Ask a Death Doula

Death Doula Business Bootcamp: Is This Your Calling?

☀️Join Me For The DEATH DOULA BOOTCAMP August 27th-29th

https://www.deathdoulabootcamp.com

What if the work you're meant to do has been quietly calling you all along?

Across the world, families are caring for loved ones through aging, serious illness, and the end of life with very little preparation or support. Most people don't realize that family caregivers provide the vast majority of end-of-life care, yet few have ever been taught the practical skills or emotional support needed for one of life's most sacred experiences.

This isn't just a healthcare issue.

It's an education issue.

In this episode, Suzanne O'Brien, RN, Founder and CEO of Doulagivers Institute, shares why the Death Doula Business Bootcamp was created—and why this moment in history is calling for a new generation of compassionate community leaders.

This isn't another certification program or a weekend filled with information.

It's a three-day live implementation experience where you'll learn exactly how to build a meaningful, sustainable death doula practice rooted in service, education, and community impact.

Whether you're simply exploring this path or ready to begin building your practice, this episode will help you discover if this work is calling you.

In this episode, you'll discover:

• Why Suzanne believes we don't have an end-of-life crisis—we have an end-of-life education crisis.
• The biggest misconceptions about becoming a death doula.
• How the Doulagivers community education model has grown into a global movement.
• Why service—not selling—is the foundation of a thriving death doula practice.
• The "Full Spectrum Doulagiver" approach and how supporting people throughout aging, caregiving, planning, grief, and end-of-life creates both greater impact and a sustainable business.
• What you'll actually build during the three-day Death Doula Business Bootcamp.

Is this Bootcamp for you?

You're considering becoming a death doula.

You've been researching, reading books, watching videos, or exploring different training programs and wondering:

"Could I really do this?"

In this Bootcamp, you'll receive a realistic roadmap for what it takes to build a meaningful and sustainable practice so you can confidently decide whether this calling is right for you.

You're already a death doula—but your business isn't growing.

You have the heart.

You have the education.

But no one taught you how to build a successful practice.

Suzanne shares the exact community education model that has helped Doulagivers grow into a global institute—without expensive marketing, complicated funnels, or high-pressure sales tactics.

You're moving from Caregiver to Calling.

Perhaps you've cared for a parent, spouse, sibling, child, or close friend and experienced firsthand the enormous gaps in caregiving support.

That experience changed you.

Now you're wondering how to transform your own journey into meaningful service for others.

This work offers a pathway to turn pain into purpose while ensuring other families feel more prepared, supported, and empowered.

You're moving from Corporate to Calling.

You've built the career.

You've achieved the success.

You've checked all the boxes.

Yet something inside keeps asking,

"Is this really what I'm here to do?"

If you're longing for work filled with purpose, connection, and lasting impact, this episode may be exactly the invitation you've been waiting for.

You're moving from Healthcare to Calling.

Perhaps you're a nurse, social worker, therapist, physician, chaplain, or another healthcare professional who entered healthcare to make a difference.

Instead, you've found yourself working within a system that often feels fragmented, rushed, and disconnected from the very reason you entered the profession.

This work offers the opportunity to return to what matters most: spending meaningful time with patients and families, providing holistic support, and rediscovering the fulfillment that first inspired you to serve.

What You'll Learn During the Death Doula Business Bootcamp

During this live three-day experience, you'll learn how to:

• Apply the Doulagivers 3×3 Non-Medical Framework with confidence.
• Build a Full Spectrum Doulagiver practice that creates both impact and sustainability.
• Create your own community education strategy using the proven Doulagivers model.
• Build your business through service rather than selling.
• Plan your very first community education event—including your topic, venue, presentation outline, invitation strategy, and promotion plan—before the weekend is over.

You'll leave with far more than inspiration.

You'll leave with clarity.

A roadmap.

A completed outreach plan.

The confidence to begin serving your community immediately.

Join the Movement

Suzanne's vision extends far beyond training death doulas.

Her mission is to help create compassionate communities for aging and end-of-life care by empowering local educators who bring practical skills, confidence, and hope back into neighborhoods around the world.

Imagine every family caregiver having access to the education they need before they ever need it.

Imagine every community having a trusted guide to help families navigate aging, caregiving, grief, and the end of life with compassion instead of fear.

That's the movement.

And perhaps it's your invitation to become part of it.

Ready to Take the Next Step?

🎓 Join the Death Doula Business Bootcamp and spend three transformational days building your roadmap for impact, purpose, and a sustainable practice.

☀️Join Me For The DEATH DOULA BOOTCAMP August 27th-29th

https://www.deathdoulabootcamp.com

Or...

💻 Attend Suzanne's next Death Doula Secrets Webinar on August 5 at 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time, where she'll share the three biggest secrets to building a meaningful, service-based death doula practice and help you determine whether this calling is the right next step for you.

https://event.webinarjam.com/4kv5v/register/q0y3ya6y?webinar_id=37

If this episode inspired you, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone who feels called to make a difference in the lives of others.

Together, we can return the sacredness to aging, caregiving, dying, grieving—and ultimately, to living.

For years, people have come to me asking one question:

"How do I become a death doula?"

At the very beginning,  my answer was straightforward: become certified.

Today, my answer is different.

In this episode, I share why the future of this movement is no longer about earning another certificate—it's about becoming a full spectrum educator who brings compassionate community care back where it belongs.

After serving more than 1,000 people at the bedside, training hundreds of thousands of caregivers around the world, and witnessing the enormous gaps in our healthcare system, one thing has become crystal clear:

The healing in the world isn’t going to happen with just more certified death doulas.

It needs compassionate educators.

It needs community leaders.

It needs people who know how to teach families, support caregivers, normalize conversations about aging, grief, and end-of-life, and create compassionate communities where no one has to face these experiences alone.

In this conversation, I explain why I've evolved beyond selling a traditional death doula certification and why Doulagivers Institute is leading the next evolution in support of this movement.

In this episode you'll discover:

• Why certification alone doesn't create enough impact
• The biggest misconception about becoming a death doula
• What families are actually missing—and why education is the answer
• Why waiting for bedside clients is not the best path to building a meaningful practice
• How community education creates greater service, greater sustainability, and greater impact
• Why compassionate communities are becoming the future of aging and end-of-life care
• The evolution from "death doula" to community educator, guide, advocate, and leader
• How purpose, service, and meaningful work is true success

This isn't about abandoning the work of the death doula.

It's about expanding it.

The bedside will always matter.

But if we truly want to change the experience of aging, caregiving, dying, and grief, we must reach people long before a medical crisis occurs.

Education changes everything.

When communities understand how to care for one another, fear decreases, confidence grows, and people experience greater peace throughout life's most important transitions.

That is the future.

That is a return to the sacred.

And that's the movement we're building together.

Ready to Learn More?

If you've ever felt called to this work—or if you've wondered whether you're meant to make a meaningful difference in the lives of others—I'd love to invite you to take the next step.

Join my free Death Doula Secrets Webinar, where I'll share the three biggest secrets behind creating meaningful impact while building a sustainable path in this work. https://event.webinarjam.com/4kv5v/register/o3ynytw7?webinar_id=35

And if you're ready to move from inspiration to implementation, join us for the Death Doula Bootcamp—a transformational three-day experience where you'll leave with your first community education event planned and ready to launch, along with the complete Community Educator Playbook. https://www.deathdoulabootcamp.com/

The world doesn't just need more certified doulas.

It needs compassionate educators

Maybe you're one of them.

As Medical Aid in Dying (MAID) legislation continues to expand across the United States and around the world, one important question deserves deeper exploration:

Are people choosing Medical Aid in Dying because they truly want to die—or because they're afraid of how they believe they will die?

In this thought-provoking episode of Ask a Death Doula, Suzanne B. O'Brien, RN, Founder of Doulagivers Institute and former hospice nurse with more than two decades of end-of-life experience, explores one of the most important conversations of our time.

Drawing from caring for more than 1,000 people at the end of life, Suzanne shares what she has witnessed firsthand: that the greatest suffering is often not physical pain—but fear, isolation, lack of education, and the absence of compassionate support.

In this episode, you'll discover:

• Why fear—not death itself—may be driving many requests for Medical Aid in Dying.
• The biggest misconceptions people have about the dying process.
• The four primary fears people express at the end of life—and how each can be addressed with education and support.
• How modern society has become disconnected from the natural process of dying.
• Why community education is one of the greatest public health needs of our time.
• How end-of-life doulas and compassionate communities are changing the future of aging, caregiving, grief, and dying.
• What every family should know before making life-changing end-of-life decisions.

This episode is not about taking sides in the MAID debate.

It is about asking whether people are being given every opportunity to understand their options, receive compassionate support, and experience a death that is informed, supported, and free from unnecessary fear.

When we replace fear with education, isolation with community, and uncertainty with understanding, people are empowered to make decisions from a place of peace rather than panic.

If we truly want choice at the end of life, we must first ensure people have knowledge.

In This Episode

• What Medical Aid in Dying is—and what it isn't.
• Why education changes everything.
• The role of hospice, end-of-life doulas, and family caregivers.
• How fear can influence major life decisions.
• Why restoring the sacredness of dying benefits every one of us.

Connect with Suzanne

If this conversation resonates with you and you've ever felt called to make a greater difference in the lives of others, join Suzanne for her free Death Doula Secrets Webinar.

In this special training, you'll discover the three biggest secrets successful death doulas understand—how they create profound impact in their communities while building meaningful, purpose-driven work.

Whether you're simply curious, considering becoming a death doula, or know you're being called to serve during one of life's most sacred transitions, this webinar will show you what's possible.

Your calling may be greater than you ever imagined.

Reserve your free seat today and take the first step toward becoming part of the movement to bring compassionate community care back to the world.

https://event.webinarjam.com/4kv5v/register/o3ynytw7?webinar_id=35

What if everything we've been taught about success is incomplete?

From the time we're young, we're taught that success looks like achievement, titles, promotions, money, recognition, and checking all the boxes. But what happens when you finally arrive... and something still feels missing?

In this powerful episode of Ask a Death Doula, Suzanne B. O'Brien sits down with Kerrie Lee Brown, award-winning journalist, Chief Content Officer and Editor-in-Chief of SUCCESS® Magazine, to explore a conversation that is transforming millions of lives:

What is the true definition of success?

After interviewing thousands of the world's most accomplished leaders, entrepreneurs, celebrities, and changemakers, Kerrie has witnessed a remarkable pattern. The people who appear the most successful on paper are often asking the same deeper question:

"Is this really why I'm here?"

As a heart attack survivor at just 39 years old, Kerrie shares how a life-changing experience shifted her own understanding of success—from achievement to alignment, from external validation to inner fulfillment, and from chasing more to becoming more.

Suzanne brings the wisdom of more than two decades as a hospice nurse, sharing what thousands of people at the end of life have taught her about the difference between accomplishment and a life truly lived.

Together they explore why service, purpose, connection, and authenticity may be the missing pieces in the conversation about success.

In This Episode You'll Discover:

• Why traditional definitions of success often leave people feeling empty
• The difference between achievement and true fulfillment
• What people at the end of life consistently say matters most
• How major life challenges can become invitations to rediscover your purpose
• Why your "next chapter" may be your most meaningful one yet
• How service creates a deeper and more sustainable form of success
• Practical ways to reconnect with what your heart has always known

Memorable Takeaway

Success isn't about becoming someone else. It's about remembering who you truly are.

When we stop measuring our lives by titles, income, or accomplishments alone and begin measuring them by love, contribution, growth, and authenticity, everything changes.

Perhaps the question isn't:

"How successful am I?"

Perhaps the better question is:

"Am I living the life I came here to live?"

About Kerrie Lee Brown

Kerrie Lee Brown is an award-winning media executive, international journalist, speaker, and transformational leader with more than 30 years of experience shaping some of the world's most influential media brands.

As former Chief Content Officer and Editor-in-Chief of SUCCESS® Magazine, she interviewed thousands of thought leaders, entrepreneurs, celebrities, and innovators, gaining extraordinary insight into leadership, resilience, reinvention, and what creates a truly meaningful life.

Following a heart attack at age 39, Kerrie experienced a profound personal transformation that inspired her to redefine success through the lens of wellbeing, purpose, and authentic leadership.

Today she is the founder of RedLily® Media and co-founder of Lioness Global Initiatives™, helping amplify meaningful stories and empowering women around the world to embrace courageous reinvention.

Learn more at: https://kerrieleebrown.com/

Learn More About Lioness Global here: https://www.thelionessglobal.com

Connect with Suzanne B. O'Brien

If this conversation resonated with you, you'll love Suzanne's mission to help people live fully by understanding what matters most before the end of life.

Through the Doulagivers Institute, Suzanne is leading a global movement to restore the sacred understanding of aging, dying, grief, and living—empowering communities to care for one another with knowledge, compassion, and confidence.

Subscribe, share this episode with someone who may be redefining success in their own life, and join the movement toward a more meaningful future.

Because in the end...

The greatest success isn't what you accumulated.

It's who you became, how deeply you loved, and how fully you lived.

SAVE YOUR SEAT: Death Doula Secrets Webinar here: July 18th https://event.webinarjam.com/4kv5v/register/0ov7va8z?webinar_id=34

What if the future of end-of-life care isn't found inside the healthcare system—but within our communities?

In this powerful episode of Ask a Death Doula, Suzanne B. O'Brien, RN, shares why the global death doula movement has reached a pivotal moment—and why it's time for its next evolution.

Drawing from more than 20 years as a hospice and oncology nurse and over 1,000 bedside experiences, Suzanne reveals the critical gaps she sees in today's end-of-life landscape, why so many aspiring death doulas struggle to build meaningful, sustainable practices, and what it will truly take to create a cultural shift around aging, caregiving, grief, and end-of-life.

This episode also marks the exciting announcement of the very first Death Doula Bootcamp—a transformational three-day live virtual experience designed to help compassionate people become confident community educators and leaders.

This isn't about collecting another certification.

It's about becoming part of a movement.

In This Episode You'll Discover:

• Why Suzanne believes this is one of the most important moments in history for the death doula movement.
• The powerful story that inspired the creation of the Death Doula Bootcamp.
• The hidden reason so many healthcare professionals feel burned out, disconnected, and trapped.
• Why death is not primarily a medical event—but a deeply human and sacred experience.
• The three biggest challenges facing today's death doulas—and how to overcome them.
• Why bedside work alone is not the path to building a sustainable death doula practice.
• How the most successful death doulas create both impact and income by serving communities long before a health crisis occurs.
• The importance of advance care planning, caregiver education, aging support, grief care, and compassionate community leadership.
• How free education can become the catalyst for lasting cultural change.
• Suzanne's vision for returning end-of-life care to families, neighborhoods, and communities around the world.

Key Takeaway

Changing the culture around death will not happen one family at a time.

It happens when compassionate people step forward as educators, leaders, and advocates—bringing knowledge, confidence, and sacred support back into their communities.

The future of end-of-life care isn't simply about serving people who are dying.

It's about helping people live well, prepare well, care well, and love well—long before the final chapter arrives.

Join the First-Ever Death Doula Bootcamp

If you've ever felt called to this work...

If you're already a death doula but aren't sure how to build a thriving practice...

If you're a caregiver, nurse, social worker, therapist, chaplain, or simply someone who knows there has to be a better way...

This Bootcamp was created for you.

During this live three-day experience (August 27–29), you'll learn Suzanne's proven community educator model—the same framework that helped grow Doulagivers into a global movement serving hundreds of thousands of people worldwide.

By the end of the Bootcamp, you'll leave with:

• Your own community education event fully planned
• A proven outreach strategy
• A clear roadmap for serving your community
• Greater confidence in your role as an end-of-life educator
• The tools to create meaningful impact while building a sustainable practice

This is not just information.

It's implementation.

It's transformation.

And it's an invitation to become part of one of the most important cultural movements of our time.

Reserve Your Seat Today

Join us for the first-ever Death Doula Bootcamp and become part of the movement to create Compassionate Communities for Aging and End of Life.

Learn more and register at:
www.DeathDoulaBootcamp.com

If This Episode Inspired You...

Please subscribe to Ask a Death Doula, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who feels called to bring more compassion, education, and sacred care into the world.

Together, we can return end-of-life care to where it has always belonged—in the hearts, hands, and communities of everyday people.

What happens when you listen to the quiet voice in your heart and trust where it leads?

In this inspiring episode, Suzanne B. O'Brien sits down with Doulagivers graduate Killy Sanchez from Guatemala to explore a remarkable journey that began with caring for her mother and grew into a calling that is now touching lives around the world.

Like so many people, Killy first entered the world of caregiving through personal experience. What she discovered along the way was something much bigger than she ever imagined—a deeper understanding of life, love, service, and the sacred nature of the human experience.

Following her heart led Killy to become a Certified Doulagiver®, but it didn't stop there.

Today, Killy is helping Spanish-speaking communities around the world access life-changing end-of-life education and support. She is a vital part of the growing Doulagivers Institute Español initiative, helping expand free resources, including the award-winning Level 1 Family Caregiver Training, to Spanish-speaking families globally.

Killy also facilitates The Good Death Book Club in Spanish, creating a beautiful space where people from many countries can come together to explore meaningful conversations about life, death, grief, caregiving, forgiveness, and what truly matters.

One of the most moving moments in this conversation is Killy's story of caring for her cousin at the end of life.

When her cousin needed support, Killy opened her home and her heart. Using the skills, compassion, and wisdom she learned through her Doulagivers training, she helped bring family members together, bridged difficult relationships, created opportunities for forgiveness, and fostered meaningful conversations that may never have happened otherwise.

What unfolded was a powerful example of what becomes possible when a family is supported through the end-of-life journey with love, understanding, and intention.

Through Killy's guidance, her cousin's final chapter became one filled with connection, acceptance, peace, storytelling, healing, and love.

This episode reminds us that ordinary people have the extraordinary ability to change lives.

When we follow our hearts, answer the call to serve, and show up for one another, we create ripple effects that extend far beyond what we can see. Families heal. Communities strengthen. Fear transforms into understanding. Love becomes the guiding force.

This is how we change the world.

One person.
One family.
One act of compassion at a time.

In This Episode You'll Discover:

• How Killy's caregiving journey began with her mother

• What inspired her to become a Certified Doulagiver®

• The profound impact end-of-life education had on her own life

• How she supported her cousin and family through a sacred end-of-life journey

• The role forgiveness, communication, and connection play in healing

• Why following your heart can transform not only your life but the lives of others

• The growth of Doulagivers Institute Español and its global impact

• How Spanish-speaking communities can access free caregiving resources today

• Information about joining The Good Death Book Club in Spanish

Resources Mentioned

• Resources Mentioned The Good Death Book Club (Spanish Edition)
• Free Level 1 Family Caregiver Training in Spanish: https://doulagivers.com/level-1-optin...
• Doulagivers Institute Español: https://doulagivers.com/spanish-resou...
• The Good Death by Suzanne B. O'Brien https://thegooddeathbook.com
• Free Doulagivers Level 1 Family Caregiver Training: https://www.doulagivers.com/monthly-f...

Connect & Learn More

If this conversation inspired you, we invite you to take the next step.

Join The Good Death Book Club in Spanish and become part of a global community exploring what it means to live fully, care deeply, and embrace the sacredness of life, death, and grief.

You can also access free Spanish-language caregiving resources, including the award-winning Level 1 Family Caregiver Training, designed to help families feel more prepared, supported, and empowered during life's most important transitions.

Together, we are bringing compassionate care, education, and community back where it belongs—into the hearts and homes of people everywhere.

Because when one person follows their heart, the world changes.

Is the Medical Aid in Dying Movement Opening Up a Bigger Conversation?

As Medical Aid in Dying (MAID) legislation continues to expand across the United States, a deeper question is emerging:

What is really driving the conversation?

In this episode, Suzanne B. O'Brien, RN, Founder and CEO of Doulagivers Institute and author of The Good Death, explores the growing movement around Medical Aid in Dying and asks us to look beneath the headlines, politics, and debates to uncover what many people are truly seeking.

Suzanne recently appeared on the nationally acclaimed Freakonomics Radio podcast alongside New York Governor Kathy Hochul, who discussed her decision to sign Medical Aid in Dying into law in New York State. While opinions on MAID vary widely, Suzanne believes there is one important truth that deserves more attention:

The desire for Medical Aid in Dying is often rooted in fear.

Fear of pain.

Fear of prolonged suffering.

Fear of loss of dignity.

Fear of losing autonomy.

Fear of becoming a burden to loved ones.

But what if, instead of debating only the final decision, we focused on addressing the fears that lead people there?

Drawing on more than 20 years as a hospice and oncology nurse and the bedside wisdom of over 1,000 dying patients, Suzanne shares how education, preparation, community support, and compassionate end-of-life care can transform fear into peace.

This episode opens an important conversation about what it means to die well—and ultimately, what it means to live well.

In This Episode, You'll Learn:

• Why Medical Aid in Dying has become such an important public conversation
• The fears that most commonly arise at the end of life
• What thousands of patients have taught Suzanne about suffering, peace, and quality of life
• How lack of education around dying creates unnecessary fear
• The difference between a medical event and a human experience
• Why end-of-life planning can dramatically reduce suffering
• How communities can reclaim the sacred role of caring for one another
• The critical gaps in our healthcare system around aging, caregiving, and end-of-life support
• What families can do now to prepare with greater confidence and peace of mind

A Question Worth Asking

If people are choosing Medical Aid in Dying because they fear pain, suffering, loss of dignity, or becoming a burden...

Shouldn't we first make sure they have access to the education, support, resources, and care that can address those fears?

That is the conversation Suzanne believes is the invitation of this moment: Returning Death Back to Sacred Experience it was meant to be.  

Resources Mentioned

 

Death Doula Secrets Webinar: https://event.webinarjam.com/4kv5v/register/zmyryix0?

Free Doulagivers Level 1 Family Caregiver Training : HERE

 

Freakonomics: Who Gets to Choose a Good Death: 678. Who Gets to Choose a “Good Death”?

Learn the foundational skills every family should know for caregiving and end-of-life support.

The Good Death Book: Click here

Suzanne B. O'Brien's bestselling book on what the dying teach us about living fully, loving deeply, and facing death without fear.

Doulagivers Institute

Providing free education, resources, and professional certification programs to help return the sacredness of aging, caregiving, end-of-life, grief, and community support.

Connect with Suzanne

Suzanne B. O'Brien, RN is a former hospice and oncology nurse, international bestselling author, and founder of Doulagivers Institute. She has trained hundreds of thousands of people worldwide in end-of-life care and is dedicated to ensuring that every family has access to the knowledge and support needed to navigate aging, caregiving, and dying with dignity and peace.

If This Episode Resonated With You...

Please subscribe, share it with someone you love, and help us continue the movement of bringing death, caregiving, and community back into the conversation.

Because when we learn how to support a good death, we learn how to create a better life.

What if success wasn't measured by titles, status, or income alone?

What if true success was measured by fulfillment, purpose, compassion, presence, and the impact we leave on others?

In this special Doulagivers Graduate Spotlight episode, we are honored to introduce Yasmeen Fatima—author, Certified Doulagiver, and a beautiful example of what becomes possible when we follow the quiet calling of the heart.

Yasmeen completed her Doulagivers training in 2020 and has since dedicated her work to one of the most tender and sacred spaces imaginable: supporting children and families facing grief, loss, and end-of-life experiences.

Suzanne recently had the opportunity to meet Yasmin in person while speaking at a conference in Guatemala, and the connection was a powerful reminder that this work transcends borders, languages, and cultures. It is a universal calling to show up for one another in our most vulnerable moments.

In this heartfelt conversation, Yasmeen shares how the Doulagivers training transformed not only her professional path, but her life itself. She speaks about the courage it takes to follow your purpose, the unexpected gifts that emerge when you do, and why supporting children through grief is some of the most meaningful work she has ever known.

As an author, Yasmeen has also created beautiful resources to support families navigating loss, including her book Heaven Starts Here: A Children's Guide to Grief—a compassionate and much-needed guide that helps children understand, process, and move through grief with love and support.

This episode is part of our ongoing Doulagivers Graduate Spotlight Series, where we celebrate graduates who are bringing the teachings of compassion, community care, sacred dying, sacred grieving, and sacred living into the world in unique and powerful ways.

Because success today is being redefined.

Success is living in alignment with your values.

Success is sharing your gifts.

Success is answering the call to serve.

Success is leaving the world a little better than you found it.

And Yasmeen Fatima is doing exactly that.

In This Episode:

• Yasmeen's journey into the Doulagivers training in 2020
• How following her heart changed the direction of her life
• The sacred work of supporting children and families through grief
• Why pediatric grief support is so deeply needed today
• The impact of compassionate end-of-life and grief education
• Yasmeen's books and resources for children experiencing loss
• What true success means in a world hungry for purpose and connection
• How one person's calling can create a ripple effect of healing for countless others

About Yasmeen Fatima

Yasmeen Fatima is a Certified Doulagiver, author, and compassionate advocate for children and families navigating grief and loss. Her work focuses on supporting young people through some of life's most challenging transitions with honesty, love, understanding, and hope. Through her books, education, and service, she is helping create a world where children and families have the support they need to navigate grief with greater understanding and connection.

Connect and Learn More

Explore Yasmeen's work and discover her children's grief resources, including Heaven Starts Here: A Children's Guide to Grief.

Yasmeen’s website: https://yasmeenfatimah.com/

Thank you for joining us as we continue to celebrate the extraordinary graduates of Doulagivers Institute who are helping return the sacred to dying, grieving, and living—one family, one community, and one heart at a time.

Resources

Free Doulagivers Level 1 Family Caregiver Training

The award-winning training that has helped hundreds of thousands of people around the world feel more prepared for caregiving, end-of-life, and grief.

Save your seat here: https://www.doulagivers.com/monthly-free-class-register

The Good Death Seminar Series

Join us for this transformational 12-month journey into death literacy, end-of-life planning, and sacred living.

https://thegooddeathbook.com/the-good-death-seminar-series/

Connect with Suzanne

Website: https://www.suzannebobrien.com

Doulagivers Institute: https://www.doulagivers.com

Get the Book: The Good Death Here

"Bringing back the sacredness of death brings back the sacredness of life."- and THIS is how we change the world! Xo Suzanne 

In this special birthday episode, Suzanne reflects on turning 59 and shares some of the greatest lessons she has learned from caring for more than 1,000 people at the end of life and training over 400,000 people to care for the dying.

What do those nearing the end of life teach us about how to live?

Again and again, they remind us that time is our most precious resource. They remind us not to wait to become who we came here to be. They remind us that purpose matters. Love matters. Presence matters.

Suzanne shares why she has come to view each day as its own lifetime—an opportunity to show up fully, love deeply, serve meaningfully, and not miss the gift of being alive.

She also shares her birthday wish for the coming year: to help train another 100,000 people through the free Doulagivers Level 1 Family Caregiver Training so that more families around the world feel prepared, empowered, and supported through caregiving, end-of-life, and grief.

This episode also celebrates the return of the Good Death Seminar Series—a transformational 12-month educational series designed to bring death literacy, empowerment, and sacred understanding back into our communities.

Because when we bring back the sacredness of death, we bring back the sacredness of life.

In This Episode

• Why time is our most valuable commodity
• The powerful lessons learned from those at the end of life
• How living with purpose changes everything
• Suzanne's birthday wish for the coming year
• Why every family deserves end-of-life education
• The return of the Good Death Seminar Series
• How restoring death literacy helps restore humanity
• The movement to return to Sacred Dying, Sacred Grieving, and Sacred Living

The Good Death Seminar Series 2026–2027

June 11, 2026

How Did We Get Here?
How did death become the number one fear in our world? Exploring what we've forgotten and how we can remember.

July 9, 2026

What Is Hospice Care and How Does It Work?
Understanding hospice, the Hospice Gap, and how families can bridge it.

August 13, 2026

Advance Directives and POLST Forms
What they are, how they work, and what you need to know to make your wishes legally actionable.

September 10, 2026

Choosing a Healthcare Proxy
The language we often get wrong and how to select the right person.

October 8, 2026

Quality of Life
Defining what quality of life means to you and why it should guide your healthcare decisions.

November 12, 2026

The 9 Essential End-of-Life Questions
The conversations and decisions that create peace of mind.

December 10, 2026

Having the Family Conversation
How to discuss end-of-life wishes and why this may be one of the greatest gifts you ever give your loved ones.

January 14, 2027

When Families Don't Agree
Navigating conflict and differing opinions around end-of-life care.

February 11, 2027

The Three Most Common End-of-Life Phenomena
What people around the world report experiencing at the end of life and what it may mean.

March 11, 2027

Home Wakes, Home Funerals, and FUNerals
Exploring family-centered after-death care and celebration.

April 8, 2027

Green End-of-Life Options
Natural burial, water cremation, human composting, and emerging choices.

May 13, 2027

Grief and Bereavement
The truth about grief, healthy bereavement, and how to talk with children about death.

All seminars are held live on Zoom. Space is limited and registration is required for each individual session.

A Birthday Wish

If this message resonates with you, please help make Suzanne's birthday wish come true.

Share the free Doulagivers Level 1 Family Caregiver Training with your family, friends, healthcare professionals, faith communities, and social networks.

Education changes fear into understanding.
Understanding changes experience.
Experience changes lives.

Together, we can create a world where no family faces end-of-life alone.

Resources

Free Doulagivers Level 1 Family Caregiver Training

The award-winning training that has helped hundreds of thousands of people around the world feel more prepared for caregiving, end-of-life, and grief.

Save your seat here: https://www.doulagivers.com/monthly-free-class-register

The Good Death Seminar Series

Join us for this transformational 12-month journey into death literacy, end-of-life planning, and sacred living.

https://thegooddeathbook.com/the-good-death-seminar-series/

Connect with Suzanne

Website: https://www.suzannebobrien.com

Doulagivers Institute: https://www.doulagivers.com

Get the Book: The Good Death Here

"Bringing back the sacredness of death brings back the sacredness of life."- and THIS is how we change the world! Xo Suzanne 

In this deeply important and heartfelt episode, hospice and oncology nurse, death doula educator, and founder of the Doulagivers Institute https://doulagivers.com, Suzanne B. O’Brien RN, shares the truth about why so many end-of-life experiences today are filled with fear, overwhelm, and unnecessary suffering.

After supporting over a thousand people at the end of life, Suzanne explains that the problem is not a lack of love — it is a lack of education, understanding, and support.

The good news? A peaceful and meaningful end of life is absolutely possible.

In this episode, Suzanne breaks down the top three reasons end of life is not going well for most families today — and what we can do to change it.

In This Episode, Suzanne Discusses:

1. Families No Longer Have the Skills to Care for Loved Ones at End of Life

• How end-of-life care was once passed down from grandmother to grandchild
• Why these sacred caregiving skills have been lost over the last 100 years
• The emotional toll on families who are suddenly expected to become caregivers overnight
• Why this is not a failure of families — but a failure of education

2. Most People Do Not Understand What Hospice Does (or Does Not Do)

• The truth about the hospice model today
• Why hospice should be understood as a “consultant model” rather than continuous care
• The reality that family caregivers provide approximately 98% of the hands-on end-of-life care, even with hospice services involved
• Why the median hospice stay of only 16–18 days creates crisis care instead of supportive care
• Suzanne’s firsthand experience as a hospice nurse trying to teach families how to care for loved ones in an impossible timeframe

3. Fear of Death Is Driving Suffering

• How fear delays important conversations and planning
• Why people often come onto hospice services far too late
• The impact of denial and avoidance around death in modern culture
• How fear prevents families from learning the skills they need
• Why death is not just a medical experience — it is a deeply human one

The Hope: Education Changes Everything

Suzanne shares how compassionate education, preparation, and support can transform the end-of-life experience for both the dying person and their loved ones.

For the past 16 years, the Doulagivers Institute https://doulagivers.com has been offering free family caregiver education to help empower people with the skills, understanding, and confidence needed to care for loved ones at the end of life.

The free Level 1 Family Caregiver Training is now available in 15 languages and includes:

• The Doulagivers 3 Phases of End of Life Framework
• A live interactive teaching experience
• A downloadable workbook
• Guidance on how to physically, emotionally, and spiritually support someone at end of life
• Practical caregiver education families can use immediately

Save Your Spot for the FREE Live Training

This training is offered live and interactively — there are no replays.

Suzanne invites everyone to take this training before they need it, because one day, someone we love will need us.

“A peaceful end of life should not be a privilege. It is a human right.”

Learn more and register here: https://www.doulagivers.com/monthly-free-class-register

 

Memorable Quotes from This Episode

“Most end-of-life experiences are not going well today — not because families don’t care, but because they were never taught how to care.”

“Hospice is incredibly valuable, but most people misunderstand what hospice actually is.”

“Families are doing approximately 98% of the hands-on end-of-life care, even with hospice services involved.”

“Death is not a medical experience. It is a human one.”

“When we teach people how to care for one another at the end of life, we don’t just change death — we change humanity.”

Connect with Suzanne B. O’Brien RN

 

Take the Free LIVE Death Doula Training: https://www.doulagivers.com/monthly-free-class-register

Website: https://doulagivers.com/

Get The Book: The Good Death Here

Follow & Share

If this episode touched your heart, please share it with caregivers, healthcare professionals, and loved ones who may benefit from this important conversation.

Together, we can help bring compassion, education, and dignity back to end-of-life care.