Who Cares What Happens After I Die, I will Be Dead

By Lisa Pahl, LCSW

When talking about advance care planning, disposition options, and getting your affairs in order, people will tell me, “I don’t care what happens when I die, I will be dead.”

My answer always is, “the people left behind. That’s who cares.”

It’s a harsh reality. We may choose to avoid the fact that we will die one day.

But, we will still die.

All of us.

And, what I can tell you after working in death and grief for seventeen years is…

You’re causing extra hardship for those that you leave behind. 💔

Grief is hard enough. It’s so hard to lose someone that you love, that you count on, that you have a connection to.

You can barely function. Your life is upside down.

And that’s when things are in order.

Now add things like:
❌ No mortuary arrangements or discussion about what they would want (burial, cremation, funeral/celebration of life, etc)
❌ No trust or will
❌ No passwords to access accounts
❌No list of accounts/ financial information
❌ No life insurance information

Your grievers are going to be spending so much time and energy chasing information and trying to settle your affairs. While grieving.

It truly is the best gift you can give your family and those you love to be prepared for your death. 

In their grief, they will thank you. 

(We know it’s not easy to start to think about your mortality. We created The Death Deck to add a little humor and levity to a topic that’s tough to discuss.)