Hi, I'm 22 and I just graduated from college, and I have been taking care of my father (71, liver cancer) for about 10 months. He was diagnosed with Liver Cancer last October, and was given 3-6 months, however its 5 mos later, and he's only now starting to lose some quality of life. Because of my age, I find it difficult to get him to talk about his wishes for his last days. He seems to be in a constant state of denial about life. When I try to bring it up, he says, "Well, I'm not planning on going anywhere anytime soon. " I guess he doesn't want me to worry about him dying, but at this point, its a reality that I have come to grips with (as best as possible). Once, I tried to push the issue and he said I made him depressed for the rest of the day cuz "all I want to talk about is dying". Because time is of importance and I am the only one that will probably be handling his affairs, I feel particularly stressed to find out what he wants. Its already overwhelming enough without not knowing what his wishes are. Any suggestions as to how to start this conversation again?
Hi Truimage, and welcome to the community!
It's hard to talk about this stuff! It's frightening to a lot of folks, and the idea of facing up to one's own death takes a lot of courage.
I did find this on the site for you: Talking to your Parent about Death Maybe something in there will help you in talking to him.
You're very young, and I'm so sorry to hear your father is not doing as well as he has. You are strong and wise. Best wishes to you both.
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