Dear One,

I realized something a few weeks ago.

I was watching Season 2 of The Pitt, and there it was: a hospital ER staff member serving as a death doula. Not in a documentary. Not in a niche indie film. Not in a book written for the already death-curious (I can’t get enough of those either, by the way).

A prime-time show.

And that’s when it hit me.

For some time now, I’ve been sensing growth in the end-of-life doula world. Trainings filling. Memberships expanding. More conversations. More collaboration. More visibility.

But I was also second-guessing myself.

I work in training end-of-life doulas, and I am one myself. I live and breathe this work. I’m immersed in it every day. So I wondered: Is the growth real? Or am I just  "in it" so deeply that it feels bigger than it is?

Seeing a death doula woven naturally into a hospital storyline made something clear.

It’s not just me.

This work is moving into the collective imagination.

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed painful gaps in hospital and hospice dying experiences. Families were separated. Rituals were interrupted. Grief was compounded by isolation. Many people were left thinking there has to be another way.

At the same time, an aging population is seeking more personalized, dignified, and meaning-centered end-of-life transitions. People want support that honors the emotional and spiritual dimensions of dying, not just the medical ones.

And the response is tangible.

More doulas are being trained than ever before. Professional communities are strengthening ethical standards and shared practices. Healthcare systems are growing more curious about collaboration. Families are actively searching for doulas in their communities.

What once felt like a grassroots whisper is becoming something stronger.

And let’s remember: this work is not new.

It may feel trendy and exciting, but accompanying the dying is ancient work. It has been carried by elders, midwives, healers, clergy, and community caretakers across cultures and centuries. Sitting vigil. Tending bodies. Bearing witness. Singing. Praying. Holding hands.

What we are witnessing now is not invention. It is remembering.

We are drawing from ancestral wisdom while learning from the teachers and researchers of our time. We are integrating presence and ritual with modern medicine, palliative care, neuroscience, and ethics. We stand at an intersection that honors what has always been true while adapting to contemporary healthcare systems.

That moment watching The Pitt felt like a small cultural milestone. When a profession appears in mainstream storytelling, it has crossed a threshold.

If you’ve been part of this movement, whether as a doula, a student, a family member, or someone willing to talk about death, you are part of that momentum.

We are not imagining it.

Something is shifting.

And it’s exciting to witness.

With Gratitude,

Rachel Cao

Music Playlist

Take a breath.
Let the music hold you for a moment.

We’re always tending to our community playlist — not just us, but our graduates, our team, and our wider circle. When a song speaks to someone’s heart, we add it.

Do you have a song that meets you in the contemplation of mortality, grief, or the full circle of life?

We’d love to listen with you.

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Community Spotlight

Kitty Edwards, MA, is drawn to the sacred thresholds that carry us from one chapter of life to the next. She is the founder of The Living & Dying Consciously Project and the No Regrets Project, nonprofit initiatives devoted to meaningful end-of-life education and ritual practice.

A master teacher, author, and shamanic practitioner, Kitty has worked in end-of-life education for more than 30 years. She has developed curricula for medical schools, community symposia, and end-of-life organizations, including Death: A Rite of Passage, Conversations on Death, Conscious Caregiving, and Walking the Labyrinth of Grief.

Through her monthly Leap into Your Life newsletter, Kitty invites readers to explore the River of Life, a living metaphor for the confluences, rapids, eddies, and waterfalls that shape our stories. For death doulas who sit beside life’s final threshold, this reflection offers a gentle invitation: pause, trace the bends in your own river, and listen for what they have been teaching you all along.

Kitty also offers her Well of Grief Ritual as a complimentary eBook. Death doulas may find this ritual especially helpful for individuals and families as they process grief and regret and move toward a deeper sense of peace.

You can explore additional resources, including 15 Rituals for Walking with Grief, on Kitty’s website, offerings created in gratitude for those who do the sacred work of sitting with death.

Visit www.kittyedwards.com to sign up for Kitty’s newsletter or download free resources.

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