The Last Days/What Does End-of-Life Look like, Really?
We always knew what we wanted for her . . . and so we let her go.
Parents Casey and Brian share ‘knowing’ it was their daughter Bethie’s time, despite the hospital trying to save her. “In the end, we stopped them.”
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We always knew what we wanted for her . . . and so we let her go.
Our newborn’s end of life: “his life was short, beautiful, what it was meant to be.”
A quiet end to my son’s life
Extubating my son: “My heart wanted a few more years but he was so tired and I had to accept that. I didn’t want him to suffer anymore.”
Avoiding a traumatic medical death: Learning our baby could not tolerate intubation and deciding he would not have it again.
The day he died, we weren’t expecting it.
Staying with the body: Mom didn’t feel like she needed to be in there with him; Dad did.
Being the Aunt: Staying with his body.
Our son’s last day: “We knew we had done everything possible for him. It was right, despite how wrong it was.”
Parenting a Medically Complex Child: My son's peaceful end-of-life
Peeling things back at the end is tough. It’s so tangible in terms of what it reflects.
Dialing back feeding at the end: looking for indications that the body isn’t tolerating feeds.
How much longer is this going to take? I felt guilty for feeling I couldn’t deal with weeks of her struggle.
I did feel a sense of relief after the kids died. They were so sick.
I remember his breathing but I don’t remember other stuff.
How long was this part of the journey going to take?
A child can be comfortable right to the end.
You are capable of seeing this through.
What we can expect in the final days.
We encourage holding the child.
I wasn’t afraid because I’m a planner
His final moment was so peaceful and it was perfect for him.
The last 24 hours: We were not ready for it. “Wait a minute, we’re off script.”
It was beautiful.
The last hour of Talon's life, and letting go.