Some Light at the End: An End-of-Life Guidebook for Patients and Their Caregivers

by Beth Cavenaugh, Violet Mae Reed (Illustrator), Emily Fitzgerald (Contributor)

Some Light at the End is a candid and compassionate guidebook to use at the end of your life. If you’re a patient who has just received a terminal diagnosis, you can still make decisions about your care, your life, and your death. An experienced hospice nurse reveals with tenderness and transparency what options you may have at this time and the information you need to make decisions that are right for you. Using personal stories and a touch of humor, the author demonstrates what hospice can be in its best form. She walks you through practicalities at the end-of-life including preparing your affairs, managing medications and dealing with common physical symptoms such as pain, constipation, shortness of breath, and anxiety. The author gently reveals what it is like to decline and eventually die, hoping to dissolve some of the mystery and shed some light at the end. And at some point, you will have family, friends, or professionals involved in your care—they too can benefit from all the information in this book. If you know what to expect when you are dying, you can make informed choices about your caregivers, your relationships, your medications, and even your breakfast—ice cream sundae, please! The hope is that you can exit this world knowing you will be taken care of and your wishes will be respected. This is your journey—this book will help you to feel cared for, to be comfortable, and to have the empowerment you deserve in this final stage of your beautiful life.

Genres: Nonfiction

240 pages, Paperback

Published May 1, 2019

About the author

Beth Cavenaugh is a certified hospice and palliative care nurse and educator with over 14 years of experience in caring for terminally ill patients. She has been a registered nurse for over 24 years and holds a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Creighton University. Beth has supported hundreds of patients and their families at inpatient units, in the home setting, and behind the scenes in hospice care. Compassion, patient autonomy, and transparent communication are at the core of her care philosophy.

Beth hopes to demystify death and dying so this powerful moment will be embraced as a normalized and celebrated life event. She continues to work in hospice and has a private Reiki practice to support physical, emotional, and spiritual healing for adults and teens.

Beth lives with her husband in Portland, Oregon, where they have (almost) successfully finished raising their three kids. Learn more at BethCavenaugh.com.

Reviews

[Charty · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book you don’t ever want to have to read because it means you (or someone you love) is dying.

But if you find yourself in this unfortunate situation, this book can be a lifeline.

Written with compassion and empathy by a long time hospice nurse, the book covers the gamut of hospice - from diagnosis and referral to hospice and the available services to the common processes your body will experience as it declines and dies.

It’s written addressing the hospice patient, rather than the caregiver(s), which is very in line with the hospice philosophy, which is putting the patient and their needs first. There is a short section for caregivers specifically, but I think its can be equally useful to understand your loved one’s journey as a caregiver.

I won’t lie, hospice is rough. Dying is hard. Hospice will (hopefully) help mitigate as much of that as they can. My belief is information is important and I wanted to be forewarned/armed with info which is why I picked this book.

It’s simple but comprehensive and definitely is a companion to, not a replacement for, your particular hospice provider. For me, after reading it through, I used it as a resource to come back to as my mom progressed on her journey and certain sections became more relevant.

I appreciate there are resources like this available, so avail yourself with as much as you need to/can. If you’re reading this book you have my sympathies.

[Kayleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a retired physician, I highly recommend this guide book that helps each of us as we will all face end-of-life care issues with our spouse, family, close friends and ourselves. Beth provides practical advice with compassion, dignity and warmth. I've gifted this book to friends who were dealing with terminal illnesses and they all commented how the information and her website was so helpful in guiding them through palliative care and hospice issues. The book is easy to read, humorous at times and reads like a good friend guiding you through a difficult process. As a hospice nurse, Beth provides valuable insight, experience, and heartwarming stories. The advice is approachable, sensible and a valuable roadmap about a challenging topic for most.

[Beverly Bayer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet book with good information. It did not relate well to my experience, but everyone is different. This book doesn't talk about the chaos, sleep deprivation, frustration, and helplessness that comes with helping someone with the death process.

[Aphelia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read for anyone caring for a loved one at the end of life looking for practical information. Although every death is different, there are commonalities in the way the body shuts down and Cavenaugh describes the process clearly and concisely. She also has an excellent blog with free resource articles that share this information.

Although based in the US, most of the information is broadly applicable.

As the carer for my beloved Mom, who had a palliative condition and chronic illnesses that made it especially difficult tell when a crisis might be survivable, the information about the the "transitioning" and "actively dying" stages was invaluable and helped inform me to make the decision to switch to comfort care when the time came.

Nothing about death or dying is easy, and it's not talked about enough. We need more resources like this, and it's a valuable read.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This lovely, approachable, and thoughtful book is a must for anyone who confronts the world of hospice care. Beth Cavenaugh’s voice is honest, kind, and relatable. She has captured the wisdom and insight gained during her many years as a hospice nurse and shared it with the world, and I’m so grateful. After reading Some Light at the End, I have a much deeper understanding of what hospice is and how best to navigate it. Topics range from critical decisions about end-of-life care to tips about managing energy, comfort, and emotions. Just knowing Cavenaugh’s book exists brings me great comfort.