Death is a delicate subject for many. It is not a word we like to use or talk about. Sometimes it causes trauma, brings the worst in people and causes sadness…

but what if I told you L.A. Maciel, our new writer, has another view on death?

East vs West

I have been to two significant funerals in my life, and I have watched animals die. Growing up in an immigrant family, I was blessed to see death in a different light than most of my American friends.

You see, in most western societies, no one talks about death. It’s too sad, or too evil. The idea of ceasing to exist is something many are afraid of since the beginning of time.

Our society is obsessed with looking younger for as long as possible. Not wanting to grow old and refusing to talk about everyone’s inevitable end is a common fear on the west side of the globe. This fear is called death anxiety.

Death Anxiety

Why is death anxiety an issue? Because, in a way, it stops us from actually living our lives, and it can also cause our families severe pain.

There have been court cases held between family members of people that were brain end and in comas, about how they should handle the situation. Hospital stays, in America alone, can cost over thousands of dollars, putting someone’s family in debt, even after death.

Death anxiety makes it harder for people to understand how they want their bodies handled after they die. Most people don’t even know what a living will is. Living wills are legal documents — that are easy to find and here is one for you, Living Will, that gives someone ability to state how exactly they want their bodies handled.

Be it if they are in a coma or die of natural causes. Essentially, this document gives you control over how you want your body handled.

Ask A Mortician

Caitlin Doughty, best known as the host of the YouTube channel, Ask a Mortician, and founder of the organization Order of the Good Death, tweeted back in April of 2013.

With this one tweet, she started the death positivity movement, which concentrates on bringing an end to the silence of the discussion of death in our communities and society. To help people get over the anxiety of death and help take control of our bodies.

To do more reading on the subject, please visit The Order of the Good Death, and read the Tenets of the Death Positive Movement.

L.A. Maciel