For those hoping to reconnect with someone who is at the end of life, there is \u201cno perfect moment\u201d or \u201cperfect script\u201d,\u00a0said\u00a0Leong Si Jie, a senior medical social worker at St Luke\u2019s Hospital. She suggested ways to approach them:<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t force reconciliation: When approaching an estranged family member,\u00a0first explore whether they are open to reconnecting. Reconciliation should never be assumed or forced.<\/p>\n
Begin gently and calmly: Start with a simple check-in.\u00a0Ask open-ended questions, for example, \u201cWhat do you think about what the doctor has shared regarding your medical condition?\u201d or \u201cHow are you feeling about it?\u201d.<\/p>\n
Let them set the pace: Pay attention to\u00a0both verbal and non-verbal cues. For example, if they turn their head away or keep answers brief, change the subject or remain quiet.<\/p>\n
Listen and acknowledge their feelings: Simple statements such as, \u201cI imagine this news must be difficult for you\u201d or \u201cI\u2019m here to listen if you feel like talking\u201d can help the patient feel heard and supported.<\/p>\n
Avoid dismissing feelings and giving false reassurances: Responses such as \u201cYou will recover\u201d or \u201cWhy are you giving up?\u201d may shut down the conversation.<\/p>\n
If the person dies before reconciliation is possible, Leong said the first step is to acknowledge the loss and allow yourself to experience the emotions that come with it. If it helps, talk to a trusted friend or family member.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes, it is about finding your own sense of resolution after the loss,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
If unresolved grief or feelings about the relationship continue to significantly affect your daily life, seek support from a counsellor or psychologist, said Leong.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For those hoping to reconnect with someone who is at the end of life, there is \u201cno perfect…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":661854,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[129465,134,527,111,139,69,88844,130970,149461,149460],"class_list":["post-661853","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-healthcare","tag-end-of-life","tag-health","tag-healthcare","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-occupational-therapist","tag-st-lukes-hospital","tag-womens-life","tag-womens-voices"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/661853","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=661853"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/661853\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/661854"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=661853"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=661853"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=661853"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}