Offerings
Helping people navigate grief and the dying process
Death and dying aren’t always easy subjects. Conversations about your end-of-life desires and the legacy you want to leave behind can be difficult for many. If you or a loved one is diagnosed with a terminal illness, understanding what happens when someone dies can be confusing and challenging.
Having help along the way to process your grief and understand what’s happening can make the act of dying more manageable. That’s where I can help. As an end-of-life doula, I can fill a great need by offering professional guidance and a personal touch during a challenging time.
Free Consultation
Let's have a conversation to talk about your needs and how I can help.
We can meet through Zoom or in person. I offer remote Doula services for anyone outside of a 60-mile radius of Philadelphia, PA or to accommodate accessibility needs, such as COVID precautions. The initial consultation is free. Learn more about my pricing structure at the bottom of this page.
Please reach out at Lori@supportedjourneys.com to set up a time to connect.
Offerings
Each of our journeys is unique. As an end-of-life doula, I am available to support you in a multitude of ways. Together we can create a plan that is right for you. Here is just a sampling of my services:
Advanced Care Planning
Whether you are planning ahead for serious illness or face a life-limiting diagnosis, conversations about death take courage, motivation, and time. I can help you clarify paths and options to reduce fear and distress.
Advance care planning and directives help guide the medical care you would or would not want if you cannot speak for yourself. I can help you create or modify your directives to address not only medical care, but physical, personal, spiritual, and emotional care as well. Articulating and documenting your hopes, fears, beliefs, values, and expectations about how you want to live and how you want to die can help bring you and your caregivers peace of mind.
Critical Conversations
Critical conversations are difficult to have but necessary to ensure that your boundaries are being respected, your wishes are being met. Your caregivers, loved ones and care team understand and can shift as needed to support you. As the need for these conversations arise, I can guide and empower you to enter into these discussions.
Life Review & Legacy Work
A Life Review is the systematic and structured process of recalling past events and memories in an effort to find meaning in and achieve resolution of one's life. As a dying person comes to terms with their own mortality and begins to prepare for death, they may use life review as a way to find closure and a sense of completion. A life review doesn't follow a predictable pattern, and no two people can be expected to experience life reconciliation in the same way. Learn more about Life Review here.
Leaving behind a legacy is an important part of death for many individuals and their families. These projects can be powerful coping tools not only for you, but for the people around you. Leaving a legacy gives your loved ones something tangible to hold on to, something that can provide healing and comfort year after year, and generation after generation. It's a reminder of who you were, what you loved, what was important to you and what contributions you made. Learn more about Legacy Work here.
Supporting your Vigil Time
Many people choose to create a sacred or special setting for their transition to take place. Known as a "vigil," this is the period in which an individual is actively dying and is often when the family chooses to sit by the bedside. This transition time can last for hours or days, and it is helpful to plan for this time so that those who are present know how to serve and love you best. You have the opportunity to choose who you want in the room, perhaps holding your hand, reading to you, caring for your needs, or just being present in your room.
I can be available to help you plan for your vigil and if desired, be there with you during this time of transition. I can take shifts with family members to ensure that you are comfortable and to allow your loved ones to get some rest. I am trained to understand the signs and symptoms involved in the active dying process, and know from experience that it is reassuring to have someone sitting with you to help provide comfort and relieve anxiety, pain and worry.
Caregiver Support
Caregiver support is vital. As someone who has been a caregiver, I understand how difficult it is. You find yourself with so many feelings, and it can be exhausting. You may find great joy and honor in this position or you may find resentment. Your feelings are not right or wrong. I see you. You matter. I can help coordinate care across your support system or find ways that lighten the load. I can also help ease the burden on caregivers by providing respite care, as needed.
Grief Support
Bereavement can be an isolating experience, but it doesn’t have to be. As a certified grief companion, I am trained to provide peer support while addressing the myriad of emotions and expressions of grief. We can meet in person or on Zoom for individualized sessions. Show up just as you are and I will provide a healing presence and offer support and resources. It is never too late to address a loss, and no grief is too big or too small to warrant exploration and integration. One-on-one grief support is an accessible alternative mental health service which can be done independently of, or as a complement to, your existing mental health practices. I can hold space for any type of loss including a diagnosis of terminal or chronic illness, disability, parent loss, pet loss, those newly bereaved, and losses due to other types of life transitions.
Reiki Energy Healing
The Japanese word Reiki (ray-key) means “Universal Life Force energy.” A Reiki treatment supports the whole person physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. It is used to relieve stress, can be an excellent energizer, and can assist healing on all levels. Pleasant and relaxing, Reiki has been documented to relax muscles, still the mind, lower blood pressure, and ease pain. Such treatments have been said to reduce anxiety and support a sense of peace. Reiki will not interfere with conventional medicine and is frequently used in conjunction with it.
Reiki can be incorporated into our work together or can be scheduled as a stand alone service. Learn more about Reiki here.
Pricing
I believe that everyone deserves compassionate and equitable care, and as such, I offer a sliding scale hourly pricing structure of 0-$100/hour. If you are able to pay more, you will help to subsidize services for others with fewer financial resources. In addition to hourly pricing, I can also offer packages based on your specific needs.