Doula Care for Dying

10/13/2026

Earlier this year, Dr. Rachel Lovins of Willow Health https://www.willowhealth.care/ and I received grant funding through End of Life Psychedelic Care (EOLPC) to offer something we're both excited about: home-based ketamine treatment and spiritual care for people living with serious illness.

Through this grant, the full program is available at no cost to five eligible participants.

Living with serious illness can bring so much more than physical symptoms. There may be anxiety, depression, grief, fear, uncertainty, or big questions about meaning, relationships, and dying.

This program brings together physician-supervised ketamine treatment with intentional preparation, reflection, and spiritual care. It's an opportunity for people to explore another approach to navigating some of the emotional and existential challenges that can accompany serious illness.

Dr. Lovins provides the medical evaluation, treatment, and monitoring. I provide nonmedical spiritual care, helping people prepare for their experiences, reflect on what comes up, and explore what feels meaningful to them.

The program is available to people who are receiving or eligible for palliative or hospice care and can be served in Southern Vermont or Boston, Massachusetts. You don't need to be enrolled in hospice to qualify, and participation is determined through an individual medical evaluation.

I've been thinking a lot about the difference between promoting a service and making an option accessible. This is a small pilot, and ketamine isn't something every person approaching the end of life will want or need.

But people can't consider an option they don't know exists.

If you or someone you know might be interested in learning more, please reach out. Asking questions doesn't mean making a commitment, and there's no expectation that this will be the right choice for everyone.

You can contact both of us at:

Rachel Lovins, MD
rachel[AT]rachellovinsmd.com

Kasey March
doulacarefordying[AT]gmail.com

And if you know someone who might benefit from knowing this opportunity exists, please feel welcome to share it.

10/09/2026

Lindsey, Michelle, and I got together to polish some of the materials for our After Death Care course starting on October 22nd. I'm getting really excited!

One of the things I love most about teaching this course is the community that forms as we learn together. I think this reflection from a past participant captures that beautifully.

If you're hoping to join I would recommend registering sooner than later, there are three spots left as of this morning!

10/02/2026

After Death Care begins October 22nd!

https://www.journeywithcompassion.com/afterdeathcarecourse

09/22/2026

You don't need to be a death doula to take this course.

After-Death Care: How to Legally Care for the Dead in Vermont is for anyone who wants to better understand what happens after someone dies and how we can participate in that care.

Maybe you want this knowledge for your own family, friends, or community. You want to understand your choices and feel more prepared before someone you love dies.

Or maybe you're a death doula, caregiver, hospice worker, clergy member, or other end-of-life professional who wants practical skills to better support the people you serve.

No previous experience is required.

We'll learn what's possible and legal in Vermont, build practical skills, and gather in person for hands-on practice and community learning.

Our next course begins October 22.

Come learn what’s possible and become part of a community that knows how to do this.

https://www.journeywithcompassion.com/afterdeathcarecourse

Join Michelle Acciavatti, Kasey March and Lindsey Warren for a 4-session course: 2 Online classes Thursdays 10/22 , 11/5, and 11/19 from 6:00pm to 7:30pm on Zoom. In-person Saturday 11/15 from 10:00am - 2:30pm, Hummingbird Center, Berlin VT.

09/21/2026

I'm still feeling grateful for the invitation to keynote at the Dying (to) Talk Symposium in Rochester this past week.

With New York’s Medical Aid in Dying law newly in effect, so many people; healthcare providers, caregivers, advocates, and communities, are beginning to figure out what it will actually look like to support people choosing this option at the end of life. I was thrilled to be invited to share what Lindsey Warren of Journey With Compassion and I have learned from accompanying people and their families through this experience.

The whole day was so thoughtfully designed: beginning with information about the law, moving into how local hospitals are preparing for implementation, then into our conversation about what it looks like to accompany a person and family through MAiD, followed by small-group discussions where people could begin thinking together about what this means in their own communities.

One thing I hope we communicated clearly is that this work is about so much more than the medication or the mechanics of MAiD.

Our role is so often about presence: helping everyone understand what is happening, tending to the practical pieces, supporting the people gathered around the bedside, and protecting enough space for this to remain this person’s death rather than becoming primarily a medical procedure.

I’m proud that this work and the role of relational, non-medical support is increasingly being invited into larger conversations about dying and caregiving.

A huge thank you to Jennifer Sanfilippo, Alida Merrill, the First Unitarian Church of Rochester, and all of the volunteers who put so much thought and care into creating this day. It was an honor to be part of it.

08/17/2026

Today at noon, I’ll be chatting with Mike Reagan of The Natural Funeral for our August Gathering Wisdom conversation with the Northeast Death Doula Network.

We’re talking about terramation (natural organic reduction): how it works, why families are choosing it, and what this option might teach us about ritual, participation, and our relationships with the people we care for after death.

I’m especially looking forward to talking learning about how we new approaches to disposition can focus on relationship, witnessing, and community at the center of deathcare.

Gathering Wisdom is one of the ways we bring death doulas into conversation with people working throughout the broader deathcare community.

If you’re a death doula or end-of-life practitioner who would like to join us for conversations like this, you can learn more about the Northeast Death Doula Network here: https://northeast-death-doula-network.circle.so/

08/06/2026

Yesterday (August 5, 2026), New York's aid in dying law went into effect. The law allows New York residents who are over the age of 18 with a terminal diagnosis and a prognosis of six months or less and able to make informed decisions about their medical care o request a prescription which would be self administered to hasten their death. Want more information? The Academy of Aid in Dying Medicine has published Everything You Need to Know About Medical Aid in Dying in New York https://www.aadm.org/newyork?blm_aid=15567 End of Life Choices New York and the Academy of Aid in Dying Medicine have partnered to support implement Medical Aid in Dying https://endoflifechoicesny.org/

End of Life Choices New York partners with individuals and organizations as they contemplate end of life issues, including medical aid in dying, to coordinate the necessary care and education so all New Yorkers can live and die with autonomy and choice, in line with their own values and wishes.

08/05/2026

Many people are surprised to learn that in Vermont, families have the legal right to care for their loved one after death.

For generations, washing, dressing, sitting with, and saying goodbye to someone who has died was something families and communities simply knew how to do. Today, those skills and even the awareness that these choices exist are much less common.

This fall, I'm honored to be teaching a three-part After-Death Care workshop alongside Lindsey Warren of Journey With Compassion and Michelle Acciavati of Vermont Forest Cemetery. Together we'll explore what after-death care looks like in Vermont, the legal and practical considerations, ways to prepare in advance, and how to support families with confidence and compassion. The series includes an in-person, hands-on workshop where participants will learn body care, rolling, shrouding, and other practical skills in a supportive environment.

Whether you're a death doula, hospice volunteer, caregiver, clergy member, healthcare professional, or simply someone who wants to better understand what is possible, this workshop is designed to help reconnect us with knowledge that belongs in our communities. No previous experience is required.

I believe that caring for someone after death can be a profound extension of caring for them in life. It isn't the right choice for every circle of care, but every community deserves to know it's a choice.

If this speaks to you, we'd love to have you join us.

Learn more and register here:

08/04/2026

One of the reasons I said yes to speaking at the Dying to Talk symposium on September 18th in Rochester, NY is because I believe people deserve more than information.

They deserve a relational container.

Over the years, I've come to see Medical Aid in Dying not as a series of legal steps to complete, but as a deeply human experience that unfolds within relationships with loved ones, physicians, hospice teams, volunteers, and community.

At this symposium, Lindsey Warren of Journey With Compassion and I will share what we've learned after years of walking alongside people choosing this path in Vermont. We'll talk honestly about the psychosocial complexities, the practical realities, and the community partnerships that make this work possible.

Whether you're an experienced death doula, a hospice volunteer, a healthcare professional, or simply someone who wants to better understand this end-of-life option, I hope you'll consider joining us.

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/dying-to-talk-tickets-1994511462475?aff=ebdssbdestsearch&fbclid=IwY2xjawTev-dleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeSagydQvzciXHtU3uAfVWUzoa0v442F0GbZGOkKpb9blvLbnmxF5k0hUlICo_aem_lw4Ay-lAz6NKnz_iz4Tl-g