Practice

Say it out loud before you have to. Then see what it heard.

Most of us freeze when someone we love says, “I’m scared,” or asks how long they have. Here, an invented person speaks and you answer in your own words. Then you see which of their needs your words met, which slipped by, and what a steadier response might sound like.

6 conversations5 to 10 minutes eachRuns in your browserNothing is sent anywhere

How this works, and what it can and cannot do

  • The person is scripted, not an AI. Every line they say was written in advance. Only their reaction changes with how you answered.
  • A phrase-checker reads your answer, in your browser. It looks for what hospice and palliative teams teach families (reflect what you heard, ask an open question, stay, and take medical questions to the care team) and for what they warn against (false reassurance, guessing at how long, advice about medicine, promises you cannot keep).
  • It is a mirror, not a judge. It can miss a good answer worded differently. After every turn you can open a possible response and decide for yourself.
  • Nothing leaves your device. No audio is recorded, no model is called, and what you type is not stored unless you download or print it. To speak instead of type, use your keyboard’s own dictation.
  • All six people are invented. This is practice for a conversation, not medical advice and not a test of anything.

Choose a conversation

Practise

  • Reflect first, then ask
  • Stay, and say you are staying
  • Be honest about what you can offer
  • Help them take the question to the right professional

Hand to the care team

  • Any change in breathing, pain or condition
  • Any question about medicine, or how long
  • Any thought of self-harm: the team now, and 988 or 911 if there is danger
  • Anything you would be tempted to keep secret

Where this comes from

The habits the checker looks for are taught in the end-of-life doula training at qualitydeath.com/training, where each is sourced. The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: 988lifeline.org. Hospice 24-hour availability: 42 CFR §418.100.

This practice is education, not medical, legal or financial advice, and not an assessment of anyone. In crisis or thinking about suicide, call or text 988. In an emergency, call 911.