Every year, approximately half a million people die in England. For three quarters of people, death is not sudden but is expected.

None of us like to think about getting ill and dying, but not talking about it won’t make it go away – any more than talking about dying will make it happen sooner.

That’s why every year in May, Dying Matters and their coalition members host an Awareness Week, which gives them the opportunity to place importance on talking about dying, death and bereavement. This year’s awareness week will run from 9-15 May and is themed around 'The Big Conversation'.

Having the Big Conversation encourages us to talk more openly and so we can live well and make the most of life until the very end.

The Big Conversation is all about the importance of planning ahead – and telling people about your wishes.

Given that death is inevitable, the statistics suggest that we are all too afraid to discuss this important matter and take the unescapable into our own hands. Dying Matters say that;

• Only 35% of us have written a Will;
• 32% of us have registered as an organ donor or have a donor card;
• 31% say that we have taken out life insurance;
• 27% of us have talked to someone about our funeral wishes and;
• 7% say that we have written down our wishes or preferences about our future care, should we be unable to make decisions for ourselves.

So it seems that we think that life is for living and it therefore goes against every instinct we have to start planning our death. Only one in ten of us have talked to anyone about how or where we’d like to die. But Dying Matters suggest that every adult, of whatever age, needs to look ahead and ask “What if?”

Why we need to talk more about death and dying

Many of us will have specific wishes about where we would like to die, or how long we want doctors to try and keep us alive, or what we’d like to happen after our deaths. There are wills, care and legal arrangements to be sorted – perhaps even issues surrounding who looks after the children.

You may have worries about what will happen in the future when you’re gone, or there may be important emotional matters you want to address now rather than when time is short.

Some of this can be done relatively easily; sorting a will, life insurance, a funeral plan or organ donation takes a click or a phone call to the right person. But for some matters, such as how you’d like to be cared for, the first starting point is your family or loved ones. You need to talk to them about your wishes.

Five things to do before you die:

1. Write your will to set out who gets what and to avoid leaving difficult legal problems for your family.
2. Make financial plans to ensure the people you care about are protected - you can get advice on life insurance by calling 0800 612 8005
3. Plan for your future care and support, for example by setting up a ‘Lasting Power of Attorney’, writing an advance care plan and discussing wishes with your GP.
4. Record your funeral wishes so your family know what you would want.
5. Register your decision about whether you would want to be considered as an organ or tissue donor, and crucially, share that decision with your loved ones.

What if you want to start a conversation?

You could pay a visit to your local Death Café.

At a Death Café people, often strangers, gather to eat cake, drink tea and discuss death.  The objective being 'to increase awareness of death with a view to helping people make the most of their (finite) lives'.

Developed by Jon Underwood and Sue Barsky Reid, the Death Café model is based on the ideas of Swiss sociologist Bernard Crettaz's cafés mortels.

The Death Café concept is based in London, and since starting up in 2011, they offer pop-up discussions of death over tea and cake in over 32 different counties.

Alternatively, you could have a conversation with us to kick start your financial planning.

At Essential Insurance we provide no nonsense advice and life insurance policies to suit your family’s needs. We’ll search and compare policies from UK leading insurers and you’ll get your own experienced advisor to help you get the cover you need at the right price for your budget. Contact us on 0800 612 8005 or click here and we’ll call you.