We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kaitlyn Pietras a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Kaitlyn, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today If you had a defining moment that you feel really changed the trajectory of your career, we’d love to hear the story and details.

Deathwork has been calling to me in big and small ways over the years, but one defining moment was when my Nana was dying we had a priest come to her house to speak with her and hold space for us as a family. I had no idea he was coming but felt how vital his presence was at the end of her life. I am Jewish, and so his words didn’t exactly resonate with me, but I could see how much spiritual comfort it gave to my Nana in her final days. He asked her questions none of us thought to ask and hearing her reflect on her life and death was such a beautiful gift. I remember thinking that holding this kind of space was something I was meant to do.

Kaitlyn, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am a queer Jewish visual artist, grief witch and death doula based on unceded Tongva/Chumash land in Los Angeles.

I am passionate about tending to personal and communal grief, connecting with my ancestors, and serving the LGBTQIA+ community. I hold a BA from Clemson University and an MFA from UCLA’s School of Theatre, Film, and Television. My background in art and storytelling informs my practice of creating emotional and physical spaces that feel supported and safe.

I host and facilitate death cafes online and in Los Angeles and take on clients for 1:1 grief support and death doula work.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

Since we live in an era of late stage capitalism, our society is very product/solution oriented. As a death worker and space holder you really need to learn that your job is not to solve other people’s problems for them and most of the time people are not looking for that in the first place, even if they don’t know it.

From the online death cafe that I co-facilitate I learned about the power of silence and holding space. You don’t always have to say or do something to comfort a grieving person, and a lot of what people think to say comes across as meaningless platitudes. Most of the time people just want to be witnessed, and there is so much power in letting go of that feeling of needing to *do* and just *be* with someone.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Pivoting into deathwork is a recent endeavor for me. Before that I was solely designing for opera and theatre. I still do that, but when I got the call to deathwork I just couldn’t ignore it. Life is too short and I think when you realize why you are here in an existential way nothing should get in the way of that.

For me, it began slowly and built over time. I started by doing my own research and reading. Then began taking classes here and there and eventually ended up enrolling in Jill Shock’s Death Doula LA certification course. I am a perpetual student and will continue to learn and grow within this field. As far as my career as a designer, I think the two paths are more related than one might think. We don’t have to pick one path and stick with it forever.

Contact Info:

• Website: thejewitchdoula.com
• Instagram: @thejewitchdoula

Image Credits
All photos were taken by me