Testimonials

“Being a hospice nurse brings me face to face with the suffering of others.  I’m learning how to use our contemplative tools not to be exhausted after sessions at work.  And then to come home, and be as conscious with family and friends, without the professional shelter.” 

~ Sharon Ziff, RN

“What I’ve learned in this course is how to renew every day. That’s the transformation. It’s in allowing for more spaciousness, less reactivity, less judgments, and how not to hold on to the things that are impermanent anyway. Now I can sit with a patient with a more clear and open heart and really be with them.”

~ Peter Brown, MD

“When I saw a client with a terminal illness who verbalized his own helplessness in the face of dying, then I too would feel so helpless. I would freeze emotionally, detach and disconnect.  Instead of finding a solely academic program, I found myself fully engaged on a personal level, which opened up my whole understanding of life and of death. The contemplative and compassion practices taught were tools I was familiar with, but it was through the program that my experiential understanding of them provided the transformation. I became more open and accessible to my clients; the barrier created by my own hope and fear around illness, death and dying was removed.”

~ Janice Smith, Psychotherapist

"You would think I would have all the resources I would need from years in divinity school and one year in clinical pastoral education. I have learned more through this course than in all of my other training.”

~ Jan Buchanan, Hospice Chaplain

“No words of comfort can reach parents nor take away their pain when they lose their baby. ...I was trained to do, to fix ... I was astounded when I realized that being present is actually a skill that I can learn and practice. ... To be present in those heartbreaking moments, I know I am offering the best of me to my patients. This does not deplete me, but nourishes me.”

~ Angela Anderson, MD

I am deeply grateful and highly recommend this course to friends, fellow end-of-life care practitioners and anyone wishing to enrich their lives and discover a new ‘how’ in ways of caring for patients and themselves. It offers a new depth of living and dying, opening the door to a fresh, authentic and vibrant relating in this world.           

~ Sue Sandilands, RN

“A contemplative approach to end-of-life care opens patients and clinicians to remarkable healing and transformation. As a palliative medicine clinician at several prestigious academic medical centers, I have witnessed the powerful impact these trainings have had upon our ability to meet the needs of dying patients and their families. The practical but profound skills developed will radically enhance your ability to provide more effective and compassionate care for your patients. They will also enliven your passion for your work as a healer and nurture your own flourishing.”

~ James Duffy, MD

"My passion to understand the spiritual needs of any person dying, has inspired me to search for a source of education, support, and experience to draw from . I really wanted spirituality training in EXACTLY the way that this course offers it - I didn't want a religious-based training, but a training that truly reflected "spirituality" in it's content, presentation, and structure. I was looking for a course that would give words to my spiritual practice, which I sincerely believed, open-minded, and hopefully, open-hearted. This course is honestly the best thing for me, and that's quite a thing to say, because through this course, I'm finding the structure, clarity, words, and context for both my personal spiritual growth as well as a clear solid starting/reference point for my work life. This course gives me words to understand myself ... and with this understanding, I feel better equipped, and not "alone" in my work of being with dying. This course is an exact fit, not just for new seekers of the true nature of reality, but most definitely for those, like myself, who as 'veterans', find ourselves at last breathing freely!  Amidst the spiritual materialism and excess of our times, this course is a lighthouse beaming a clear, radiant, simple message of compassion."

~ Carol Swanepoel, Clinician

“I gained from this course a re-emergence of my passion towards caring for the elders. The teachings, and especially the meditations, have rekindled my compassion and what I consider my purpose in this life: to serve the elders and assist people as they prepare for death. Teachings on impermanence and compassion have re-awakened a part of me and my basic goodness has emerged. All this has taught me a new way to understand and manage the pain and suffering that often comes with end of life care work. I’m now much more aware of the changes I desire to make in how I live my life. Because I can more easily let go of past issues too, there’s now space for joy and celebration in my life. I feel a new freedom!”

~ Sarah Schumann, Nursing Home Administrator

"This program may be the most important I have ever taken. I would recommend this to anyone who wants to skillfully bring a deeper dimension of spiritual life to their caregiving."

~ Dennis McCann, Chaplain

"Many many thanks for what has been an extremely useful and enjoyable experience with truly talented trainers and inspiring resources! It will really help me in my Volunteer work at Calvary hospital and Mary Potter dementia day care centre in Sydney and I am already feeling the benefits beyond just the course and into the mindfulness I take into a room when I visit a client so thank you for this wonderful experience!!"

~ Melissa Halliday, Clinician

From family caregivers who joined Caring for Others, Caring for Ourselves

"Caring for another one always means to care for myself, too. Caring for myself is the foundation of everything else but it is often not much noticed. This course helped me a lot to look at myself, to understand and work on me, to find all I need and wish to give to others inside of me.”

"The methods taught in this course are very powerful and have really shifted myself around my husband and his journey. We have had some really deep conversations and even breakthroughs in our relationship during this time.”