REGRETS WE CAN ALL LEARN FROM

Bronnie Ware, a palliative care nurse, spent years working with those at the end of their lives. Here, she outlines the five most common life regrets from the patients she looked after...

1. I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself. "When people realise that their life is almost over, they look back and wished they'd lived their dreams," says Bronnie.

2. I wish I hadn’t worked so hard. Bronnie says, "All of the men I nursed deeply regretted spending so much of their lives at work."

3. I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings. "Many people suppressed their feelings in order to keep peace with others and they often carried bitterness and resentment as a result," Bronnie explains.

4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends. “Many had become so caught up in their own lives they had let friendships slip,” says Bronnie.

5. I wish that I had let myself be happier. "Many did not realise until the end that happiness is a choice," she adds. "They had stayed stuck in old habits that prevented them from finding contentment."