What Now? On the threshold of life, death, and grief.
Presented by palliative and bereavement health care professionals Julie Brown, Red Keating and David Kennedy. Dying is one of the few experiences we will all share, yet little is done in our culture to prepare us for this inevitability and it's resulting bereavement and grief. Drawing on their vast knowledge and experience each episode is a conversation meant to enlighten and demystify the often difficult and emotional experiences of dying, death and bereavement. Presented in partnership with Hospice Peterborough.
Episodes
34 episodes since 2022
On the Threshold with Dr. Kerr
We open Season 3 with the great privilege of speaking with Dr. Kerr about his work and research into the dreams and visions of the dying. Through interviews with over 1,400 dying patients Dr. Kerr’s research reveals that the pre-death dreams an...
September 11, 2024
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Season 3
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Episode 1
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54:09
Season 2 Wrap Up!
In this short episode the co-hosts take time to reflect on the second season of the podcast. We review the teaching and learning that occurred because of the amazing guests throughout this season. Also discuss feedback from listener...
May 22, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 14
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25:55
Questions and Decisions
A diagnosis of a potentially life threatening illness throws us into a world of hard questions and a myriad of decisions that need to be made. Our decisions can find us ruminating on issues and double guessing ourselves and if we don’t ac...
May 08, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 13
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55:09
The Written Word
Poets and writers often capture the experiences, thoughts, and emotions we may struggle to express or put into words. In this episode, we do something a little different and indulge in our collective love of the written word. We sh...
April 24, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 12
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49:33
Understanding Dementia
In this episode, we speak with two experts in dementia healthcare. Dr. Sarah Brisbin and Jill MacPhee help us understand the complexity of dementia both for individuals diagnosed and living with dementia and their families and care partners. Ou...
April 03, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 11
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1:04:09
How Death Teaches Us to Live
We have the honour of speaking with meditation teacher Vinny Ferraro who leads Spirit Rock's program: A Year to Live, which focuses on waking up and living life more fully through the exploration of death as spiritual practice. In this...
March 20, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 10
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58:09
Keep or Give Away?
In this episode we address the task of what to do with the belongings and “stuff” we accumulate throughout a lifetime. Often as a person approaches death, or a person has died, family and close friends need to make decisions about how to dissem...
February 27, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 9
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37:11
The Grieving Brain
In this fascinating conversation with author, psychologist and neuroscience researcher, Mary-Frances O’Connor, we learn what happens in the brain when we experience loss and grief. She expands the understanding of grief by sharing h...
February 13, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 8
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57:45
Just Think Positive
In this episode we delve into the world of “positivity” as it relates to the experience of living with a life-threatening illness or the experience of being bereaved. Often, well meaning friends and family espouse the power of positive thinking...
January 30, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 8
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45:05
In Conversation with author Patricia Pearson
In this episode we speak with award winning writer Patricia Pearson, author of: Opening Heaven's Door; What the dying may be trying to tell us about where they're going. During this fascinating conversation, Patricia shares findings fr...
January 16, 2024
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Season 2
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Episode 7
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1:01:54
Unwrapping the Holidays 2023
For many, it's not the most wonderful time of the year. Those living with life threatening illness (and their families) might be entering this season with awareness this could be the last. For others, if grief is "raw" and new we may b...
November 29, 2023
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Season 2
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Episode 6
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53:42
Being A Caregiver
The role of caregiving can be physically and emotionally exhausting. It can also be one of the most important and fulfilling things we can do for another person and for ourselves. In this episode we explore some of the unique issues and experie...
November 15, 2023
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Season 2
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Episode 5
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1:02:40
Psychedelic Assisted Psychotherapy; Addressing Existential Distress for Those Living With a Life Threatening Illness
In this episode we speak with Dr. Daniel (Dan) Rosenbaum about the exciting new role that psychedelic assisted psychotherapy is playing in helping those living with a life threatening illness. Dan covers the past, present and future of this exc...
October 31, 2023
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Season 2
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Episode 4
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1:14:46
When Someone Dies by Suicide
For years our culture has not talked openly about death by suicide and this only amplifies the grief, trauma and isolation of the grief journey. It's an unbearable grief, often made even harder because it's not talked about. In this...
October 17, 2023
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Season 2
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Episode 3
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1:00:58
When Grief and Trauma Meet
In this episode we have the privilege of learning and speaking from Dr MaryCatherine (MC) McDonald, author of Unbroken: The Trauma Response Is Never Wrong—And Other Things You Need to Know to Take Back Your Life. MC helps us ...
October 04, 2023
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Season 2
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Episode 2
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59:47
Palliative Medicine with Dr. Blake
In the opening episode of our second season we have the honour of speaking with Dr. Chris Blake the new Medical Director of Hospice Peterborough. Chris shares what brought him to a career in palliative medicine and his philosophy of care. What ...
September 19, 2023
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Season 2
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Episode 1
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48:38
Season 1 Wrap-Up!
The hosts look back at the inaugural season of What Now? and chat about the breadth and incredible guests that joined them.Stay tuned for season 2 coming this Fall!
July 05, 2023
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Season 1
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Episode 18
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17:11
Living with a Cancer Diagnosis
In this episode our very own Julie Brown courageously shares with us her experience of living with a cancer diagnosis. Julie walks us through the processes of discovery, diagnosis and emergency surgery to chemotherapy and beyond.
May 17, 2023
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Season 1
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Episode 17
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58:47
The Legal Business of Dying
In this episode, we have the honour of speaking with Bill Lockington, founding Partner of LLF Lawyers about Powers of Attorneys and Wills. Bill offers a straightforward approach and brings clarity to these sometimes confusing and difficul...
May 03, 2023
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Season 1
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Episode 16
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56:48
In Conversation with Dr. Naheed Dosani
In this episode we have the honour of speaking with Dr. Naheed Dosani. Dr Dosani is a palliative physician in Toronto and founder of Palliative Education and Care for the Homeless (PEACH). The PEACH program, based out of the Inner City He...
April 19, 2023
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Season 1
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Episode 15
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43:57
Medical Assistance in Dying - part 2
In part 2 of Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID), the hosts share their experiences and learnings from working with individuals and their families, who have chosen to die by MAID. They explore how a MAID death and subsequent gr...
March 21, 2023
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Season 1
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Episode 14
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46:36
Medical Assistance in Dying with Dr. Kaetlen Wilson
Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) is a relatively new and evolving way to die in Canada. In this episode our guest, Dr Kaetlen Wilson, shares with us the steps involved in accessing MAID. With genuine care and respect, Kaetlen walk...
March 08, 2023
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Season 1
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Episode 13
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54:30
When Death is Unexpected
In this episode, we explore the unique grief dynamics that are present when death is unexpected.
February 21, 2023
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Season 1
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Episode 12
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49:36
'I Don't Want to be a Burden'
In this episode we explore the all too common experience of feeling that our needs are becoming a burden to others. We discuss how the dynamic of burden forces us to confront our vulnerabilities and at the same time presents us with the o...
February 08, 2023
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Season 1
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Episode 11
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44:46