Our two-hour intake appointment gives us the time and space to explore the needs, concerns, and priorities we identified during your consultation—and anything else that has come up since. Together, we’ll create a roadmap for how I can best support you, based on what matters most to you right now. We’ll talk about the services you would like, when and how you want support and communication to happen, and who you would like included in conversations and decision-making. Your needs and wishes may change along the way, and that’s okay. This isn't a plan you're locked into; it's a starting point that we can adjust as your needs, priorities, and circumstances change.
Advocacy will look different for every person, and the kind of support you need may change along the way. Sometimes advocacy means helping you communicate your wishes to family or simply being beside you while you share them yourself. It might mean attending a medical appointment with you to help communicate your priorities, ask questions, or take notes so you can focus on the conversation. It can also happen privately, where we prepare for a difficult conversation or practice how to voice a wish, question, boundary, or concern with a healthcare provider, family member, or friend. My role isn't to speak over you or make decisions for you—it's to help make sure your voice is heard, your choices are understood, and you feel supported in advocating for what matters to you.
There can be a lot to think about and take care of at the end of life, and you shouldn't have to figure out every piece on your own. During your intake appointment, we'll identify the things you want to accomplish, complete, or put in place and create a manageable plan for addressing them. Some of those needs may be things my team can help with directly, while others may require the expertise of another professional, such as an attorney, accountant, funeral director, healthcare provider, or higher-level care facility. If you already have professionals you trust, I can help coordinate appointments and, when appropriate, attend them with you. If you aren't sure where to begin, I can help you explore your options, identify appropriate resources, and connect with the professionals you choose. My role is to help keep the pieces organized and moving forward so you can spend less time navigating systems and more time focusing on what matters to you.
When you're juggling appointments, treatments, medications, paperwork, deadlines, family, and everyday life, keeping track of what is happening—and when—can quickly become overwhelming. Appointments made weeks or months ago can be easy to forget, especially when your energy and attention are needed elsewhere. Together, we'll create a system that works for you and keeps the people you choose informed and involved. That might be a physical planner you can pick up and review, a shared online calendar that trusted family or friends can access, or another method that fits naturally into your life. The goal isn't to give you one more thing to manage. It's to take some of the mental load off your shoulders so you can spend your time and energy on the things that matter more.
"He isn't telling us anything. We have no idea what's going on." On the other side of that conversation, I often hear, "I don't want to make everyone sad," "I don't want every conversation to be about my illness," or simply, "I'm tired of telling the same story over and over again." Keeping the people you love informed shouldn't mean spending your limited time and energy repeating medical updates or feeling responsible for everyone's questions and worries. If there are family members or friends you would like to keep updated, I can provide a weekly care summary—with you deciding exactly who receives it and what information is shared. Based on the preferences we establish together, the summary might include appointments and updates you want others to know about, services you've received at home or from This Beloved Life, what's coming up in the week ahead, and anything you'd like from the people in your life. Sometimes that might be as simple as, "Pam has been feeling her best between 10 and 11 in the morning and would love visitors during that time." The goal is to keep the people you choose connected and informed while giving you the freedom to spend your conversations talking about something other than being sick.
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