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Nicole Kidman Training as Death Doula After Mother's Passing

Hollywood actress Nicole Kidman has announced she is training to become a death doula, a role providing non-medical support for the dying and bereaved. Her decision was inspired by the loneliness her mother experienced before passing away in 2024. Kidman is not alone, as actress Riley Keough also underwent similar training to process her own grief. Director Chloe Zhao has also revealed she trained as a death doula to confront personal fears about mortality.

Key Points: Nicole Kidman Reveals Death Doula Training Plans

  • Inspired by mother's passing
  • Provides holistic end-of-life support
  • Joins Riley Keough in training
  • Aims to offer impartial solace
  • Part of personal expansion
2 min read

Nicole Kidman reveals she's training to become a death doula

Hollywood star Nicole Kidman is training to become a death doula, inspired by her mother's passing. She joins Riley Keough and Chloe Zhao.

"I wish there was these people in the world that were there to sit impartially and just provide solace and care. - Nicole Kidman"

Los Angeles, April 14

Hollywood star Nicole Kidman has shared that she is training to become a death doula after being inspired by her own experiences before her mom Janelle Ann Kidman, passed away in September 2024 at the age of 84.

A death doula is a non-medical professional who provides holistic emotional, spiritual, and practical support to individuals and their families navigating terminal illness, death, and bereavement.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Nicole said during a Silk Speaker Series talk at the University of San Francisco's War Memorial Gym: "As my mother was passing, she was lonely, and there was only so much the family could provide."

"Between my sister and I, we have so many children and our careers and our work, and wanting to take care of her because my father wasn't in the world anymore, and that's when I went, 'I wish there was these people in the world that were there to sit impartially and just provide solace and care.' So that's part of my expansion and one of the things I will be learning."

The actress isn't the only famous face to reveal plans to be a death doula, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

In 2021, Riley Keough shared that she had undergone training and found supporting others proved to be helpful with her own grief over her brother Benjamin Keough taking his own life in July 2020.

The Daisy Jones and the Six star, whose mom Lisa Marie Presley died in January 2023, said:

"That's really what's helped me, being able to put myself in a position of service. If I can help other people, maybe I can find some way to help myself."

Director Chloe Zhao recently revealed she had been training to be a death doula to help her overcome her own fears about the end of life.

- IANS

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Reader Comments

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Rohit P
Respectfully, while the intention is good, this feels like a very Western concept. In most Indian families, it's the duty of the children and relatives to be there for the parents in their final days. Outsourcing this sacred duty to a 'doula' seems a bit detached from our cultural values.
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Aman W
Her point about family having careers and children and not being able to provide constant care is so real, even in urban India today. Not everyone can afford to quit their job. A trained professional providing solace could be a blessing for many. Interesting read.
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Sarah B
It's brave to talk about death so openly. In many societies, it's a taboo. Turning personal grief into a service for others is a powerful way to heal. Maybe we need more awareness about end-of-life care in India too.
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Vikram M
The part about providing "impartial" support is key. Family members are often too emotionally involved and grieving themselves to be fully present. A calm, trained companion could make the process less frightening for the person leaving. Worth considering.
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Nisha Z
Heartwarming to see celebrities using their influence for meaningful causes beyond glamour. Death is the ultimate truth, and helping people face it with dignity is a noble service. All the best to her!

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