Episode 153: Kathryn Mannix - Lessons From The Dying

Episode 153: Kathryn Mannix - Lessons From The Dying

From Keep Talking by Dan Riley

February 6, 2026 · 54 min

About this episode

Kathryn Mannix discusses her experiences as a palliative care doctor and shares insights on dying and living fully.

Kathryn Mannix is a palliative care doctor and the author of With The End In Mind . ------------ Keep Talking Substack Spotify Apple Podcasts Social media and all episodes ------------ Support via Venmo Support on Substack Support on Patreon ------------ (00:00) Regret, mistakes, and living fully (02:05) Hospice work and “encountering death” (04:40) Early medicine: oncology training and dying patients (07:20) Falling out of love with oncology research culture (10:10) The hospice “statement from fate” (13:05) Ordinary dying vs Hollywood’s scary version (16:05) Living while dying: love, family, relationships (19:05) Practical “sadmin”: sorting life before death (22:10) Why regret gets a bad rap (25:30) Doing the work: turning wounds into scars (28:55) Dying environments: people and mood matter most (32:10) Nana’s wisdom: losing familiarity with dying (35:40) Medicine “kidnapped dying” and death taboo (38:50) Values-based planning: “what matters most to me” (41:55) Death education, pets, and breaking secrecy (44:10) What dying looks like: hearing and breathing changes (47:25) Trauma from misunderstanding dying sounds (50:35) Comfort meds, guilt, and what happens after death

People in this episode

Host: Dan Riley

Guest: Kathryn Mannix

Topics covered

  • palliative care
  • dying
  • hospice
  • regret
  • death education
  • relationships

Keywords

  • palliative care
  • dying
  • hospice
  • regret
  • death education
  • relationships
  • oncology
  • values-based planning

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: With The End In Mind

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