A Growing Movement Of 'Death Doulas' Is Rethinking How We Die

Amy Levine has sat with many dying individuals in her capacity as a hospice social worker. She’s often felt the same, uncanny feeling as the moment of death approaches. “All I can tell you is that from where I have sat there has been a calmness and a sense that I want to be nowhere else but by that person’s side,” Levine said in an interview with HuffPost. Levine is part of a growing movement of nurses, social workers and volunteers who are pushing for greater compassion and companionship for people who are dying. Borrowing language from the birthing world, they’re called death doulas, end-of-life doulas, death midwives and palliative care doulas. “Doula” derives from the Greek word for a female servant, but has been re-appropriated in recent decades by trained individuals of all genders who offer support and comfort to people during pregnancy and, now, to those who are dying. “There are so many people who are facing the end stage of life alone,” Levine said. “In my experience working with people at that stage, the real stress is often that no one wants to talk to them about it. That’s very isolating.” Levine is the executive director of The Doula Program to Accompany and Comfort, a New York-based nonprofit that trains volunteers and matches them to work with a dying person in the area. Unlike palliative care doctors and nurses, the volunteers’ role isn’t medical ― they’re there to of...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news