Susan Koen, Ph.D., is a psychologist, author, and speaker whose most recent work explores what it means to love fully and live courageously in the face of death.

After years as an entrepreneur, researcher, and management consultant, Susan’s life took a profound turn when her beloved partner of 40 years was diagnosed with Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD). Her upcoming memoir, Dancing in the Face of Death: A Journey of Love, Caregiving, and Courage amid a Dementia Diagnosis, tells the story of navigating the emotional terrain of partnership, caregiving, and grief with grace, humor, and fierce devotion.

Through her writing and speaking, Susan invites audiences to reflect on themes often left unspoken: Healthy Love/Healthy Grief, Courage and Agency in Dementia, and the Challenges & Rewards of Caregiving. She combines the insight of a psychologist with the tenderness of someone who has lived through what she teaches: that even in decline and death, love can deepen and meaning can endure.

Today, Susan’s mission is to expand understanding and compassion around FTD, especially GRN-FTD, and to empower others — people with dementia, caregivers, families, and medical professionals — to approach disease and death not with fear, but with clarity and connection.

You can keep in touch with Susan’s writing on her website and on LinkedIn.