Hello You - Jim Hawkins’s Substack
Hello You with Jim Hawkins
Hello You 68: Skinny cappuccino, no chocolate
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Hello You 68: Skinny cappuccino, no chocolate

Making decisions before they're too difficult to make

A few months ago, I went to the GP surgery for a routine review. I wasn’t expecting anything out of the ordinary. But the HCA handed me an orange envelope, the contents of which took me somewhat by surprise.

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I mentioned this on that week’s episode of Hello You, and Karen - Dr Karen Stringer - responded. She knew much more about the background to my orange envelope, and said it related to important conversations that we all should be having.

Karen very kindly spared some of her time to talk about her and her colleagues’ work in this field, what she made of my experience, and the volunteering she’s now involved in to help us all have - as she termed it - the Important Conversation.

Take a listen, and share what you think by commenting? Or message me?

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I reckon you know at least one other person who would be really interested in what Karen had to say. So please, share this with them?

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And once you’ve listened to the episode, tell me: What would be your equivalent of Karen’s ‘sorting through buttons’?

‘We make birth plans, holiday plans, wedding plans, but dying applies to everybody’

The charity with which Karen’s a buddy volunteer is My Future Care.

And here’s her Dead Good Rap!

As Karen mentioned, she’d be interested in working with local funeral directors. If you work in that field, or know someone who does, contact me and I can put you in touch with her.

Thank you for being there

Please hit ‘Like’ or the little heart symbol anywhere you find it, and don’t forget to subscribe so that every episode of Hello You, and the Sunday Supplement too, drops effortlessly into your inbox!

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Discussion about this podcast

Hello You - Jim Hawkins’s Substack
Hello You with Jim Hawkins
I’m trying to give you something a little different. Hello You is about stuff, and things. People, and stories. Shrewsbury, and Shropshire. Mental health and well-being. History and heritage. Arts, culture and music. Faith, belief and the complexities of life.
I’m a good listener. It’s what I do. And for Hello You, I’m listening to (and talking with) fascinating people, mostly but not always from Shropshire, so that you can hear what they have to say.
It's public-service local journalism that cares about people. Audio that brings you the voices of people you might not hear from otherwise. Interviews conducted with compassion and empathy. Thoughtful, positive, good-humoured conversations, informed local storytelling, and commentary that’s not afraid to get righteously angry on occasion.