Choosing gentler and calmer words and using them when talking about death helps to relieve the pain of people with an incurable disease .. and improve the quality of the rest of their lives.
Shakespeare's positive phrases about death
In his tragic masterpieces, the famous British writer "William Shakespeare" affirms that in the journey after death "the whole shelter will be for us", indicating that death is only the beginning of a new life journey, perhaps more wonderful and more beautiful than life itself.
It seems that Shakespeare's positive quotes about death resonated in the corridors of research laboratories; A study conducted by researchers from several Australian universities and research centers stressed the need for a person to choose more "positive" and "kinder" words when talking about death, whether he is talking to close to him, to strangers, or even to people suffering from terminal illnesses that make them die. Closer to life.
Study and palliative care
The study, published in the journal PLOS ONE, notes that "people used to express their feelings about death using sad expressions and words, which may often be negative."
The study focused on teaching new, more positive ways when dealing with these difficult conversations by specialists in the field of "palliative care" in various parts of Australia, led by the "Flinders Research Center for Palliative Care" and the Centers for Support and Care of Death and Dying.
Palliative care is a type of medical service that has begun to spread in many health facilities, with the aim of relieving the pain of patients suffering from an incurable disease, and improving the quality of what remains of their lives.
Researchers surveyed 1,491 people on how language is used to express their feelings and opinions regarding death and dying, and the people surveyed were enrolled in a large-scale, 6-week online training program developed by Flinders University called (Dying2Learn). To encourage participants to engage in open conversations about death and dying.
An analysis of the emotional content of the words used by the participants showed that "by the end of the training program, they became more able to select and use more gentle and calm words when expressing their feelings about death, and they were also more able to control those feelings."
Jennifer Timan, director of the Palliative Care Research Center at Flinders University and principal investigator of the Dying2Learn project, says : The language we use is an important part of the way we express our different feelings, and it also enhances our ability to talk about death and dying, and the importance of words. It lies not only in sharing content, but also in expressing our emotional perceptions and feelings.
-Timan adds: Our study showed that at the end of the training program, participants were able to choose more positive and calmer words from the words they were using in the beginning. The rate at which negative words were used, such as "sad," decreased, while the rate at which words expressed their comfort rose.
-She continues: Participants joining the program, engaging in conversations with others about death and dying, and undergoing palliative care may have helped them become more emotionally accepting when expressing their feelings and attitude towards death.
For her part, Lauren Miller Lewis - Associate Researcher at Flinders University and Professor of Positive Psychology at the University of Queensland - explains, "In old age, when our elderly and ill people with no hope of recovery receive care by health professionals in residential care instead of at home," Life goes on, without discussing or seeing its end, and dealing with and changing these visions helps the community to plan and manage future needs and expectations for care in the fall of life, in addition to improving patient and family care, including preparation for death, as well as helping to develop future health services. .
"Words are not neutral, so understanding the emotional connotations of the words we use can help guide palliative care conversations," Lewis says in the press release accompanying the study.
The innovative training program
The innovative online training program (Dying2Learn) is part of the CareSearch project, which is being implemented with funding from the Australian government, and four courses have been held for this program, from 2016 until last year 2020.
Teman revealed that, beginning in the middle of this year, interactive materials have been provided on the project’s website, including comments and suggestions, to help the general public explore different opinions and participate in conversations about death and dying with their families, neighbors or co-workers, as described.