End of Life Companion

 Companion to the dying, End of Life Care, Death Doula, Soul Midwifery

Marisa offers non-medical, holistic companionship to guide and support the dying in order to facilitate a gentle and tranquil death.

Doula is an ancient Greek word that translates as “woman who serves.” Specifically, end-of-life doulas sit vigil with dying individuals, providing a continuous and compassionate presence through the final hours. Based on the concept of a birth doula, a death doula or soul midwife honours the sacred nature of the dying process as a natural part of the cycle of life and helps individuals achieve a ‘good death’.

Marisa has trained with Kris Hughes, William Bloom, and with Felicity Warner on a Soul Midwifery course. ‘A Soul Midwife works with individuals to enable them to regain some control over their situation and to ensure that their independence is maintained and their choices and preferences are heard and worked towards being achieved.’

What does a Soul Midwife do?

• Helps individuals to plan and prepare a death plan
• Provides comfort and support through the dying process
• Supports individuality, choice and independence
• Creates and holds a sacred and healing space for the dying person
• Keeps a loving vigil
• Visits the individual at home, in hospital or in a hospice
• Provides a listening ear to the individual and their family
• Provides gentle therapeutic techniques and compassionate care
• Provides practical support such as essential shopping or housework
• Supports the individual in enjoying their remaining time as much as possible
• Offers complementary therapies to aid relaxation and symptom control
• Offers complementary therapies to the individual’s loved ones
• Uses sound, touch, smell and other gentle techniques to help alleviate pain and anxiety
• Provides hands-on personal care
• Is present at hospital appointments if required
• Provides support in carrying out preferred spiritual and religious practices prior to and after death
• Provides respite for family members to enable them to have a rest
• Supports families in carrying out the individual’s plans prior to and after death
• Cares for the person after death, in accordance with their wishes
• Offers to visit loved ones after death, to share experiences and to talk about and reflect upon the experience
• Supports families and loved ones

Working with you at any stage you would want or wish however brief.

Vigiling with the dying is being present at the bedside, quietly and peacefully, during the final hours of a person’s life. It is keeping watch so that the loved one is not alone. It is providing spiritual presence with the dying. It can include talking, performing rituals, and silence. A vigiler accompanies a person from life to death, while providing whatever is necessary to make the transition peaceful. Death is a sacred transition, and we, the living, are honoured to be in its presence.

Too often when a person is actively dying, they and the people taking care of them are mostly, if not entirely, alone. The doula meets a need at this most crucial moment. The dying process can take days to unfold, and that can be incredibly difficult and stressful; this process is acknowledged and supported.

Doulas meet with the individual and their families approximately three times beforehand to develop an individualised vigil plan that specifies their wishes for the time of death. It is different for everyone: some people want their hand held while others may want to be left alone. Do they want music, or silence, or something read to them? Are there objects they want near, such as a collection of photos or an altar? Do they want specific items such as bedding or blankets? These are just a few of the things doulas can take into consideration when writing the plan.

The vigil plan also includes specific relaxation techniques to support both the dying and their caregivers, including guided visualisation and complementary therapies, and rituals to be performed after the individual has passed on. In the planning stages, the doulas also work with the family to help them through the process.

During the vigil, which can last anywhere from a few hours to a few days, doulas help to ensure the individual’s wishes are met. Doulas sit with the individual and the family, helping to ease anxieties and fears, and allowing the individual to let go. Following the passing, the doula helps caregivers perform rituals designed in advance to support the transition and grieving process, for example washing, anointing and blessing the body.

Washing and Blessing the Body

Marisa offers compassionate support with the sacred practice of washing and blessing the body, whether at home or at the undertaker’s premises. This can be provided as a stand-alone service or as part of a fuller soul midwifery journey.

The sacred practice of washing and blessing the body after death is an ancient ritual found across many spiritual traditions, honouring the physical vessel that carried a soul through life. This gentle, reverent act is performed with love and deep respect, recognising the transition from life to death as a sacred passage. The body is carefully and tenderly washed with warm water, often infused with fragrant herbs or essential oils, whilst prayers, blessings or sacred words are spoken. This ritual serves multiple purposes: it cleanses the body in preparation for its final journey, offers a final act of care and dignity to the deceased, and provides a meaningful opportunity for loved ones to say goodbye in an intimate and loving way. The process can be deeply healing for those who participate, transforming what might seem clinical into something profoundly sacred. Anointing the body with oils and wrapping it in clean cloths or favourite garments completes this beautiful ritual, honouring the person’s life and supporting their peaceful transition to whatever lies beyond.

Fees

Consultation hourly rate: £45
Vigil rate: Donation basis