Welcome. I am Natasha and I am a whole of life doula.

Since I was a little girl, I have always been captivated by the mysteries of life and have long held a keen awareness of this whole passage we call life – from birth to death and all that breathes between these spaces.  Death, although painful and agonizing is also such a profoundly sacred and beautiful part of being a human.

 
“The opposite of death is birth and life cradles them both”

– Haruki Murakami

 

 

Death is generally not a favorite dinner party topic. It’s a conversation that’s largely avoided both publicly but also privately with our own selves.

We don’t talk about death nor do many of us want to think about it. Some might say we in the west are ‘death phobic’.  And yet, death and dying are inevitable for every single one of us.

The terms death doula, death midwife or end of life doula may sound like something new, but caring for our dying is a role that humans have done for as long as we have been on earth.

In my life, before becoming an end of life doula I occupied a diverse spectrum of roles but have always sensed I would one day work in the death field, I just wasn’t sure in which capacity.

After some research into funeral direction, I soon knew my desire did not reside there. The business side of death didn’t resonate with me as didn’t the corporate funeral industry. It was some years later that I learnt of ‘death doula’ training.

Our modern world has ‘medicalised’ death just as we have birth. Both are natural parts of life that once were held by community not ‘professionals’ – roles once held by the ‘women of the village’.

Through serendipity I came in contact with Denise Love and her death doula training. And that’s when everything clicked for me. Denise is incredibly solid and skilled and has given me a grounded and respectful approach to this work. I realised how necessary it was for a dying person to have the option of a death doula, as well as for the family of that person, and I knew that I had the capacity to stand in that space.

One of the most fulfilling parts of my role is supporting people to reclaim death from professionals. Much of our anxiety around death comes from the stigma and fear of the unknowns.

My wish is for death and dying to become ‘visible’ again, to alleviate the fears we have so we might claim back our power, minimize the unnecessary excess money spent on death and take responsibility for ours and our loved ones death – as we once did.  As a doula, I walk beside you on this path.

My wish is for death and dying to become ‘visible’ again.

Much of the skills and training from my previous roles have carried over into my current role.

I have 15 years’ experience coordinating the support needs of youth and adults with physical disabilities and managing direct care teams.

I have owned and operated my own hospitality business, organised and ran community events and helped communities to build their spaces.

I’ve worked in a funeral home and mortuary, have mentored women in business, as well as facilitating group healing circles, and holding intuitive space for many people for their personal relationships and grief.

However I think my greatest skill is my ability to authentically connect and be present with what is. I hold the dying as I do the living with reverence, presence and love.

Since working as an end of life doula, I have been humbled over and over again. We each have a story. To walk beside you in your last chapter is a privilege and an honour, one that I take with deep respect of your individuality and uniqueness of being.

This work is important to me as everyone deserves to be seen at the end of their life.