92 DAYS AND COUNTING… T hat is the number of days between November 1, 2004 and February 1, 2005. A mere three months until the Siegenthaler Center (SC) is expected to welcome its first patient and family. We have waited over twenty years for this type of service, so three months should be doable. We anticipate that this center will provide a place of comfort when remaining at home is no longer an option for some families. It may not be "your" home, but it will offer a home-like environment. It will provide a private suite where a patient and their family will stay together, caring for each other, with the support of compassionate and expert staff and volunteers. It will assure your privacy in a suite for the patient and their family, while respecting your decisions about the care you will receive. Comfort and quality of life will be central to your care. Each patient’s presence in the Siegenthaler Center will be a gift to us. We will learn more about how we may better serve patients and how we may enhance emotional and spiritual support services. Patients will help us to better understand the concept of hope and how integral it is in all our lives. The irony is, basically the patient will be teaching us how to live, to better understand what is truly important as a human being, and to appreciate the value that our presence brings to each day. 2 GRIEF & THE HOLIDAYS: hospices offer advice National <strong>Hospice</strong> and Palliative <strong>Care</strong> Organization, <strong>Hospice</strong> Foundation of America For many people, the holiday season is a special time of the year marked by festive celebrations and gatherings with family and friends. It’s a time to look ahead with excitement to the approaching New Year. For those struggling with the death of a loved one, the holidays are a difficult time full of painful reminders that may magnify their sense of loss. Holiday songs on the radio “catch you” while riding in the car. Television commercials reflecting Norman Rockwell images of the season come into your living room. Neighbors’ homes are decked with lights and wreaths. Sounds and sights of the holidays may seem inescapable. Coping with grief at such a time seems discordant with the world around you. Feelings of loss tend to be intensified. A suggestion for coping with grief during the holidays is to give yourself permission to do what’s comfortable. At a time of year often guided by tradition, find the way that feels right for you to make it through the season. Some people find it helpful to be with family and friends, emphasizing the familiar. Others may wish to avoid old traditions and try something different. Others will find new ways to acknowledge the season. Consider Mike when as a young boy, Thanksgiving was a time to bring family, friends, and neighbors together for a feast. Card tables were set up in the living room, the picnic table was brought in from outside, every chair seemed to be full. The year after his death from lung cancer, his wife and kids just couldn’t find the strength to host another Thanksgiving event. That year, for the first time, they had a Thanksgiving meal at a local inn. It was smaller, more intimate, and has become a new tradition for them. They gave themselves permission to do what seemed comfortable. While it seemed to go against family tradition, it actually provided the family with a special time to focus on memories of their father and the many Thanksgivings of the past. By Pi Gentile, Executive Director — <strong>Hospice</strong> and Palliative <strong>Care</strong>, <strong>Inc</strong>. Help us make our house a "home". Join us for a Housewarming Party for the Siegenthaler Center on Sunday, January 23, 2005 from 2–4 pm. You will have the first tour of the Siegenthaler Center while enjoying beautiful music and delicious food. For your gift giving pleasure, we will be registered at Sears stores beginning November 15th where you can shop in person or online. Gift cards will also be appreciated. To receive an invitation or for more information, please contact Suzanne Simmons at 735-6487, ext. 250. <strong>Hospice</strong> professionals offer some additional suggestions for coping with the holidays: Plan for the approaching holidays. This will, no doubt, be a difficult time for you. The additional stress may affect you emotionally, cognitively, and physically; this is a normal reaction. Be prepared and gentle to yourself. Recognize that the holidays might not be the same. Expecting everything to seem the same might lead to disappointment. Doing things a bit differently can acknowledge the change while preserving continuity with the past. Be careful not to isolate yourself. It’s all right to take time for yourself but don’t cut yourself off from the support of family and friends. The holidays may affect other family members. Talk over your plans and share your feelings. Respect the choices and needs of others, and compromise, if necessary. Avoid additional stress. Decide what you really want to do and what can be avoided.
<strong>Hospice</strong> doesn’t give us the power to shorten or prolong life, just the power to live it as we choose. To be at home, if we wish. To be pain-free. To be comforted and cared for when we can no longer be cured. To learn more, contact <strong>Hospice</strong> & Palliative <strong>Care</strong> at 315-735-6484 or 1-800-317-5661 or visit our website at www.hospicecareinc.org. HOSPICE & PALLIATIVE CARE, INC. 3
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