Death Cafe profile for Sarah Hillcoat
Location: United Kingdom
Death Cafe write up: Online Death Cafe Cymru BST
Posted by Sarah Hillcoat on June 19, 2022, 7:37 a.m.
We are taking a break from offering Death Cafe Cymru for a while over the summer. Please check the deathcafe.com website for more updates towards the Autumn period.
Best wishes to all.
Sarah and Brigid.
Death Cafe write up: Online Death Cafe Cymru BST
Posted by Sarah Hillcoat on May 22, 2022, 4:15 a.m. 1 comment
An interesting cafe with diverse topics including:
end of life care; non-religious pastoral support; in contrast to the past, lack of time or training for clinical staff to support the dying; sharing someone’s last moments as an honour; families reacting differently to talking about death; accepting without judgement, people’s wish not to talk about death; birth and death as experiences common to all of us; advance care planning; different cultural reactions and rituals surrounding corpses; the importance of celebrating someone’s life; situations of denial around dying and death.
Death Cafe write up: Online Death Cafe Cymru BST
Posted by Sarah Hillcoat on April 23, 2022, 1:44 p.m.
A peaceful and inspiring session again.
Some of the topics which came up were: supporting friends who are ill and the power of friendship, especially for the childless; the space created by grief, characterised by vulnerability and openness to personal growth; honouring the dead by planting trees and shurbs; near death experiences; the precariousness of life; the unconditional love of parents; taking time to be with the person who has died; sudden death versus anticipatory death; parental loss and implications for those next in line.
Death Cafe write up: Online Death Cafe Cymru BST
Posted by Sarah Hillcoat on March 22, 2022, 3:57 a.m.
Another respectful, profound and illuminating discussion took place at this, our seventh Online Death Café Cymru.
Some of the topics which came up were: children and death; military deaths; deaths in space; the right to die, including dying young; the desire to curate our own death and those of others; communicating wishes about those left behind when we die, including and especially pets; primal instincts in humans; films about dying and death.
Death Cafe write up: Online Death Cafe Cymru BST
Posted by Sarah Hillcoat on Feb. 13, 2022, 11:12 a.m.
This was our sixth Online Death Café Cymru and we were pleased to welcome both new and returning guests.
Both the role of the unpaid carer and grieving under the pandemic featured heavily in the conversation this time.
Among other things, we touched on: Covid lockdown and its impact on funerals, isolation, delayed grief and the role of community in mourning; grief as a manifestation of love; childhood, children, death and funerals; the comfort of ritual and recognising the circle of life; assisted dying; the need for death education; hope for change in our attitudes towards dying and death in the UK through the recent Lancet report The ...
Death Cafe write up: Online Death Cafe Cymru BST
Posted by Sarah Hillcoat on Jan. 17, 2022, 8:07 a.m.
This was our fifth Online Death Café Cymru and, as before, we were pleased to welcome some old and some new faces.
The conversation was wide-ranging this time round. They touched on several topics, with a particular emphasis on the material aspects of end of life and dying. They included: 1) finding the right words to comfort the bereaved; 2) options for what should happen to our bodies when we die; 3) creativity, in particular the role of storytelling in dementia care; 4) photographs as a link between generations; 5) possessions as clutter or treasure, and as a manifestation of our legacies; 6) putting our affairs in order ...
Death Cafe write up: Online Death Cafe Cymru BST
Posted by Sarah Hillcoat on Dec. 20, 2021, 7:52 a.m.
This was the fourth Online Death Café Cymru. We were pleased to welcome some new participants and to welcome back some familiar ones. The international composition of the group was again enriching, as it has been previously.
The focus this time was mainly on end-of-life experiences, from the perspective of both carers and of the person dying. Their respective needs, wishes and choices at this intimate and precious time were discussed, as was the potentially important role of the death doula or end-of-life companion.
Participants found this session inspirational and commented that they had learned from listening to other people’s stories.
We shall be posting 2022 dates ...
Death Cafe write up: Online Death Cafe Cymru BST
Posted by Sarah Hillcoat on Nov. 17, 2021, 9:41 a.m.
This, our third Death Café Cymru, had several overseas contributors for the first time, which was a welcome development. We, the organisers, noted a great diversity in our approaches to death and dying.
Topics raised included: 1. End of life: recognising the signs; supporting the dying; letting go; the role of the professional (e.g. the death doula); and 2. Our own mortality: preparing for, and thoughts about death, spirituality and the afterlife.
Feedback included the following comments: supportive space – refreshing discussion – good to share – listening is good – strangers but feel we know each other – please carry on.
Sarah Hillcoat and Brigid Haines
With Sarah Hillcoat
June 14, 2022, 7.00 p.m. - 8.30 p.m. (GMT/BST)
Free
Brigid and Sarah’s professional and personal life experiences have led them to recognise how important it is to help make conversations about dying and death a normal part of ...
Death Cafe write up: Online Death Cafe Cymru BST
Posted by Sarah Hillcoat on Oct. 14, 2021, 10:50 a.m.
Online Death Café Cymru 12 October 2021 Report
For this, our second Death Café, we welcomed our regular core attendees and two new faces. The mood this time round was different and so were the topics that came up. The main one was the language of death and dying: euphemisms around death and dying, the language appropriate to talk about suicide, and medical staff – patient conversations. We also reflected on whether it would be helpful to call the event “Life and Death Café Cymru”. In all of these, the need for clear communication and sensitivity to the other was felt to be the common factor.
Death Cafe write up: Online Death Cafe Cymru BST
Posted by Sarah Hillcoat on Sept. 19, 2021, 2:17 p.m. 2 comments
This, our first Death Café, went very well. Topics that arose included: the significance of pets in our lives; how to reach people who don’t want to talk about death; advanced care planning, living wills and enabling difficult conversations; the law on assisted dying in the UK in the light of the BMA’s recent vote not to oppose change; palliative care; juggling the sometimes diverse wishes of family members in funeral planning.
Feedback was positive and included the following comments: refreshing to talk about death; interesting to listen to others and discover commonalities while respecting their otherness; online experience is okay; fascinating in terms of breadth ...
Hello All.
We have held our first DC and would like to start preparing for the next. Can we just edit the existing information under the "View your Public Profile" tab to announce new date and time? We would also like to alternate being host and facilitator. How can we ...
With Brigid Haines
Oct. 12, 2021, 7.00 p.m. - 8.30 p.m. (GMT)
Free
Brigid and Sarah’s professional and personal life experiences have led them to recognise how important it is to help make conversations about dying and death a normal part of ...