My very first death doula client came to me through a neighbor of mine. The neighbor thought this woman could use a death doula, and made the introduction. I’ll call her Sassypants here, the name I teasingly used for her, which tells you most of what you need to know about her. In our first…
May is a tricky month for grief and me. My mom died in 2007. May was her birth month. It’s also Mother’s Day. And my maternal grandmother, Grandma Becky, died in May two years before my mom did. So every year, May arrives and it’s not just spring. It’s like a carnival funhouse, laughter around…
Here’s something you might need to hear today: love and rage can coexist.
You can show up with tenderness and still want to scream in your car afterward. You can be devoted and still feel trapped. You can be doing your best and still be angry that this is your life right now.
That doesn’t make you a bad caregiver. It makes you a caregiver who’s telling the truth.
This season, you are not failing the holidays because you can’t manufacture cheer on command. In this piece, we explore why grief can feel so sharp in November and December, how to set boundaries with people who “just want you to be happy,” and simple rituals and resources to help you build a holiday that honors your loss instead of erasing it.
Grief after suicide is heavy and complicated. Tonight’s Death Circle with Pollinate Hive House is a low-pressure space: come to listen, sit quietly, or share if you wish. No requirements. Just a safe, loving room, steady facilitation, and community care. Details and RSVP inside.
One of the hardest truths of end of life, illness, or psychological struggle is the circle of “burden.” A diagnosis, cancer, dementia, or something rare and hard to explain, often comes with a shadow that has nothing to do with the illness itself. That shadow whispers: I am a burden. Even without a dramatic diagnosis,…
I don’t know about you, but lately I feel like the whole world is vibrating—just beneath the surface. Buzzing with uncertainty, grief, outrage, and exhaustion. Everything feels too loud and too fragile. Too much, and not enough, all at once. There are days I wake up feeling like I’ve lost the thread. Like I’m carrying…
By Erika Hall, Death DoulaA reflection on acceptance, presence, and the freedom to feel 🌙 Introduction We talk a lot about grief and dying—but we don’t always talk about the rules we silently place on them. There are expectations. Unspoken checklists. Timelines and tones that we believe should be followed. We measure whether someone is…
🌟 What do you hope they say about you when you’re gone? Not the grand speeches or the list of accomplishments.The real stuff.The way you made them feel. The lessons you left behind. The love that lingers. Most of us think of legacy as something distant—what happens after. But the truth is, we’re shaping it…
Death is one of the most universal human experiences, and yet, it’s the one we are often the least prepared to face—emotionally, spiritually, and sometimes even logistically. In a culture that prizes youth, productivity, and control, death can feel like the ultimate disruption: uncertain, uncontrollable, and final. But as a Death Doula, I’ve seen firsthand…