The Death Deck Event: Game and Conversation with a Death Doula

Thanks for joining us for The Death Deck: Game and Conversation with a Death Doula at Next Level Board Game Cafe in downtown Mountain View! We're thrilled that you joined us, and are grateful to you for making the event as success.

Did you come here looking for more death planning resources? Here are just a few to get you started:

Advance Healthcare Directives

This is an opportunity to revisit your priorities for the kinds of healthcare you'd prefer should you need it and are unable to speak for yourself. It helps to have these preferences captured in a legal document called an Advance Healthcare Directive* (AHCD).

There are many Advance Healthcare Directive forms that might work in your state:

• If you haven't filled one out, fivewishes.org is a great place to start.

• If you're in California, an easy place to start is: prepareforyourcare.org (Five Wishes also works in CA)

There’s More Prep You Can Do

If you already have an AHCD in place, then pat yourself on the back for being prepared should something unexpected happen—woohoo!

This means you're one step ahead on death prep... but don't stop there! I created the simplified bingo card to the left to help you think about other elements to consider. While it might feel dismal to think about these things, it makes health crises that much less stressful, as knowing your preferences takes the pressure off of the people in your life to have to make these decisions for you in an already stressful time.

Did you complete the simplified BINGO card? Did you get full BINGO?! I’m so impressed.

Are you hungry for more to do? Here are some options:

• Share the card with your friends and show them how easy it is to be minimally prepared for the unexpected.

• Let me know if you got full BINGO and want to know what else you might consider when it comes to being prepared for death.

• Hire me to guide you through some important end of life planning conversations!

Additional Advance Care Planning Tools, Conversation Guides, & Resources

• The Conversation Project has a number of excellent free tools and conversation guides related to health care wishes and planning, including how to choose and be a healthcare proxy, how to talk with a healthcare team, caring for a child with serious illness, and guides for caregivers of people with Alzheimers and other Dementias.

• Of note from The Conversation Project is the What Matters to Me Workbook, which helps people with a serious illness get ready to talk to their health care team about what is most important to them.

• Planning tools and resources from the Coalition for Compassionate Care of California

• Additional Advance Directive Forms from the Coalition for Compassionate Care of California, including Advance Directives for Dementia, forms specifically with Mental Health in mind, visual forms, and forms with religious considerations

• A Care Directive specifically for people with Dementia

• Caring for someone with a serious illness can be both rewarding and challenging. The folks at ARCHANGELS have created a Caregiver Intensity Tool to support caregivers in identifying where they could use the most support and connecting them to things that can help.

*In CA, the Advance Healthcare Directive form must be signed by two qualified witnesses or acknowledged by a notary public. Make sure someone close to you knows where to find the signed and completed form. Give a copy to your doctor, to any other healthcare providers you may have, and to any healthcare agents you have named. (A health care agent is a fancy term for the person who will speak on your behalf. It should be someone you trust, but can't be your doc and shouldn't be close family.)