On Being with Krista Tippett recently reminded us of her 2013 interview with Dr. Ira Byock. The expert in palliative care and hospice shares the core statements for any relationship and for what to say when you don’t know what to say.
Dr. Byock states (excerpt):
Please forgive me. I forgive you. Thank you. I love you. Those four things, I still use them in my clinical practice quite frequently. People often say I don’t know how to do this, Dr. Byock. I don’t know what to say to people. If you’re really stuck at any time, those four things are a nice way to start, whether you use them verbatim. And I have had people use them verbatim, but make them your own.