(RERUN) Death from the Perspective of a Hospice Nurse with Hadley Vlahos

**TRIGGER WARNING** This episode covers sensitive subject matter and is not suitable for all listeners. If this topic could be a trigger for you, listen to this episode with a friend, a sibling, a loved one or a parent so you can talk about any emotions that come up for you. The contents of this episode are not intended to replace therapy and should not be taken as such. If you need immediate help, please call the crisis hotline listed below in our resources.

 

Welcome to Rock Your Shine: After you’ve been cracked wide open. On this show, I sit down with people from all over the world to hear their transformational stories on their deep grief and loss journeys. 

 

Have you ever thought about what it looks and feels like when someone is nearing the end of their life and will be crossing over soon?

 

In this episode, I speak with Nurse Hadley Vlahos, a registered nurse working in hospice care, and a mom, wife, and soon-to-be author from the New Orleans area. 

 

At just barely 20 years old Hadley became a mom, a single mom, and left her dreams of being a writer behind to pursue a more stable career path of becoming a registered nurse. 

 

After a year of working in the hospital and a nursing home, she felt immensely drawn to hospice. She has cared for hundreds, if not thousands, of patients at the end of their life in the most intimate setting - their own home.

 

In 2019, Hadley and her family moved to a new city, away from everything and everyone she had ever known. After feeling pretty lonely, her husband suggested connecting with people on social media. So, she picked up the camera in early 2020 and started talking to it like a friend, telling stories from her work day. She has reached over one million other people and helps ease anxiety around death.

 

Listen in as we talk about:

• Why Hadley shifted into being a hospice nurse

• How being a hospice nurse has shifted her perspective of death and dying

• The lessons she learned from her dying patients 

• How she thinks about life now

• The power of social media when it comes to community and sharing our stories about loss
  
  

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Rock On: Mining for Joy in the Deep River of Sibling Grief by Susan E. Casey
  
  

Grief Hotline: 

• https://www.griefresourcenetwork.com/crisis-center/hotlines/ 

 

Connect with Hadley here:

• Instagram

• TikTok

• www.nursehadley.com 

Connect with Susan

• http://instagram.com/susan.casey/ 

• https://www.facebook.com/Susan-E-Casey-101187148084982 

• https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDcl58l8qUwO3dDYk83wOFA 

• https://rockyourshine.com/