Start Your Ripple

One person's story has the power to change another person's path.

Every learner brings something unique to Living Well Dying Well Training, and every experience adds to our community. By sharing what the training has meant to you, you could help someone else recognise themselves in your journey. Whether you choose to write a testimonial, tell your story, or record a short video, your words could encourage, reassure, and inspire someone else to take that first step, creating a ripple that reaches further than you may ever know.

Nikki Photo 2026 Square Zoom

Nikki Newman

CEO

As a member of the LWDW office team and someone who has completed the foundation training, there is nothing I'd like more than to spread the word to others considering starting their Living Well Dying Well journey.  Sharing your experience can really make a difference.

Ready to inspire like-minded people?

There isn't a right or wrong way to share your experience. Every story is different, and whether it's a few words, a thoughtful reflection, or a short video, your contribution can help others feel seen, reassured, and inspired.

You're welcome to share your name or remain anonymous - whichever feels most comfortable for you.

Send us a written testimonial

Share a short written reflection about your experience of training with us. You could share what the course meant to you, what you found most valuable, or why you would recommend it to others.

Even a few sentences can help someone else feel more confident about taking the first step, and so the ripples begin to flow.

Submit Your Testimonial

Send us your story to share

If you'd like to tell us more about your personal experience, the link below includes gentle prompts to help you reflect on your journey and how it has influenced you since then.

You can answer as much or as little as you like, and we'll always respect your preferences around consent and anonymity.

Submit Your Story

Send us a video testimonial

If you'd prefer to speak or record rather than write, we'd love to receive a short video about your experience of training with us. Share your thoughts in your own words and email your video to us.

Videos don't need to be professionally produced, authenticity is what matters most, and guidance is available below.

Submit Your Video

What you could include in your testimonial

What inspired you to do the training

We want people to know that, whatever their background, they will be welcomed on the course.  Some people may think the course isn't for them, whether that be because they're not academic, they're not spiritual, or they have a particular religion, or they haven't had much experience with death.  What inspired you to do the training? What shaped your background? 

What you will use your training for

Some people wish to continue to be a certified EoL Doula, but not everyone.

How are you planning on using what you've learned?

What impact has the training had on you?

How the training left you feeling

Often people know what they want to learn from a training course.  But our learners are often surprised about how the course left them feeling.  How did our training influence your life?

How our training is unique

Many people describe the training as being something that they've never experienced before. What sets LWDW Training apart from other training courses?

Some general guidance

What you shouldn't include

Please do not include details about the course content or the names of your trainers or fellow group members.

We will not publish anything which could be considered as self-promotion or advertising of your own or other services or products.

Personalisation

You can chose to be anonymous, or you could chose to include your name.  We would love it if you would be happy to include a picture of yourself, but that is optional.

Written Testimonials

These should be no more than 300 words in length.  We will correct any spelling or grammar for ease of reading.

Video Testimonials

Please make these no more than 3 minutes in length.  We are unable to edit your videos, so please make sure you follow all of this guidance so your videos aren't rejected.

Need a little inspiration? Here are some examples

Sarah Jacobs

Sarah Jacobs

Doula in Training

I am so grateful to have been a part of this course - it has given me profound insight into the death and dying process, acquired through meeting with other likeminded individuals, and the course content delivered by clear and compassionate teachers.  Although I am unsure as to where this course will lead me currently in my life, I have greater knowledge and understanding of the inevitable fact of our own mortality that we will all experience.  I believe that by completing this course, I will be a part of the ripple that can increase awareness and normalise the one thing that will happen to us all.   Our society has become so detached from death and dying, so to be a part of coming back to what we once knew, and how to be with this subject, we can start to be a part of that change. 
The open discussions and teachings that I have received during this course will stay with me and I believe has enriched my life. These teachings will enable me to be a better support for those around me that are grieving, and in the future, be with for loved ones who are facing dying.  This course was a profound experience and I would recommend to anyone who is curious, who wants to learn more and to be a part of the ripple, normalising the most natural aspect of life.

Sussex Foundation Dec 2025
Rebecca Kinu Jo-Rushdy

Rebecca Kinu Jo-Rushdy

Doula in Training

I am deeply grateful for the compassion and gentle guidance of the Living Well Dying Well Team.

Stepping into this training while navigating grief wasn't easy, yet the space they created felt safe, healing and profoundly supportive.

The wisdom shared, the practical tools, and the sense of community made this course so much more than learning - it became a journey of healing and growth. I can't recommend it highly enough to anyone drawn to this work.

Online Foundation August 2025
Emma Satchell

Emma Satchell

Doula in Training

I recently completed the Death Doula Foundation Course online with LWDW, and I’m so glad I decided to do it. I was initially unsure how such a sensitive and deep topic would work in a Zoom setting, but I was really pleasantly surprised. The sessions were engaging, thoughtful, and well-paced, and the facilitators did a great job of creating a warm and supportive environment.

From the start, I felt welcomed and encouraged by both the trainers and my fellow participants. There was a genuine sense of care and respect in the space, which made it easier to explore complex themes and share openly. Despite being online, it never felt distant or disconnected.

The course content was rich and informative. It provided a solid foundation for understanding the death doula role while also offering fresh perspectives that added to my existing professional experience. I appreciated the balance between practical knowledge and space for personal reflection. It helped me think more deeply about how I support others at the end of life, and offered new tools and language for that work.

One of the highlights was the sense of community that developed over the five weeks. I hadn’t expected to form such meaningful connections in a virtual course, but the shared learning and discussions brought us together in a powerful way.

I now feel better equipped and more inspired to continue on this path. This course has reaffirmed my commitment to end-of-life care, and I’m genuinely looking forward to moving on to the Diploma. I’d highly recommend the Foundation Course to anyone interested in this work, whether for personal growth or as a step toward a professional role.

Online Foundation March 2025
Sarah Gardner

Sarah Gardner

Doula in Training

This training was transformative. I have always been curious about death and wanted to learn about it and talk about it - yet many people think talking about death is morbid/taboo. Yet death is part of life. This training has validated the feelings I had, and empowered me to have the conversations I want to have. The trainers are incredibly supportive and the space they create is safe and respectful. It was very special training which I will take with me into all aspects of my life.

London Foundation February 2025

Richard Cyster

Doula in Training

What I hoped when I began the course was that this training would offer me a chance to deepen my understanding of my own attitudes to death and the whole dying process. I doubted that I would progress to becoming a fully-fledged end-of-life doula, although that was a possibility I suppose. However, my purpose in undertaking the training was to indulge in learning for its own sake. I was also interested in exploring attitudes to death and dying in cultures other than my own. Finally, I hoped the training would go some way, at least, towards helping me to prepare for my own final journey.

I expected to be informed and challenged in roughly equal proportions and my expectations have been met in that regard. What I’ve learned will influence (already has influenced). This training course is unlike any I have experienced so far and I thoroughly recommend it to others with an active interest in the issues surrounding end-of-life care.

Foundation November 2024
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Bob Parker

Doula in Training

I had studied dying and bereavement issues on my social work course long ago.  On moving to Edinburgh I volunteered at the local hospice as a ‘Compassionate Neighbour’ but I wanted to and thought I could do more so on hearing about EOLDUK and LWDW I applied for the foundation course, thinking that this would give insights into whether my aspirations were justified.  The course was very well run and packed with relevant topics as well as opportunities to explore one’s own personal experiences, beliefs and thoughts and those of others. There was a great deal of material on offer. The group - 14 people from a wide variety of backgrounds - gelled with the help of the trainers and personal experiences, some painful, were readily shared.
Hard work and commitment is expected but LWDW is at pains to emphasise that academic experience is not required, rather a willingness to undertake self analysis and reflection.
The course was inclusive and diversity aware, although I was the only man among 16 women. LWDW is aware of this issue and working on it, so come on you men out there. You can do this.

Hexham Foundation July/August 2023
Kevin Woodhouse

Kevin Woodhouse

Doula in Training

From the pre-course email communications, through to the opening & closing moments of the face to face course, a sense of community was created that I have rarely experienced so vividly & with such support. I would recommend this training to everyone, regardless of background, as we all live in extended families, groups or circles in various degrees of closeness - all of us on various stages of life. This course has taught me that how we come to terms with our pasts and how we live in the present is crucial to a successful approach to the ends of our lives in the future.

Sussex Foundation September/October 2023
Hazel Bugler

Hazel Bugler

Doula in Training

I would strongly recommend the Foundation course. I feel I have learnt so much, but also in a manner that was connecting and authentic. In my volunteer role with those with terminal illness I feel more confident and look forward to getting more involved in this area.

Devon Foundation Dec 2025
Lindsay Panton

Lindsay Panton

Doula in Training

I met an inspiring, compassionate group of people and completed the course with a deeper understanding of death and dying. It has given me the opportunity to bring the subject of death into many conversations I have had since. I would like to encourage everyone to feel comfortable around death and therefore be able to make better, more informed decisions about their own death. It has also provided me with the knowledge and confidence to plan my own death.

Norfolk Foundation June 2025
Diniwe

Diniwe Ndhlovu

Doula in Training

The Living Well Dying Well foundation course has enhanced my professional and personal knowledge about death and dying. It has made me develop an insight into preparing for my own death as well and the deaths of my loved ones. I have gained more knowledge into walking along with a dying person while supporting their family and friends.
This course has made me realise that life and death are about spirituality. I was able to learn a lot from the sharing of knowledge and experience with the group participants. I came out of the course with deeper understanding of the diverse views and beliefs surrounding death.
I gained a lot of knowledge about different spiritualities, some which, I never knew about. I will use the knowledge to embrace and respect people with different spiritualities while upholding and respecting their opinions and choices.
I will share the knowledge and experiences gained with my work colleagues to enhance our care delivery as a Gold Standards Framework Nursing Home.
The highly experienced and knowledgeable course facilitators made me feel comfortable and confident. Everyone was respected as individuals. They ensured that everyone had an opportunity to interact with each other. Which engaged us all. This experience taught me to expect, accept, and respect different people, beliefs, faiths, cultures etc.

I enjoyed the course!”

Sussex Foundation Jan 2025
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Tony Primarolo

Doula in Training

I found the LWDW Foundation Course to be an excellently structured format with very receptive trainers and a great bunch of trainees. The course was well paced with ample opportunities for discussion and deepening understanding. Relevant learning materials were released and made available for reference. In my opinion this course would be of value to anyone whether they were going to progress with EOL doula training or not.

Hexham Foundation July/August 2023

Tanya Wilkinson

Doula in Training

What an incredible course! The trainers created such a powerfully connected online space for us all to explore the subject of dying and death through experiential and interactive learning. I am so grateful to all for a truly transformational and life changing course.

Online Foundation June 2023
Heidi Westbrook Pic

Heidi Westbrook

Doula in Training

When I applied to do the LWDW foundation course I had no idea what to expect and up until that day had no clue there was even such a thing as a death Doula. My end of life experience was limited to seeing family members die and living with the assumption that death most commonly occurs in a medical environment and that funeral directors would simply appear and magically take care of everything. I had no clue about the choices available, advance planning, end of life care, community help, natural funerals and a myriad of other things that I am not only aware of if but actively be researching more now for my own needs and friends and family. LWDW opens the curtains on a world that is very much not talked about and finding the course and my fellow learners was a godsend. It was like finding my people. They aren't afraid to talk and most importantly listen when it comes to the tough conversations. I highly recommend this course to anyone, whatever your background, who would like to know more and to shine a light in a area of life that has been pushed back to the shadows for far too long.

Online Foundation September 2023
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Jeannie Grant

Doula in Training

I am a nurse and have worked in palliative care for some time… The foundation course taught me so much; it allowed me time to explore and reflect on my own beliefs, I learnt of many books, research and resources I wasn’t aware of before, and being in a space with people all open to talking about end of life, it’s challenges, sadness, and how important it is, was rare and a real gift.
The course content was very well thought out and what I appreciated most was the trainers created a space which reflected how caring for someone dying should be. There was a real sense of holding space for the attendees and deep listening, this was demonstrated beautifully by the trainers, and you could feel everyone on the course soaking it up and adapting to mirror this behaviour as the course progressed. Allowing people to be open and see what it might feel like to be supported through these tender conversations, if they were supporting someone at end of life. All together a fantastic course, as death affects us all I think everyone should attend if they get the chance!

Online Foundation October 2023
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Maria Helena Correa da Silva

Doula in training

The End of Life Doula Foundation Course was well structured with impressive referenced material as well as first hand experience of the facilitator. All sessions, despite my initial dread of online interactions, were rich in personal exchanges to be more intimately shared within small groups.

Indeed a course I recommend worth doing to get a broader view and understanding of a need for a more compassionate world and being a Doula can contribute to that vision, a vision that starts with the self-development of the individual.

Online Foundation November 2023

Some more words from our learners

I am very pleased that the LGBTQIA community was a part of the conversation and woven directly into the material. It wasn't sidelined it was really just part of the whole topic and I appreciate this enormously.

Daniel Martin

EoL Doula in Training

From the very start of the Foundation Course through to the end of Part III, the training experience with LWDW was educational, probing, enriching, intense and immensely enjoyable. I feel so very grateful to my wonderfully wise and compassionate trainers but also to those with whom I trained and from whom I learnt a great deal, not least of all about myself. It has been one of the most rewarding and valuable experiences. It has left me feeling equally blessed and humbled. Thank you to everyone whom I have met through this wonderful opportunity.

Judy Knox

Certified LWDW Doula

The atmosphere created by the trainers was beyond anything I had ever experienced before : a mixture of kindness, expertise, warmth, a nurturing space where all could be themselves and feel safe, listened to and accepted, on anything from personal death experiences, difficulties with anything death related, spiritual beliefs (or lack of), resistances or fears . I left having forged life long bonds with the other participants, a new family with whom I have kept in touch.

Muriel Bokkerink

EoL Doula in Training

"What a beautifully designed course...I'm feeling rather in awe, the trainers are the most extraordinary of beings, their love and compassion filled the course full, incredible." 

Nicci del Rio

Doula in Training

"Excellent energy created by the trainers – very holding and beautiful – really modelling the Doula role."

Anonymous

Doula in Training

"Extremely well-structured and well thought through, more than any other training I have done.  Delivered sensitively, openly, thoughtfully and kindly."

Anonymous

Doula in Training

"I had complete trust in the people leading me on the process, and creating and holding a very safe, nurturing space in which to learn and grow."

Anonymous

Doula in Training

"This course has completely transformed my way of thinking and given me the confidence to support people though death – outstanding – life changing!"

Anonymous

Doula in Training

One of the most soul affirming processes a person can go through.
Safe, comfortable online spaces with real thought given to the structure and flow of the content. A joy to be part of. Thank you.

Gemma Towle

End of Life Companion

I had wanted to enrol on this course for several years and fortuitously serendipity intervened, and a cancellation came up near to me, at the fabulous Bala Brook Centre on Dartmoor. I grabbed it with both hands and was amply rewarded by both the quality of the trainers and the empathy from my amazing co-students.
The ability to focus on just one subject for several days together, provided an intense learning and development experience. One that I will always remember, and which has enabled me to be brave and have difficult conversations with friends and family. A heartfelt thank you to my trainers and wonderful new friends who shared a beautiful week with me.

Jayne Nicholas

That spaces can be created for the sharing of emotions in relation to death and dying that are transformative. This space allows people to understand that the acceptance of death truly is life affirming. This is an experiential journey not a classroom learning experience and our trainers managed that beautifully.

Anonymous

Doula in Training

I thought every aspect was excellent, especially what felt like the deep attention and understanding brought to how to bring a group of strangers together in a virtual space and help each one understand expectations, relax, connect and express.

Online Foundation June 2023

Rita

Doula in Training

Excellent course, having ADHD means I sometimes struggle to stay engaged but the course was probably the best I have ever attended and kept my focus at all times.

Online Foundation June 2023

Johanne Silby

Doula in Training

In the space of five days we travelled so far, shared feelings and experiences and learned much about death and dying. As a group we considered and then crafted the environment that best suited our learning and development in this profound area. Our trainers were strong, supportive and informative, letting us move forward at our own pace and in our own way. The whole experience was extraordinary and I feel very privileged to have been a part of my own particular group and to have shared the course with such wonderful people.

Face to Face Foundation May 2023

Ann Loveday

Doula in Training

The course was wonderful in all ways. The venue was beautiful and totally helped to facilitate the community learning ethos in a peaceful and supportive environment. The trainers were confident, extremely knowledgeable and very helpful. I could tell that they gave 110% to us every day.

Residential Foundation May 2023

Joanna Davis

Doula in Training

I really enjoyed the course. The trainers are were all very professional, calm, informative and engaging. The course materials were easy to follow, comprehensive and thorough. Their in-depth knowledge was evident as well as their eagerness to support learners. I loved the activities and the group activities in each session as they challenged us and encouraged us to dig deeper. I would like to thank each and every person involved in the course. Their hard work and dedication to us was vital to making this training successful. NO question was ever too small. I would also like to thank you for giving me this opportunity to study with your organisation, I appreciate your support helping me to fulfil my passion and life's wish to be able to help other people throughout the end of their life and in their dying moments.

Online Foundation January 2024

Anonymous

Doula in Training

I decided to do the Doula Foundation course to gauge whether I would be competent enough to go forward and be an End of Life Doula. I did not know that this course existed and I was keen to learn more about it. I was a volunteer on a Bereavement Support Helpline for three years where I supported people going through the grieving process and also those who were bereaved under 6 month, when I was on the helpline.
I wanted to know how best to support someone who is terminally ill and their family, and what that might look like. I do not have an academic background and I was very much welcomed onto the course.
I did the Foundation course online as this was more suitable for me to do, and was in the privacy of my own home at a time that suited me. I also liked that there was a meet & greet a week before the course commenced, so I had a chance to meet everyone who would be on the course , that really put me at ease.
The sessions that were covered during the course were full of amazing content, and really covered a lot of information. After the training I realised just how much I did not know about death and dying before ,but now I know about the steps to take and who must be informed about the death.
I have never experienced death first hand, I know if I wanted to progress I must spend time with the dying as a companion or volunteer in a hospice. What I know now I can share with friends and family , if they need help to organise a funeral or need to know what paperwork they will need.
The course has made me think about my own death and what plans I need to put in place and what my wishes would be at that time . What I have learned is that it is never too early to talk about death and dying. I feel very privileged to have been able to do this Foundation Course, with all its content. Everyone should have this information.

Online Foundation 2025

Anonymous

EoL Doula in Training

I recently completed the LWDW foundation programme. The facilitation and content were excellently presented and gave me both clarity and questions about my own journey as a Doula.

The team created a safe interactive space, and I was blessed to be a part of a beautiful group seeking the same wisdom and desires to change social attitudes about death and dying.

Overall, the entire program was enjoyable informative and inspiring.

Online Foundation April 2025

Anonymous

EoL Doula in Training

Having participated in the Foundation Course I feel even more at ease discussing death/ dying with friends/ family and I think that I'm more prepared for my own. It's helped me to begin to live my life blatantly book-end - ed by death. It's helped me to practice living in the present. I'm trying to listen even more attentively to others knowing the gift it is to the other and to me.

Face-to-face Foundation May 2025

Anonymous

EoL Doula in Training

This course, which I did for my own interest and personal growth, widened my horizons, inspired me to spread the word, and try to change attitudes around death and dying. I found the group diverse and supportive, and the tutors dedicated and open to enabling us to grow. It was very worthwhile. I was greatly helped by the office staff with technical issues.

Face-to-face Foundation September 2025

Anonymous

EoL Doula in Training
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