Offerings

Doulas have been around since ancient times offering nonmedical support, service, and guidance to others in both reproductive capacities (childbirth, miscarriage, stillbirth, pre & post natal support) as well as non-reproductive support, such as end of life, death, dying, and grief care. 

No. Death doulas provide non-medical care and support for the end of life. End of life doulas tend to fill in the gaps where medical care can’t, often due to insurance limitations and lack of death education (remember, medical folks are trained to save lives and cure people). Although I am NOT a therapist, most people find the work that I do therapeutic.

Anyone can hire a death doula, regardless of your stage in life. Hire one if you want to…

• talk about mortality
• learn how to move through anxiety, guilt, grief around death
• develop a plan for your death journey
• explore medical aid in dying or voluntary stop eating and drinking
• create a legacy project
• organize a vigil
• receive personalized meditations and visualizations to support your journey
• coordinate visits or home help
• companionship
• explore legacy work
• …and more!

No, we do not. As we provide non-medical care we don’t qualify for insurance coverage. That said, some end of life doulas offer some free services and pay scales so do ask!

Death doula work is not in competition with funeral directors and we will refer folks to funeral directors. There are laws governing what death doulas can and can not do. Funeral directors work with families after death, while doulas work with families before, during, and after death.

Hospice and hospice workers are governed by medicare, which limits what they can offer you outside of insurance payable medical services. As a death doula we complement and work alongside hospice workers to fill in the gaps of care. For example:

• Preparing advanced care plans, healthcare directives, etc.
• Coordinating help and care (including MAID and VSED)
• Researching funeral, burial, memorials, celebrations and other EOL rituals
• Planning rituals and sitting vigil
• Grief and bereavement support
• Mindfulness practices
• Companionship and caregiver respite

There is no federally mandated certification to become an End-of-Life Doula. Many private organizations offer education or certification programs. I completed my certificate at the University of Vermont.

You can find an end-of-life doula at the National End of Life Alliance website. The industry is currently unregulated and it is recommended that people interview an End-of-Life Doula before hiring them.

Your Service Provider is fully educated, insured, and engaged in doula services.

I know that this process can be challenging for people on many levels and I feel strongly that it should be accessible to anyone who wants it. It’s  important to me to bring more opportunities to as many as I can, so I have decided to adopt a Pay from your Heart approach to the cost of my services.

Pay from your Heart is an approach I take to pricing my services that invites you to check in with your heart and make payment based on what feels right for you and your personal financial situation. I want you to feel good in our relationship: valuing both what you receive from working with me and what you give to sustain my work.

My program rates reflect my experience and the value of what I offer in a way that feels sustainable to my work and my business. In addition, so that my business can continue to operate, and I can continue to serve others in this capacity, I have set the minimum payment amount for my services. 

Housing and Food: If you are currently in a financial situation where paying the minimum amount for the service would mean that you would not be able to afford food for you or your family, or you would not be able to pay for housing, I invite you to reach out to me for suitable arrangements. If this is where you find yourself, I welcome you to join me in a conversation to co-create a sustainable fee based on our shared needs.

Otherwise, I ask that you pay the program cost. And, I welcome you to pay more if your situation allows, because this helps me and my business continue serving those who are unable to pay the full amount.

I’ve researched what other people charge for similar programs, and those rates fall between $0-$3800 (this would be for a package of services with ~30 hours of labor). The opportunity here is that you have the chance to check in with your heart, and with where your finances are, and make a decision about what feels right to you to pay for this service.

You can pay me at https://www.paypal.me/MaitriSomaticsVT

I also accept cash, check, and Zelle payments.

Email me for invoicing and payment plans at joann@maitrisomatics.com. 

Thank you!

A WayfinderTM is someone, like myself, who is associated with Patient Choices Vermont and offers support for Medical Aid in Dying (MAID) folks coming to Vermont from out of state. I assist these clients in identifying a prescribing doctor, securing suitable and safe housing for their doctor visit stays and MAID day, and all manner of non medical coordination and support including vigil and beside support during the MAID process and after death coordination of body disposition. Grief support spaces and referrals are avaialble for family members post death.

Pay From Your Heart: Wayfinders

I know that this process can be challenging for people on many levels and I feel strongly that it should be accessible to anyone who wants it. It’s  important to me to bring more opportunities to as many as I can, so I have decided to adopt a Pay from your Heart approach to the cost of my services.

Pay from your Heart is an approach I take to pricing my services that invites you to check in with your heart and make payment based on what feels right for you and your personal financial situation. I want you to feel good in our relationship: valuing both what you receive from working with me and what you give to sustain my work.

My program rates reflect my experience and the value of what I offer in a way that feels sustainable to my work and my business. For this program, the suggested cost is $3400. In addition, so that my business can continue to operate, and I can continue to serve others in this capacity, I have set the minimum payment amount at $2250. As always this work, if the client doesn’t proceed with the process pro-rated funds will be returned. 

Housing and Food: If you are currently in a financial situation where paying the minimum amount of $2250 for the service would mean that you would not be able to afford food for you or your family, or you would not be able to pay for housing, I invite you to reach out to me for suitable arrangements. If this is where you find yourself, I welcome you to join me in a conversation to co-create a sustainable fee based on our shared needs.

Otherwise, I ask that you pay the program cost of $3400. And, I welcome you to pay more if your situation allows, because this helps me and my business continue serving those who are unable to pay the full amount.

I’ve researched what other people charge for similar programs, and those rates fall between $0-$3800. The opportunity here is that you have the chance to check in with your heart, and with where your finances are, and make a decision about what feels right to you to pay for this service.