For Immediate Release

CONTACT:
Kim West, Author
New Heart Publishing
info@new-heart-publishing.com
www.peaceful-passage.com

More people are deciding to partner with hospice for a “Peaceful Passage”

Phoenix, AZ (May 16, 2010) - In the past decade the number of people entering hospice services has more than doubled with 1.5 million entering in 2009 and almost 70% of these receiving services at home. This means that many families in the US are now dealing with the myriad of issues that arise while caring for a loved one dying in their home.

According to Kim West, PhD, author of Peaceful Passage, “With each new year more and more people need guidance to care for their dying family members. They also need help dealing with the emotional, financial, spiritual and relational upheaval this can bring.”

According to West, the decision to care for a dying loved one in the home is just the tip of the iceberg. Under the surface lies the heart wrenching decisions that must be made, the day-in/day-out of caregiving, losing one you love slowly but surely and the emotional storms that rage. Add to this marriage, children and career and this can be an overwhelming endeavor without outside help.

Hospice is there to bring some of the needed help but in reality they are only in the home a few hours a week. This means the family is on the hook 24 hours a day contending with ever-changing physical challenges and little guidance in this heart wrenching emotional journey. What has been needed is a resource that partners with hospice to support and guide the families they serve.

Peaceful Passage, newly released, supplements the help hospice brings to the family. The reader can quickly find the information they need whether it is how to change a bed with someone in it or how to deal with the stress or sadness they feel. West points out, “Fear gets in the way of moving forward and making decisions. Knowledge is empowering and brings confidence at a time that feels very much out of control. If there was ever a time when fear was present and knowledge was needed this is it.”

While caring for her own dying mother West said she wished she had a quick reference to assist her. “There is so much you don’t know but need to. You end up blundering your way through, doing the best you can all the while knowing there must be a better way. I wanted to make sure that others on this same journey had the help I didn’t so I wrote Peaceful Passage to come along side and guide them.”

“The interactive design of Peaceful Passage with worksheets and checklists help to organize and simplify the daily caregiving. “I was exhaustive in the details – trying to answer every aspect of hands-in caregiving. I was just as thorough with the emotional aspects even including a journal to help process the day to day emotions. I wanted to be with the reader caring for their heart and souls during this very hard time, almost like having a counselor there with them.”

There are other books on the market dealing with dying at home but as hospices around the country are noticing there isn’t one that combines the emotional, practical and personal. West included her own journal from her time of caring for her mother and reading it pulls the whole book together. She does not shy away from talking about the difficult and uncomfortable issues and this can be an encouragement to the reader to know that she has been there and what they feel is normal.

From first hearing the news of the impending death through the journey and beyond the funeral, West stays with the reader bringing guidance with compassion, honesty, caring and a practical wealth of knowledge. “My hope is that Peaceful Passage can be a help to everyone that is caring for a dying loved one. I know that is a big dream but the need is real and I want to help fill it.”

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Media: Contact author for interviews or review copies. Visit the book’s web site at www.peaceful-passage.com for cover art, author pics, sample chapter, reviews, “news pegs,” and much more. The book retails for $16.99 and can be purchased through www.peaceful-passage and through Amazon after June 30, 2010.

Peaceful Passage – The essential guide to navigating the emotional storms and daily logistics of an at-home, end-of-life journey.
(2011, New Heart Publishing, Phoenix)
ISBN: 978-0-9840526-6-0
240 pages, 6” x 9”, Index, Resources, $16.99, trade paper
Author Bio:

Kim West, PhD, has been a Licensed Clinical Pastoral Counselor in Phoenix, Arizona since 2001 helping hundreds find healing and restoration. Peaceful Passage represents a merging of these years of counseling experience with the new skills acquired as the primary caregiver during her mother’s final journey and will enable her to help every reader on this journey.