{"id":2521,"date":"2025-12-01T10:30:00","date_gmt":"2025-12-01T14:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/touchingheadev.wpenginepowered.com\/dayton\/?p=2521"},"modified":"2025-07-16T12:12:46","modified_gmt":"2025-07-16T16:12:46","slug":"why-i-chose-to-become-an-end-of-life-doula","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/touchinghearts.com\/dayton\/blog\/why-i-chose-to-become-an-end-of-life-doula\/","title":{"rendered":"Why I Chose to Become an End-of-Life Doula"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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By Marie Stanfill, End-of-Life Doula at Touching Hearts at Home<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

At 26, I received a diagnosis that would change everything: stage 3 cervical cancer. I was also pregnant with my youngest daughter.<\/span><\/p>\n

That moment split my life wide open.<\/span><\/p>\n

I still remember the room spinning, the shock of the words. I walked into that appointment expecting reassurance\u2014maybe a plan, maybe a little worry, but not this. Not while carrying new life inside me. In an instant, I went from planning a nursery to preparing for the unimaginable: the possibility of not surviving to meet my child.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fear, when it\u2019s that deep, isn\u2019t loud. It\u2019s silent. Heavy. It creeps into every breath, every thought. I laid awake most nights, one hand on my belly, whispering questions I couldn\u2019t say aloud. Would I be here to see her smile? Would my older children remember my voice? Would I get to say goodbye on my own terms?<\/span><\/p>\n

I was surrounded by care\u2014skilled doctors, compassionate nurses, family, and friends. But there was a space no one could quite fill. I didn\u2019t need more medical attention. I needed someone to walk with me through the unknown. Someone who could sit with me in the silence and say, \u201cI see you.\u201d Someone who could help me find peace, even while I was still clinging to life.<\/span><\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t know it at the time, but what I needed was an end-of-life doula.<\/span><\/p>\n

Miraculously, I survived. My daughter survived. But the woman who walked away from that experience wasn\u2019t the same one who walked in. Something deep shifted.<\/span><\/p>\n

Surviving cancer\u2014while growing a child\u2014changed me. It taught me the sacredness of time, the weight of presence, and the beauty of simply holding space. It showed me that love and grief often walk hand-in-hand. That silence doesn\u2019t always need to be filled. And that what we offer each other at the edge of life matters more than we\u2019ll ever fully know.<\/span><\/p>\n

That experience didn\u2019t just leave me with perspective\u2014it gave me purpose.<\/span><\/p>\n

I became an end-of-life doula not because I chose it, but because it chose me.<\/span><\/p>\n

Today, I sit with people and their families during life\u2019s most vulnerable moments. I help open space for difficult conversations. I hold hands, wipe tears, and offer comfort that doesn\u2019t ask for anything in return. I help people feel seen\u2014not just as patients, but as whole human beings with stories, fears, and deep, abiding love.<\/span><\/p>\n

This work isn\u2019t about death. It\u2019s about being present for life, in all its fragility and fullness.<\/span><\/p>\n

Being a doula is not just something I do\u2014it\u2019s who I am. A reflection of the pain I\u2019ve endured, the grace I\u2019ve received, and the sacred responsibility I feel to walk with others through their hardest moments.<\/span><\/p>\n

Because death isn\u2019t the opposite of life\u2014it\u2019s part of it. And it deserves to be met with compassion, presence, and love.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":2394,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2521","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhy I Chose to Become an End-of-Life Doula | Touching Hearts<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"At 26, I received a diagnosis that would change everything: stage 3 cervical cancer. 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