Mary Porter, RN, BSN
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I am a licensed nurse in the state of New York and hold a Bachelor of Science
degree in Nursing from Georgetown University. My experience in the cardiac intensive unit of
Georgetown University Hospital, as a student, is where I first recognized my ability to support
those challenged with fear of dying. My lifelong path of mindfulness and meditation studies,
personal work with Somatic Movement and Psychophysical Therapy, as well as my extensive
training in Holistic Nutrition, Healing Hands Therapy and Death and Dying serve to create a
unique perspective of the field.
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With over 30 years of experience in both the medical and holistic healthcare systems, my
background includes work in hospitals, home care and hospice settings, as well as the
HIV/AIDS division of Tibotec Therapeutics, a subsidiary of Johnson and Johnson, Inc. Also in my private
practice as an Holistic Health Coach, I counsel clients to embrace mindfulness
through meditation and support a variety of preventive health, well being and recovery
modalities.
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My Story
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My grandmother’s death from colon cancer when I was just seven years old was the first of many unexpected losses that shaped my early life. Those experiences taught me, even as a child, that grief and death are inseparable parts of living.
The loss of my brother Patrick to AIDS in 1986, when he was only 26, was especially profound. His death became a turning point that changed the direction of my life.
Witnessing his suffering—and the emotional turmoil our family faced as he was dying—led me to leave the corporate world and devote myself to caring for others. I began working at St. Vincent’s Hospital in New York City, home to one of the first AIDS units in the country.
There, I learned how to be fully present with people who were dying far too young, and with their families, who were often overwhelmed and struggling to understand what was happening.
I later moved into Home Care, where I could offer more personal, compassionate support to individuals with HIV/AIDS and cancer who wished to spend their final days at home. These experiences deepened my ability to lead with my heart, to sit with suffering, and to help others recognize dying not as an ending alone, but as a natural transition within the larger arc of life.
© 2017 Mary Porter All Rights Reserved