Motivated by what we’ve encountered professionally and personally, Lisa and I authored the interactive workbook “Family Conversations We Must Have but Do Not Want To.” This resource aims to help families identify essential information before life or health circumstances change. Our drive to create this workbook was further fueled by our personal experience with a family member who lost her cognitive abilities. We recognize the difficulty of the questions addressed in this workbook. However, we stress the inevitability of these challenges and the relief and clarity that advance planning can bring. We hope this workbook provides invaluable insights into expressing and honoring the care preferences of individuals and their loved ones.

A Personal Experience that changed our lives

In 2018, we experienced a family tragedy that helped guide us in writing this interactive workbook. Like many, we were unprepared for what happened to our mother. At 80 years-old, she was to enter the hospital for an outpatient procedure, during the cardiac procedure there was an unfortunate event that occurred, leaving her in the Intensive care unit for one month with limited cognitive ability. During the following months, we were left trying to manage her affairs for her, but only if we would have had the conversations that most of us do not want to have, and we were caught spending months and years trying to determine what our mother wanted for her care, and where were all of those important documents that we needed and were asked for, had we had this conversation with her prior, it would have made our lives and our understanding of her wishes much easier and clearer for us and relieved hours of searching and stress for the family.

This interactive workbook helps to guide you through the tough questions that we all must face at sometime in our lives or a loved one’s life, so please take the time and discuss the answers in this interactive workbook.