Sitting bedside with over a thousand patients, hospice doctor Christopher Kerr could not help but notice how pre-death dreams and visions are an integral part of the end of life experience. Expanding his medically trained mind, Dr. Kerr took a decade-long dive into the significance of end of life dreams and visions. His research shows that dreams and visions very often provide the dying an unquestionable sense of love, peace and forgiveness. Even for patients whose trauma seemed unforgivable, after working through the stages of anger and grief, dreams eventually provided peace and freedom for them to die on their own terms.
The book shares fascinating stories of dying patients, from the very young, to grandparents, developmentally disabled, former felons, and more. The common theme of meeting deceased loved ones (including pets) isn’t about proving if there is life after death, but does demonstrate that pre-death dreams happen very frequently, and give great peace to the dying. Grieving family and friends of the deceased also find great comfort in knowing that their loved ones felt transcendent peace as they died. Dr. Kerr says this, “The dying most often embark on a hopeful journey in which they are embraced one more time by those who once gave their lives meaning, while those who hurt them drift away. Death is also a form of final justice, one in which the scales are balanced by love and forgiveness.”
Whether the reader has explored the dream world deeply or not, they should find in this book a deeper insight into the meaning of pre-death dreams, and what we can all learn from them. Being a lifelong dreamer myself, I intimately understand how dreams can prepare me for what comes next. Dreams can teach us a great deal about love and forgiveness, certainly two of life’s most challenging lessons.
Find this book at your local library or purchase it as print, e-book or audio book. Also, Dr. Kerr’s website https://www.drchristopherkerr.com is a fantastic in-depth resource. It includes links about the movie (of the same title) he made, based on the book.
Until the book ends
Esther Suarez
Hospice Services of Lake County Volunteer