Death Doulas and the Sacred Work of Accompanying the Dying
Nicole Kidman made headlines recently when she revealed she’s training as a death doula, inspired by her mother’s final months and the loneliness she witnessed as her mum lay dying. “I wish there were people in the world that were there to sit impartially and just provide solace and care,” she said at a University of San Francisco event earlier this year.
She’s not alone. Filmmaker Chloé Zhao and actress Riley Keough have also completed death doula training, each driven by personal loss and a desire to develop what Keough described as “a healthier relationship with death.”
A death doula (also called an end-of-life doula or death midwife) is a non-medical companion who offers psychosocial, emotional, spiritual, and practical support to someone who is dying, and to their family. They aren’t there to replace medical care, but to help someone write letters, explore how they want to be remembered, or simply not be alone.
For those of us trained in spiritual accompaniment, this territory feels familiar. What does your tradition or practice bring to end-of-life care? And do you see death doula work as part of the ministerial calling?