Facing Death So We Can Have a Good Life

I recently came across an article titled, How the Unrelenting Threat of Death Shapes Our Behavior, and it got me pondering. It examines how thinking about death changes the way people behave. The theory is that humans react to the existential terror of knowing that they will one day no longer exist by finding security and comfort in something bigger than them – things that will still be here long after they are dead. This all sounded fairly reasonable to me, but what I found most interesting was the theory of how people achieve this security. The suggestion is that they do this using 2 psychological constructs – they develop a strong faith in their own worldview and in their own self-worth. This explains why we can feel so threatened when our ideas about how the world works are challenged. The opposing view is attacking the carefully constructed barricades that help us deal with our terror of death. No wonder each side of the spiritual debate feels threatened by the other – there is a lot at stake.

http://venturearchitecture.com/?fbclid=IwAR2SqB9KBkpULmH0JyNF3NRPzu4SGABFbmyq-MA3-8Tj0BjbIt0s87UwXkk Belief in Nothing and the Fear of Death

When I hear the atheist claim that the religious cling to their beliefs out of fear of death it always strikes me as an unfair criticism – the image of people throwing bricks in glass houses comes to mind. It is equally possible to get comfort in the idea that once we die there is a blessed nothingness. I once had faith in such a belief. I’d go so far as to say that the idea of consciousness surviving death is a far scarier proposition because it is so far removed from what we know. Non-believers will sometimes even admit that the idea of possible infinite existence sounds appalling to them. Belief in life after death opens up all sorts of scary possibilities such as malevolent ghosts and maybe even being judged for our actions while on earth. The non-believer can be equally accused of adopting their worldview because of their fears surrounding death – to assert that this is only a weakness for the other side is intellectual dishonesty. Of course there is no way for us to know which of these opinions about death is right unless we experience the afterlife, or lack thereof, for ourselves.

http://boscrowan.co.uk/grounds-and-gardens/garden-urn-and-bench/ My Experiences with Death

I’ve had more experience with death than the average person. Before I began my training as a nurse I’d never even seen a dead body (unless you count one I caught sight of from a distance). I only worked as an RGN for a few years but during that time I witnessed hundreds of people die. At one stage I was working in a hospice back in Ireland and we could have 2 deaths per shift – there was one particular night when we had 5 people die in the space of a few hours. I developed a new appreciation for death, and I greatly admire those nurses who work in palliative care all the time because it is not an easy job. These experiences opened my eyes to how terrifying death can be for the person going through the process and how they develop the inner capacities to deal with it. Of course those who are terminally ill can get annoyed with the suggestion that they are being brave – it is not like they get much choice in the matter.

When I hear people claim that they are not afraid of dying I find it hard to believe. Even if death is the end of consciousness there is still dying part to think about – that happens while we’re alive. A minority of people die in their sleep or suddenly in an accident, but the improvements in resuscitation techniques means that more of us can expect to face knowing that we are soon going to die. There is no way that we can know how we will react to this situation until it happens to us. Those who say differently are just whistling in the dark to keep their spirits up.

My experiences working with death changed me. It has given me a new appreciation for life and the dangers of taking things for granted. It has added a sense of urgency to my existence because I know that death comes quickly even if it lies decades in the future. I’ve come to the conclusion that trying to ignore death is a huge mistake. It means that we fail to appreciate what we have now, and when it becomes time to die we won’t be ready.

Living With Our Own Mortality

Whether we like it or not we are all influenced by the knowledge of our own mortality. This awareness of our approaching death is the driving force behind all of our achievements and as well as our most evil deeds. It shapes who we are and explains why we do things. Nobody knows what happens after we die but we all take our comfort where we can get it. I try not to judge other people too harshly for how they do this – perhaps they know something that I don’t.

Just because we take time to think about our approaching death isn’t shameful, and we are not being morbid. It is actually a positive thing because it encourages us to take care of our bodies and make the best out of the time we have. I’ve not yet found sufficient evidence to conclude that consciousness/ awareness survives death but my strong hunch is that it does. The only thing I am 100% sure of is that the life I have now is there to be lived to the fullest.