'I'm a hospice nurse - I've seen people choose when they will die'

Nurse Julie McFadden has seen a lot of death in her time and shared some of the most mysterious things that left her bewildered

Hospice Nurse Julie McFadden, known as Nurse Julie on social media, has been candid about her experiences with patient deaths in an effort to educate people about end-of-life matters. Despite dealing with death daily, she confessed that there are still aspects of it that remain a mystery even to her.

In a conversation with NHS surgeon and fellow social media sensation, Dr Karan Rajan, on his podcast 'Dr Karan Explores', Julie recounted some instances that left her utterly baffled, for which she has yet to find an explanation. She revealed: "Every once in a while I'll see someone who basically chooses when they're going to die.

"They basically will say; 'I'm going to die after this date' or 'I'll wait for my daughter's wedding'. I've literally had a patient say; 'I'm dying tonight' and then die even though they weren't actively dying."

When Dr Karan asked what could be happening in these situations, Nurse Julie confessed: "I have no idea. They did not take anything, they did not do it. I could not believe it... jaw on the floor, like what the heck?"

The expert admitted that she can't quite explain why patients often report seeing deceased loved ones, or even pets, in the weeks leading up to their death. Julie clarified that these visions don't occur in the final moments before death as often depicted in films, but usually around three weeks prior.

She stressed: "Those people who are seeing the dead people are very alert and oriented. They're not like drugged up and on the verge of death. They're up walking, talking and they are seeing things that we aren't seeing."

The nurse noted that it's always someone the patient loved and looked forward to seeing after death. However, she couldn't provide a specific example because she's witnessed this phenomenon so frequently that no single instance stands out.

Julie, a former ICU nurse, has experienced death from various perspectives. She confessed that her "mind was blown" when she first witnessed a death in hospice care rather than in the emergency department. This experience inspired her to start sharing her insights on social media, leading to her new book about death, Nothing to Fear.

She elaborated: "When I saw my first death on Hospice, I feared death so much less because you could see how doing nothing to the body and allowing the body to just naturally die (is easier). If you just sort of allow the body to be the guide, it will start guiding the body."

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