Awake at the Bedside: Contemplative Teachings on Palliative and End-of-Life Care

Koshin Paley Ellison (Editor), Matt Weingast (Editor), Ogyen Trinley Dorje Karmapa (Foreword by)

$21.95

Publication Date: May 24th, 2016

Publisher:

Wisdom Publications

ISBN:

9781614291190

Pages:

376

Description

This book isn’t about dying. It’s about life and what life has to teach us. It’s about caring and what giving care really means.

In Awake at the Bedside, pioneers of palliative and end-of-life care as well as doctors, chaplains, caregivers and even poets offer wisdom that will challenge, uplift, comfort—and change the way we think about death.

Equal parts instruction manual and spiritual testimony, it includes specific instructions and personal accounts to inspire, counsel, and teach. An indispensable resource for anyone involved in hospice work or caregiving of any kind.

Contributors include Anyen Rinpoche, Coleman Barks, Craig D. Blinderman, Bhikkhu Bodhi, Joshua Bright, Ira Byock, Robert Chodo Campbell, Rafael Campo, Ajahn Chah, Ram Dass, Kirsten DeLeo, Issan Dorsey, Mark Doty, Norman Fischer, Nick Flynn, Gil Fronsdal, Joseph Goldstein, Shodo Harada Roshi, Tony Hoagland, Marie Howe, Fernando Kawai, Michael Kearney, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, Stanley Kunitz, Stephen and Ondrea Levine, Judy Lief, Betsy MacGregor, Diane E. Meier, W. S. Merwin, Naomi Shihab Nye, Frank Ostaseski, Rachel Naomi Remen, Larry Rosenberg, Rumi, Cicely Saunders, Senryu, Jason Shinder, Derek Walcott, Radhule B. Weininger.

About the Author

Koshin Paley Ellison, MFA, LMSW, DMIN, cofounded the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care, the first Zen-based organization to offer fully accredited ACPE clinical chaplaincy training in America, which delivers contemplative approaches to care through education, direct service, and meditation practice. Paley Ellison is the academic advisor for the Buddhist students in the Master in Pastoral Care and Counseling program at NYZCCC’s education partner, New York Theological Seminary. He is currently on the faculty of the University of Arizona Medical School’s Center for Integrative Medicine’s Integrative Medicine Fellowship, and he is a visiting professor at the McGovern Center for Humanities and Ethics, of the University of Texas Health Science Center of Houston Medical School.

Paley Ellison is a dynamic, original, and visionary leader and teacher. His public programs have introduced thousands to the practices of mindful and compassionate care of the living and dying. More than 30,000 people listen to his podcasts each year. Koshin is a popular keynote speaker for national conferences, including the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, Integrative Healthcare Symposium, and others. His groundbreaking work has been widely featured in the media, including the PBS Religion and Ethics Newsweekly, and in numerous print publications such as the New York Times and Los Angeles Times. He is the author of chapters in Creating Spiritual and Psychological Resilience (Routledge, 2009) as well as in The Arts of Contemplative Care (Wisdom Publications, 2012). He is a Soto Zen Teacher, ACPE supervisor, and Jungian psychotherapist.

Matt Weingast, MFA began his first experiences with meditation when he was twenty. After serving in the Peace Corps in Ghana, Matt traveled for a few years in Guatemala, Nicaragua, Thailand, and India. He studied and taught at UMass-Amherst, where he received his MFA in Creative Writing. He currently lives at Barre Center for Buddhist Studies, where he continues to work, study, and practice. After taking care of a dear friend at the end of his life, Matt experienced the depth of connection between meditation practice and caregiving.

Praise for Awake at the Bedside: Contemplative Teachings on Palliative and End-of-Life Care

“The greatest degree of inner tranquility comes from the development of love and compassion. The more we care for the happiness of others, the greater is our own sense of well-being. Awake at the Bedside supports this development of love and compassion.”
— His Holiness the Dalai Lama

“This nourishing book should be required reading for any compassionate caregiver engaged in fostering healing in themselves, clients, loved ones and society. It envisions revolutionary change in how we care for ourselves and the world.”
— Dr. Andrew Weil, author of Healthy Aging

“Profoundly moving, inspiring and helpful, Awake at the Bedside is a real treasure.”
— Jack Kornfield, author of A Path With Heart

“Marvelous. A compilation of essential treasures exploring the face and feeling of utter engagement, compassion, and wisdom in turning toward death.”
— Jon Kabat-Zinn, author of Wherever You Go, There You Are

“Moving and informative—this is a much-needed book! Put into practice, the wisdom of Awake at the Bedside could transform end-of-life care in America.”
— Sharon Salzberg, author of Lovingkindness

“Awake at the Bedside brings together an extraordinary group of teachers who share their wisdom and insights into the great issue of our lives: how to understand the dying process in a way that allows for grace and peace.”
— Joseph Goldstein, author of Mindfulness

“The essence of palliative care—and our whole health-care system needs a prescription for this medicine. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.”
— Dr. R. Sean Morrison, director of the Lilian and Benjamin Hertzberg Palliative Care Institute

“A beacon in the dark night of our healthcare system today. This is a must-read.”
— Donna Karan, fashion designer and founder of the Urban Zen Foundation

“Weaving together the wisdom of ancient traditions and the experience of those in the caring professions today, Awake at the Bedside is a deeply moving, poetic and practical guide to those caring for and the dying.”
— Stephen Batchelor, author of After Buddhism

“In the practice of medicine in the U.S., the act of dying has been completely separated from the care of the patient, yet this process can give one the deepest of gifts—an insight into what living a life really means. This wonderful volume will not only relieve our anxiety and fear but will allow us to embrace what is at the end of the path; it will allow our own awakening.”
— James R. Doty, MD, founder and director of The Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education

“For anybody who works in palliative care, this book is an absolute treat.”
— IAHPC News, International Association for Hospice and Palliative Care