My Story
My purpose & how I became a death doula.
I was called to this role after my dad died.
At the young age of 25, and living in Seattle at the time, I moved home (to Wisconsin), to be with my dad on his hospice journey. His terminal condition was stage 4 SC lung cancer, which showed up after a year or so of remission from esophageal cancer.
Leading up to and after my dad’s passing, I felt like I was in a void.
People did the "right" things, asking if I was alright, etc, but truly I felt amiss because it seemed like no one was really willing to look at the reality of his impending death in the face. Including me.
Fast forward a few years of grieving, processing and missing my dad, I started to lean into the possibility that there were people who willingly walked into the death space. People who weren't afraid of one of the most natural processes that we all share (if we're lucky).
In hindsight, I had wished I knew that getting the opportunity to be with a loved one at the end of their days is one of the hardest, but most potent times for celebration, closure, forgiveness...you name it.
I embarked on my training via Doulagivers, and found that in this space, there were hundreds of other people with similar stories and passions to bridge the gap between life and death, to be of service to those in their most tender of times. I was overjoyed.
My intention is this role is to normalize the conversation around death, and to reframe it as a welcome topic in the conversation of life. I believe that when we can bravely look in the face of the things we fear the most, we are transformed. To walk alongside death is a gift as it can more greatly inform how we live our best lives.
I'm here so you don't have to do it alone.