaved, ill and healthy. Open these pages and you will find stories about people who are like you, and like people you know and love. You will meet Holly, who danced her last day away; Eric, the retired head teacher who, even with Motor Neurone Disease, gets things done; loving, tender-hearted Nelly and Joe, each living a lonely lie to save their beloved from distress; and Sylvie, 19, dying of leukaemia, sewing a cushion for her mum to hug by the fire after she has died. These are just four of the book's thirty-odd stories of normal humans, dying normal human deaths. They show how the dying embrace living not because they are unusual or brave, but because that's what humans do. By turns touching, tragic, at times funny and always wise, they offer us illumination, models for action, and hope. Read this book and you'll be better prepared for life as well as death.

Kniha zkušené britské paliativní lékařky shrnuje její celoživotní zkušenosti a postřehy a zároveň je mementem adresovaným moderní západní společnosti: Lidé jsou smrtelní a smrt je věc reálná a vážná, nikoli strašná. Jenže dnes se o smrti nemluví, vytěsňuje se a popírá, a tak se snadno může strašnou stát. Autorka ve třiceti příbězích o dobrém i špatném umírání nás vede k tomu, že je nejvyšší čas o smrti přemýšlet, informovat se, mluvit, ptát se a dostávat odpovědi. Jinak se nám může stát, že místo prostého lidského umření ve vlídném prostředí zažijeme protahované umírání v nemocniční mašinérii. Autorka definuje dnešní západní civilizaci jako společnost a dobu popírání: bojíme se smrti, a tak o ní nechceme ani slyšet. Zkušená paliativní lékařka na příbězích ukazuje na typické jevy, jakési vzorce, které se stále znova opakují v době, kdy se člověk blíží smrti. Pokud on a jeho okolí včas rozpoznají známý vzorec a zareagují správně, pak je velká šance, že smrt přijde jako tichý přítel a zanechá po sobě smutek a smíření, ne děs a odmítání. Třicet příběhů o dobrém a špatném umírání nás nabádá, ať o smrti přemýšlíme, informujeme se, ptáme se – dokud je čas.