Lisa Cole

With decades of experience in health care encompassing entrepreneurial, educational, clinical and leadership roles, Lisa’s current focus is on helping people live and die well via lifestyle change, health advocacy and end-of-life navigation. You can reach her at lmcoletz@gmail.com.

Articles by Lisa Cole

• Social media madness: Why distraction and discourtesy alienate us all

  Is anyone else feeling as disconnected as I am in this world of hyper-connection? Nobody seems to be…

  Tuesday, June 16, 2020

• Being so sensitive in a world that is sometimes not

  When my physical therapist told me years ago I was a "delicate, little flower," I flat out denied it.…

  Wednesday, June 10, 2020

• What to say when someone dies

  From the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, early in April, a physician wrote a note I found to be…

  Monday, June 08, 2020

• Healthcare providers, don’t drink the Kool-Aid!

  As COVID-19 spreads, more people are dying without loved ones being with them — or with each other.…

  Wednesday, May 27, 2020

• What we say in healthcare matters

  The next time I teach a group of healthcare professionals, I think I'm going to sprinkle glitter on them.…

  Monday, May 18, 2020

• When someone is dying, what can we do?

  In the throes of the uptick of the COVID-19 pandemic, my son sent me a text from a colleague of his lamenting…

  Friday, May 08, 2020

• Being kind in the time of COVID-19

  At the time of this writing, I'm stuck between states, self-isolating and social distancing at a friend’s…

  Thursday, May 07, 2020

• Postpartum depression: When delight turns desperate

  What happens when your "bundle of joy" becomes that "baby from hell"? Our culture perpetuates the fallacy…

  Tuesday, April 14, 2020

• Send me flowers now — don’t wait for my funeral

  Who among us hasn't followed our intuition or waited too late to take action and, ultimately, dearly…

  Monday, March 30, 2020

• Die daily and live better

  For those of you who are yoga aficionados, you are familiar with Savasana or Corpse Pose. Yes, that's…

  Tuesday, March 10, 2020

• Recommit to ‘health’ in healthcare

  For many of us in healthcare, clinical practice is no picnic. Long hours, clipped patient visits, staffing…

  Wednesday, February 19, 2020

• Dump your stuff now, before you die

  Who amongst us wouldn't like to feel lighter, freer, less encumbered? I would! Maybe due to my time dealing…

  Tuesday, January 28, 2020

• The difficulty with goodbye

  "When those you love have passed away…" is how my mom begins her last goodbyes to us on her "Remembrance"…

  Wednesday, January 08, 2020

• Back it up: Let your death inform your life

  We've all heard about "bucket lists." You’ve probably got your own. It may include ideas about what…

  Tuesday, December 03, 2019

• The importance of talking about death

  Inevitably, when we are together, my adult son shepherds people my way introducing me as, "My Mom, who…

  Wednesday, November 13, 2019

• Are you in need of a course correction? Reflect on your purpose

  This morning, while pondering "purpose," images of sailing swirled about me. I remember being caught…

  Tuesday, October 22, 2019

• The blessing and burden of caregiving

  Beyond the breathless years of raising "typical" children, many of us find ourselves again in caregiving…

  Monday, October 14, 2019

• Soulfully preparing for the end of life

  These past seven months I’ve been on a mission. Throwing caution to the wind, I moved out of state…

  Friday, October 04, 2019

• Bummed, burnt or just plain beat?

  Life can often feel like an endurance contest — deadline after deadline with piles upon piles of work.…

  Thursday, September 19, 2019

• Living life on the edge: Compassionately caring for all patients

  I'm not referring to folks who are bungee jumping, cliff diving, zip lining or driving race cars here.…

  Tuesday, September 10, 2019

• Hurry on over to hospice — don’t wait

  When given a prognosis of likely less than six months to live, most people — once the shock subsides…

  Tuesday, September 03, 2019

• If you’re struggling, beckon ‘flow’ instead

  Most of us know that sense of resistance when we’re just not feeling it and really need to get something…

  Tuesday, August 20, 2019

• Directives for our death

  Whenever I work with clients, one of the first things I do is get them to complete their end-of-life…

  Thursday, August 15, 2019

• Improvise, adapt, overcome: Change is inevitable

  "Improvise! Adapt! Overcome!" I feel like I’m doing this a lot lately. I first heard this phrase when…

  Wednesday, August 07, 2019

• Anticipatory grief: Break on through to the other side

  I received news about a friend recently — his seizures have now collided into a diagnosis of glioblastoma.…

  Tuesday, July 30, 2019

• Knowing when our timing is off in healthcare

  As healthcare providers, we know all too well that when the timing is off, people can suffer. Asynchronous…

  Friday, July 26, 2019

• Seeking silence: Ultimately, it’s an inside job

  Noise — it's everywhere! Noisemakers abound: fans, compressors, leaf blowers. Even libraries, once…

  Monday, July 22, 2019

• Chronic pain: We are adding to our patients’ suffering

  I started my professional practice in chemical dependency. Now, many decades later, I find myself advocating…

  Tuesday, July 16, 2019

• How you can provide a healing environment at your workplace

  When I think about a healing environment, rest, beauty and love instantly come to mind. Yet, how often…

  Friday, July 12, 2019

• Teachable moments through death

  "So how can we possibly incorporate some of the contemplative care practices we learned at ‘Being With…

  Monday, July 08, 2019

• Take 5 minutes and pause when providing care becomes overwhelming

  Whether delivering care at the bedside or ricocheting from one meeting to the next, we as healthcare…

  Monday, July 01, 2019

• Healthcare professionals, take time to transition

  Whether we work on the floor, in a cubicle or in the executive corner office, most of us in healthcare…

  Thursday, June 20, 2019

• Ready or not, we die

  What is one of the first things we, as healthcare providers, do when providing acute patient care? Clarify…

  Tuesday, June 11, 2019