Ep. 64 (Part 2 of 2) | Lynn Fuentes, Ph.D., author of The Koan of Chronic Illness and teacher of a series of courses on managing chronic illness, shines a bright light of understanding on chronic illness with all of its far-reaching ramifications in this very moving and important conversation. Lynn not only illuminates what chronic illness involves physically, emotionally, and relationally, but delves also into the existential questions it engenders: How should we live? How can we love each other? How can we embrace our suffering and allow it to be our path to greater connection with spirit? Lynn speaks from personal experience, having spent many years caring for a family member with a debilitating illness, and explains how she used the Integral Map in her own struggle to help make sense of the huge, all-consuming project that inevitably follows a diagnosis. Now she teaches others what she has learned about coping with the overwhelming logistics, healing the trauma, and also about transforming illness into a spiritual practice.This conversation really pertains to all of us, whether we are very ill or not, as aging towards death is something we all face. Can we learn to prepare ourselves? Can we reflect deeply on what is truly meaningful and important about life itself and live accordingly? Can we open to the wholeness of life, the pain and the bliss, the suffering that our cultural narrative would just as soon ignore? Chronic illness is a heartrending subject, but Lynn’s warm, wise, skillful, Integral approach allows us to see it in an expanded way, more profound, more transformative, than we may have seen it before. Recorded December 15, 2022.“We cannot separate suffering from life, they are intimately interconnected. Illness really shows us that.”(For Apple Podcast users, click here to view the complete show notes on the episode page.)Topics & Time Stamps – Part 2What are the essential things in life? Self-knowledge, the need for community, a spiritual connection, appreciating the small things (01:27)Transforming illness into a spiritual practice and the practice of surrender—in surrendering we can become larger; it’s not giving up, not defeat, it’s acceptance (05:20) Elizabeth Kübler-Ross’ stages of grief end in acceptance (08:22)Respecting people’s journey: people are too ready to make assumptions about what is needed, when we actually need to listen and ask, “What do you need?” (09:00)It’s very scary letting it in: this could happen to anyone at any moment (11:32)I thought life was about doing something! But now I can’t do. (12:53)How to take sick people’s grumpiness and irritability (13:27)How do we navigate the relationship part and allow each party, sick person and caregiver, to have their feelings; where is the place for sacrifice while still taking care of yourself? (14:50)We need to teach people how to be with a person who is suffering (18:13)Do most of us grow wiser as we age? (20:32)The importance of reflection and taking responsibility for one’s life (23:08)How is God here with me—as caregiver, as provider, as patient? (24:19)Philosophy—the love of wisdom—and the importance of spiritual practice in preparation for illness and dying (27:26)We cannot separate suffering from life—they are...