Education and Training
The Conscious Dying Institute offers comprehensive education and training for those called to serve as death doulas, soul midwives, and conscious companions at the thresholds of life.
Our programs are rooted in the death positive movement, caring science, earth-honoring spirituality, contemplative practice, and embodied presence.
This is not simply a course of study, it is a process of formation. Participants are invited into a deeper relationship with mortality itself, learning to meet death not with fear or control, but with reverence, humility, and skill. Through experiential learning, guided reflection, and practical instruction, students develop the capacity to support the dying, their loved ones, and communities with compassion and integrity.
sacred passage doula certification
A transformational journey that prepares you to accompany others through one of life’s most sacred thresholds - through immersive experience, deep partnership, and faculty mentorship every step of the way.
Intensive I
3 day immersion
A fully experiential opening retreat. You enter the world of conscious dying through authentic dialogue, somatic practices, self-reflective writing, hands-on comfort care, and sacred ritual. Theory becomes lived experience from day one.
Partner Practice
3 MONTHS OF INTEGRATION
Paired with a fellow student, you integrate learning through practice. Faculty coaches guide you through personal growth assignments, the Best 3 Months of Life practicum, and one-on-one coaching sessions — holding you accountable and reflective throughout.
Intensive II
4 day Immersion
You return transformed. The second intensive deepens clinical and spiritual competency, integrates your partner-work insights, and culminates in certification as a Sacred Passage Doula — ready to serve with presence and purpose.
This is not a lecture-based course. Every day of both intensives is structured around experiential learning — you practice the art of being with dying by first meeting it within yourself. The 4-month partner work and faculty coaching ensure that insight becomes durable, embodied skill.
This program is for healing arts and integrative health practitioners, hospice and palliative care workers, clergy, spiritual directors, social workers, family care givers and anyone who feels called to serve with intention.
Core areas of study include:
Conscious dying philosophy and practice
Emotional, spiritual, and somatic support
Sacred ritual and vigil keeping
Grief tending, being with strong emotions, and family dynamics
Ethics, boundaries, and cultural humility
Practitioner sustainability, resilience, and self-care
Our approach honors both ancient wisdom and contemporary needs. Graduates leave not only with practical tools, but with deeper grounding, clarity of vocation, and the embodied presence necessary for this sacred work and for living their best life. This training is for those who feel called to walk beside death as a teacher and to serve as steady witnesses at life’s most profound thresholds.
honoring death as a teacher
Thank you for your interest. Reach out to us today.