Services
End of life doula
An end of life doula is a new solution to an old problem: I, or someone I love, is dying — now what? Much as a birth doula provides support before, during and after the birthing process, an end of life doula is a guide and support system for those who are feeling disoriented, overwhelmed and exhausted by the dying process. I will answer your questions and help you feel better prepared and properly empowered for an end of life experience. This should be a time for meaningful connection, not endless frustration. I will be your expert troubleshooter and sounding board to carefully guide you until the end. We all need extra help in times like this, and I will work in stride with religious leaders and medical providers to make sense of this tedious process and help you attain the breathing space you desperately need to experience a more easeful death for yourself or your loved one. You can do this. I will help.
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• What’s on your mind — what you’re going through in your specific situation
• What quality of life looks like for the dying
• Different paths forward through the dying process: nursing homes, in-home health care, hospice care,
advanced directives like life-prolonging medical interventions, & the resources available to you in your
community
• The nitty gritty: understanding terminology and procedures
• Normalizing the dying process
• Clarifying roles and finding common ground amongst familial stakeholders
• The legacy of the dying person: a celebration of life and memorializing the dying
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• Clarity that will help you tackle the big decisions that are coming
• Referrals and resources to help you feel better supported
• Confidence to find your voice in this process and a sense of relief
• Ideas for promoting unity with other family stakeholders
• The knowledge that I, as your end of life doula, am here for you
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I will help you feel more secure in answering your own how-to and what-if questions. I have been a registered nurse for more than 10 years. Prior to founding Threshold Doula in 2019, I worked for Carle Hospital as a cardiac nurse and for OSF Hospital in hospice care. That professional experience as a medical practitioner has prepared me to help others navigate death and dying. I also have experience with this process on a deeply personal level, having been bedside during my mother’s illness and death. I intimately understand the uncertainty and powerlessness that impacts us during the dying process — and how much we all need a helping hand to get through it.
Speaker, educator, & mentor
Fear of death is normal. Unfortunately, so too is not talking about death and addressing our fears head on. I help people have meaningful conversations about this delicate subject that lead to overcoming our insecurities and accepting the reality that we all will someday die. We often move through life not towards our deepest longings, but away from our biggest fears. Yet it is our fear, in addition to our longing, that teaches us what we need from our one precious life. So let’s talk about it in a way that empowers greater understanding, charges our connection to those we love, and encourages peace of mind. As an educator, public speaker, and mentor, I offer a range of services that help us transition from fear and freeze into possibility and ease. Education about death, grief, and trauma If you’re looking for answers, you must first know what questions to ask. This is the place to start. In addition to working with those who are actively dying or providing support for someone who is dying, I work one-on-one and in small groups to help us find clarity and comfort around the emotionally charged topic of death and its impact on society. In this work I rely on my experience as a trauma coach and end of life doula to increase our capacity to deal with death, grief, and trauma. I also offer a self-paced, online course, Befriending Death, that will spark self-examination and help you expand your relationship with mortality. Taking this course will prepare you to deal with an end of life situation, whether it be your own or someone important in your life.
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In my capacity as educator and facilitator, I have guest-lectured at colleges, taught workshops, hosted public and private events, and led community-oriented grief circles. Attendees of my engagements arrive with concern and curiosity and leave feeling hopeful and compassionate. I host a recurring event, Death Jam, which helps us find the words and strength to communicate our own stories around death and dying. I come to your space and host an inclusive, intimate, community-focused conversation. Death Jam has been held in various spaces online and in person in Champaign-Urbana and Peoria. It is an ideal event for children and adults of all ages and can be easily facilitated at retirement communities, care facilities, holistic practices, wellness retreats, corporate settings, and student forums.
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I mentor those interested in becoming an end of life doula. This work involves education, guidance, and supervision. You’ll learn how to set proper expectations and resource yourself for work in this field as well as what it takes to establish a practice and business model as a doula.
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As you begin your journey to becoming a death worker and establishing your practice, I will walk beside you as an experienced guide and a compassionate mirror. I can help as you create your business model and get established, determine your most coherent, right-fit scope of practice, plan community outreach and events, develop your marketing strategies and business systems, and begin to serve clients in your community. We can meet bi-weekly or monthly, depending on your needs. Mentorship services are often client-specific bundles but all services start at $100/90 minute sessions.
