Being afraid of dying has been internalized as self protection as we have evolved ,its now part and parcel of the human condition and is always spinning on our playlist of thoughts,because human beings dont do well with mysteries death has become a huge thing ,even though its as natural in our life cycle as being a side effect of being alive, people give it more air time than we should , because more important things don't get as much thought as it does , such as medicine has come a long way between life and death ,such that being in a sickened weakened state unable to communicate our wishes is an issue that few people think about or plan for but happens everyday.

We need to have an evolution in how we think, because there is much misery in this life both internal & external ,we recognize death and can easily plan for it ,it's natural & many of us will live well the people who raised us, mentored us & educated us have taken there place in our hearts , I don't remember who said it but it's very true "no one truly dies ,until the living forget your name ".

Anyone who has or is suffering from mental illness has got the suffering part down ,and let me say as a self qualified expert (I say that because i have faced depression, anxiety , panic attacks it's special kind of hell we know or have known ,and i am in palliative pain management for a terminal condition , so i think i over qualify as an expert of all things pain).

As hard as it is to hear or do , even if it's only baby steps once a week , focus on the living and trying to have a better life well we are alive ,as many therapist will say focus on the now ,what can you do right now to improve how you feel or how you live (many of us old timers,were taught a myriad of different coping skills,it's the "spaghetti approach" throw it at the wall till something sticks) and focusing on something positive like how you live today can reap benefits later (for me that's now !) Now I could suggest a million things but science agrees with me which baffles many ,the people to ask about living are the dieing,because there is a certain hard fought & won clarity ,when you dont actually know if there is a tommorow ,you need to make today all it can be , but nothing says we have to keep that to ourselves ,and certainly nothing says other people cant benefit from shifting there thinking to today and living and not of death and dieing , It's a mystery that will be solved when it happens ,however just like everyone who's gone before you ,you don't get to share the knowledge of what's next or is this all we get ,so seize the day (easy for me to say I have epilepsy !) Anybody who knows me would be disappointed if i didn't joke somewhere.