About Us

The Purpose of Marathon's End

Marathon's End is the first and only art therapy hospice guidebook. It is intended to support families and friends as they navigate the end-of-life changes that occur in the mind, body, and spirit. These changes are described in the guidebook alongside ten art activities and an overview of bereavement services. Previews for two of the art activities (i.e. object collages and thumbprint tokens) are shown below.

Object Collages

The objects in our homes hold sentimental memories and personal value. Marathon's End includes a new way to engage with these everyday objects and remember their stories.

Thumbprint tokens

Do you want to make a keepsake with your loved ones thumbprint? Marathon's End includes step-by-step instructions to make your own tokens.

Next Steps

Additional art therapy hospice guidebooks are needed to more accurately reflect the emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual needs that arise at the end-of-life. Production has already begun on the next guidebook!

Future guidebooks are expected to focus on themes such as:

-Religious beliefs at the end-of-life

-Complex caregiver relationships

-The impact of race

-Pediatric loved ones

-Memory care

-Cancer

-Passing without hospice services

-The impact on families and friends "when hospice fails"

-AND much more!

The above list is not exhaustive. If you have suggestions for topics you would like to see in future guidebooks, please send us a message. (You can use the "contact us" section on the home page of this website.)

Meet the author and illustrator

Christina Heyworth

Christina Heyworth wrote and illustrated Marathon's End. She graduated from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago's (SAIC) Master's of Art Therapy and Counseling (MAATC) program in 2021.

During her time as an SAIC graduate student, she completed studio courses that explored the use of comic style artwork to discuss healthcare information (i.e. graphic medicine), the use of objects as containers for stories, and the use of natural plants and dyes. These courses informed Christina's practice as an artist as well as an art therapist.

While she was enrolled in the MAATC program, Christina worked in multiple hospice settings including familial homes, nursing facilities, independent living facilities, specialized ICUs, and hospitals. She has worked with individuals, groups, families, and communities. Christina has been honored to provide art therapy hospice care to loved ones who are years, months, or hours away from passing. Christina has also acted as a caregiver for many of her own family members, friends, and neighbors.

Christina understands that therapeutic benefits may arise from the art making process itself, the qualities of the art materials that are used, or the relationship that is formed as the artwork is made. Art therapy can be used to alleviate anxiety, stress, or pain. Art therapy can also offer a non-verbal way to process emotions and experiences while learning skills that support mental, physical, and spiritual wellness. Gaining a deeper understanding of your own thoughts and feelings allows you to name and communicate your needs more clearly to others. The production of physical artwork also makes art therapy unique. At the end of the making process, you will have a personal keepsake, container, or other physical object.

Marathon's End