What Does a Doula Do?
The word doula is of Greek origin, meaning someone who serves.
Doulas are also known as death doulas, end of life doulas or mortality doulas (our Life Rites preferred term).
Doulas work with people and their families and communities, who are living with a serious, and often, life changing illness.
For us at Life Rites, this change is in direct relation to Mortality, not always at end of life. We tend to come in much earlier, often at the point of diagnosis.
Doula care involves attuned listening, practical, strategic support and guidance in what is a deeply unknown and personal process for all involved.
We support people:
As they enter into and travel through treatment. If their illness is curable or they enter into remission, this is where our doula support may end.
Others reach out to us after diagnosis or early on in their treatment, whether they are living with a terminal prognosis and take the opportunity of when they are relatively well to attend to key tasks and initiate important conversations.
Other of our clients call us when they or their person, is months, weeks or days away from their active dying or are in the final moments of their life.
Doula care enhances life for all involved.
Doulas can help you or someone you love to:
Process the shock of diagnosis or recurrence of illness, and the changing capabilities as the illness progresses.
Navigate the hospital, healthcare or aged-care system.
Carry some of the load of everyday tasks.
Attend medical appointments, take notes and be another listening ear in the room.
Facilitate open conversation around end of life, dying and death.
Do things your way.
Manage delicate family issues such as conflict or what to say to your children.
Be active and involved in the dying process, if this is your wish.
Have a gentle and authentic death at home, hospital or aged-care facility.
Integrate end-of-life and after-death care by having ‘next steps’ conversations.
Facilitate home care and/or bringing your loved one home to die.
How a doula works with their clients can also be informed by their background, such as nursing, social work, counselling, the arts, and allied health.
All these things allow a doula to meet a client right where they are at, and to find the best language to communicate with each other.
A doula can assist and empower the person living with their life changing illness to have the real and direct conversations they want and need to have with their close family and friends. Sometimes, the doula is the only person or one of the few people an unwell or dying person can talk frankly to about their mortality.
We have found that being that listening ear and speaking with people in a very real way about their mortality, actually allows them to find the language and the way to have these valuable conversations with their closest people.
At Life Rites we work as a team.
This is the key to our sustainability and the potency of our work. Our doula team meets together regularly to support each other and grow the scope and quality of our services by combining our experiences and areas of expertise.
It’s never too early to reach out. We offer an obligation free 15 minute conversation to all who make contact with us. You can do this with a phone call, 0421 200 250 or an email at info@liferitesfunerals.com
The Life Rites Doula Team: (L-R) Sonja, Sarah, Kim, Victoria and Vicki.