Death is an inevitable part of life, and an ICU nurse’s testimony and insights on the process will leave you at a loss for words.
Kirstie Roberts, who has spent the past four years caring for patients in their final hours, says she has witnessed what she describes as a “spiritual shift” that happens shortly before death. She noticed a pattern among patients in intensive care during their last moments.
“Every single person who passes away says the same thing,” Roberts shared. She said that every patient who reaches their last moments is aware that they are going to die. Despite several years as a hospice nurse, she said she still does not know how they sense it.
Generally, a hospice nurse is assigned to patients with six months or fewer to live. Kirstie Roberts said patients often say things like, “Can you please tell my family I love them?” “I don’t feel good,” and “I know I’m going to die.”
Furthermore, Roberts claimed that what comes across as a strange intuition is that many of these patients appear aware that death is imminent, even when there are no clear medical signs indicating an immediate decline.
“There’s a shift that happens,” Roberts said. “It’s spiritual — something you can’t really explain. Their vitals may be stable. Their condition might look the same as when they were admitted. There’s nothing obviously critical that suggests they’re about to pass.”
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Call it intuition or divine timing, still, Kirstie Roberts claimed that patients who ask her these sentimental questions die soon afterward, regardless of medication or medical interventions.
The moment of someone’s death is usually very profound and personal, and some people may take weeks or months to process their thoughts related to death. For terminally ill patients who are given a timeframe to live, the process might be even harder to accept.
Nurse Kirstie Roberts observed that no matter the circumstances, witnessing death is always difficult. For those who sit by their parents’ bedsides, watching them fade away in a hospital room, the sense of helplessness is overwhelming.
The grief that follows is impossible to put into words, a sorrow that never truly leaves but becomes a companion people learn to carry.
“We spend so much time caring for patients and building relationships with them and their families,” she said. “Over time, you learn to accept that death is part of the reality in this setting. We cope by knowing we’ve done everything we can.”
The nurse also reflected on the broader meaning she draws from her experiences, describing life as “inherently spiritual.”
“It’s not just about collecting things we’ll one day leave behind,” she said. “Love the Lord, love others, and be grateful for what you have.”
Kirstie Roberts comments were widely appreciated on social media and sparked strong reactions online. Some users claimed that her insights helped them feel at ease, and others, like fellow nurses, agreed with her words.
A viral TikTok from an ICU nurse claims end-of-life patients always “say the same thing” before they pass away. https://t.co/0ZNk1lQBAZ pic.twitter.com/tQkzVPyuZ8
— The Daily Dot (@dailydot) February 9, 2026
“As a former hospice nurse, she’s right,” one commenter wrote. Another added, “They always know.”
While Roberts’ perspective is rooted in her personal experience rather than scientific research, a Maryland nurse named Katie Duncan said that many patients reportedly reach upward, as if trying to grasp something unseen, moments before death.
This movement looks like the person is trying to hold onto something, such as the ceiling or a figure, without any pain or distress.
Sharing her insights on TikTok, she explained, “In my experience, it’s very common to see a dying person reach upward, almost as if they are trying to touch or hold someone’s hand.”
The nurse’s words resonated with a lot of online users as they also began leaving their personal experiences.
