About the training
In This Training You Will:
Learn tools and techniques for midwifing the dying
Consider family dynamics that occur as someone dies
Gain a better understanding of the many facets of grief and mourning
Learn tools for creating sacred space for transition before and after death
Learn the legal paperwork required in order to have your end -of-life choices honored
Learn how to research state laws and build bridges with others presently working in the funeral industry
Learn many new and different methods of body disposition so as to be able to inform friends and family of their end-of-life options
Learn how to determine if a family is a good fit for a home funeral
Practical hands on exercises to develop skills for interacting with the dying, the family or community of the deceased and those attending after death ceremony
Learn techniques for self-care
Receive certification as a Death Midwife through Earth Traditions
We are also authorized to issue 23 CEUs for this training to, nurses, clergy, and massage therapists..
Who Will Benefit From This Training?
Patients facing a terminal illness
Friends and family caring for someone who is dying
Those who want to accompany a loved one through this process
Professionals working in hospice, hospitals or nursing homes who are seeking to expand their skills and effectiveness in assisting with death and dying care
Healers and therapists who want to learn more
Ministers, Clergy
Celebrants, Chaplains and Community Activists or Educators
Hospice volunteers or those wishing to become volunteers
Funeral Professionals
Veterinarians, Vet Techs
Animal Shelter Staff and Pet Groomers
Anyone who wishes to learn more about cultivating presence and personal awareness in death, dying and living well
Those who want to prepare gracefully for their own journey through dying into death
Those wanting to embrace the mystery of death and educate others as well as participate in what can be the most sacred and deeply moving experience of their life.
Class Outline
Day One
A History of Death and Dying
What is a Death Midwife?
Practices of Death Midwifery
Death Planning
Compassionate Care
Day Two
Grief
Body Dispositon
The Funeral Industry
Comportment
Self Care
Medically Assisted Death
Day Three
What Happens When We Die?
About Home Funerals
The Death Midwife Kit
Care Ceremony and Honoring of our Beloved Dead
Building Your Business
Exam
Instructors
REV. ANGIE BUCHANAN
Instructor Angie Buchanan was trained and Certified as a Death Midwife in 2011, and Certified to Teach in 2013, by Nora Cedarwind Young, who is one of the founders of the Death Midwife movement. Angie is also a Rite of Passage Officiant, Senior Minister at Earth Traditions Church, Emeritus Board Member of the Council for a Parliament of the World’s Religions, and Pagan Student Advisor at the University of Chicago. She is a member of the National Home Funeral Alliance, the National Chaplains Association and the National Association of Certified Death Midwives..
Angie lives in south east Wisconsin. She works there, and in the city and suburbs of Chicago but travels extensively teaching a variety of workshops nationally and internationally. She creates, co-creates, and facilitates ceremonies for all of life’s passages, from birth to the grave. (Mother Blessings, Baby Blessings and Namings, Coming of Age Rites, Weddings, Funerals, and Memorials.) She is a founding member of Gaia’s Womb, an organization that has provided weekend spiritual retreats for women, since 1998.
Angie is committed to educating individuals, small groups, families, and entire communities or church groups to proudly reclaim family directed choice at end of life.
Questions? Contact Angie Buchanan (224) 501-5443 or Info@deathmidwife.org
Dr. Drake Spaeth
Instructor Drake Spaeth, PsyD was trained and Certified as a Death Midwife by Nora Cedarwind Young, in 2011. Dr. Spaeth is an existential-humanistic clinical psychologist, a faculty member of Saybrook University and adjunct faculty at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology. His professional and clinical interests and work focus on trauma, loss, grief, and spiritual challenges. He is also an ordained minister of Earth Traditions, dedicated to earth-centered spirituality and a rites of passage officiant.
Dr. Spaeth co-facilitates workshops on psycho-spiritual development, including Sacred Breath Work, dream work, and introduction to and partnership with the archetype of the Psychopomp, the guide of souls. He also facilitates a ritual ordeal known as, The Sacred Hunt. Questions? Contact Drake Spaeth at (847) 980-8172 or Info@deathmidwife.org
“Death is the only guarantee we have in life and it is a sacred Rite of Passage deserving of as much thoughtful care and planning as any other life event. I envision individuals and families acknowledging and respecting death by adequately preparing for their own, and by being available for loved ones who find themselves in this threshold.”