ABSTRACT
Beliefs about what happens when we die are based on personal conjectures which stem from our own curiosity and experience and/or from transmission of a view of death and dying within our society, within our family and peers, and within our community of faith and religion. Some of the questions in the twilight of life can be regarded as spiritual pain as expressed in “why do I have to suffer?”, “my heart is broken”, “I really failed that person” and other forms of guilt and shame. Whatever their source, beliefs and expectations people carry have an impact on how they feel and behave at the end of life.
Narratives of real-life experience, help discuss the notion of ‘a good death’ in all its variability, and review people’s responses to the challenges of serious illness. How do humans use their personal resources and beliefs such as their sense of autonomy, status and previous experience in coping with this potential radical change? How are a person’s feelings raided by major illness and impending death? The response of the families and friends and indeed the medical profession itself are also considered.
