Why We Fear Death and How to Integrate It into Our Lives
From our first breath in this lifetime until the split second the heart clock stops ticking away the moments of our incarnation, we are on call to this concept called death. Avoid it though we try, deny it, though we attempt, dance away from it, though we insist, it beckons us with finger crooked in our direction. For some it is a blessed relief, at the end of an illness, for others, wracked with serious mental illness, a seductive force to which they may succumb. For others, still, it arrives unbidden, quite by surprise.
We use language to describe the experience, such as:
Kick the bucket
Angel of death
Give up the ghost
Buy a one-way ticket
Shuffle off this mortal coil
Call off all bets
Down for the count
Cash in the chips
At death’s door
Go to sleep
Pass away
Cross over
Push up daisies
Bite the dust
What is it that prevents people from speaking the words “death and dying” and instead use these euphemisms? Somehow, we are convinced that if we don’t talk about it, or even contemplate it, The Grim Reaper won’t know where to find us; much like a child hiding under a blanket, teasing that since, “You can’t see me,” s/he must be invisible.
When people fear death, it may be because they have apprehension about not existing or not being remembered. The unknown, even for those with solid spiritual faith can shake beliefs. When my mother, who was on hospice for the last six months of her life, was first diagnosed with end stage kidney and heart disease, s...
Source: Psych Central - Category: Psychiatry Authors: Edie Weinstein, MSW, LSW Tags: Anxiety Grief and Loss Motivation and Inspiration Psychology Self-Help Bereavement death dying Existentialism fear of death five stages of grief Mortality Source Type: news
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