Nothing to Fear

Demystifying Death to Live More Fully

By: Julie McFadden RN

Narrated by: Julie McFadden RN

The instant New York Times bestseller!

A comforting and informative guide that demystifies our end-of-life journey, from the compassionate expert known as @hospicenursejulie

What if we didn’t consider death the worst possible outcome? What if we discussed it honestly, embraced hospice care, and prepared for the end of our lives with hope and acceptance?
In this compassionate and knowledgeable guide, TikTok star Julie McFadden—known online as “Hospice Nurse Julie”—shares the valuable lessons she’s learned in her fifteen years as an RN in the ICU and in hospice. Expertly interweaving emotional insight and practical advice, Nothing to Fear demystifies end-of-life care for both patients and caregivers, covering topics including:

• the biological details of dying
• which medical interventions help and which only make things worse
• the otherworldly beauty of deathbed phenomena
• financial and logistical preparations for death
• facts and myths about hospice care
• the most important conversations to have before you die
• the grieving process, before and after death

Sure to be a go-to resource for years to come, McFadden’s first book proves a better death goes hand in hand with a better life.

Critic reviews

“For those of you not planning on living forever, here’s the book for you. For so many reasons, we humans love to mystify death, shrouding the dying process and making it only more difficult to imagine and, in turn, more difficult to traverse. Nurse Julie has the prescription. Here you’ll find all sorts of practical information, from notes on morphine to how a body winds down, all wrapped in easy and clear language. If this sounds scary or grave, don’t worry. Nurse Julie will be right there with you, and she'll introduce you to some beautiful souls along the way.”
--BJ Miller, author of A Beginner’s Guide to the End

“There’s a reason we don’t like talking about death: it’s scary. It’s overwhelming. But just because we don’t like talking about it doesn’t mean we don’t have questions. Get the guidance and reassurance you need from someone who lives dying every single day -- Hospice Nurse Julie. Julie McFadden’s Nothing to Fear is the helpful, thoughtful, knowledgeable guide you deserve as you explore what it means to face the end.”
--Megan Devine, author of It’s OK That You’re Not OK

“Comforting and enlightening, pragmatic and fearless, Julie gives us the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth to care for the people we most love when it matters most.”
--Steve Leder, New York Times bestselling author of The Beauty of What Remains and For You When I Am Gone

"This book is a wild and true gift to everyone who reads it. Hospice Nurse Julie guides us like a loving friend, into the very territory we are most afraid to venture: the end of life. But once there, she shows us the value of facing our own deaths, demystifies the dying process, and leaves us with the profound knowledge that life is precious and beautiful."
--Claire Bidwell Smith, author of Conscious Grieving

Unexpected

Not what I expected. I thought it would be mostly stories about her hospice experience and not so much an educational piece about what hospice is.

Wonderful

I've worked in healthcare 46 years, mostly working with the elderly in both a hospital & nursing home setting. This book wonderfully tells what death & dying is. This knowledge is so helpful to families & the patient. It is spot on to the experiences I've witnessed. she also taught me some things that will better help me as I continue to work in the healthcare world. Thank you for sharing your wisdom, your stories and demestifying death.

So helpful

I found this book to be incredibly helpful as I navigate the waters of my mother’s Hospice journey. It’s full of frank yet compassionate explanations of what to expect of the dying process and how best we can help our loved ones and ourselves through one of the most difficult yet natural parts of the life process. Highly recommend either the written or Audible version.

So helpful

I love hospice nurse Julie. Thank you so much Julie! Thank you thank you thank you!

Great Book

This book should be training for hospice workers including volunteers, which I was for a few years after I retired from the Social Worker field . Very helpful.

Startling, compassionate, wise

This is an amazing book. Move it to the top of your “To be read” list. Good for all to read whether you are diagnosed with a terminal illness or caring for that person or just love that person. Its content is fresh and inspiring, startling, compassionate and wise.

The reality of what we can’t put in words

I absolutely loved this book. I plan to recommend it to everyone that I know.
When my husband was dying, while he was dying, and then after he died, everything’s was a blur and I felt so many conflicting things that I couldn’t put into words.
This truly helped me make sense of it all.
I plan to reread it several times!
Thank you, Julie!

Practical advice on Hospice care and the dying process

Well written, very capably voiced by author. Info on hospice for patients and caregivers. Practical yet encouraging

Nothing to Fear

This book was very helpful to me I appreciate how it helps me to not be afraid of death and to be more prepared and know what to plan whenever the time comes for me or my loved ones to die…I follow you on instagram and enjoy your loving and caring information-thank you for all you do!🩷

Clear, helpful, straight forward information.

This has been very helpful to listen to as a Hospice Nurse. It was referred to me from a family member who told me he understood the dying process better because he read the book & took in the information & he said it gave him peace. I wish I had had this to listen to when my Dad was dying.