‘HAVE A PLAN FOR WHEN YOU DIE’

AGROUP which aims to break down the taboo surrounding death, through pizza and Prosecco evenings, is encouraging people to make plans for their own death before it’s too late.

Funeral celebrant Ceri-Lou Newman, from Barry, is a passionate advocate of the Death Positive Movement, which believes that death and dying should not be kept behind closed doors but discussed in the open.

The movement, which doesn’t seek to glorify death, encourages people to talk about what their end of life wishes are and to embrace death as a subject to be talked about.

A number of events, such as Death Cafés, have sprung up throughout the UK but Ceri-Lou believes that Wales is lagging behind in its relationship with death.

She said: “We care about the living as much as we care about the deceased. We want to talk about people’s worries and their wishes when it comes to their death. It isn’t going to make you die any quicker by talking about it.

“I know from personal experience of people who haven’t talked about it and have left it too late to let those left behind know what their wishes are.

“The Death Café events I have mentioned, they take place all over the country and all over the world but Wales falls behind when it comes to embarking on the death positive movement.”

As a funeral celebrant, Ceri-Lou writes and conducts funeral ceremonies which are less focused on religion and more focused on the deceased. She added: “I do whatever the family wants, if they want a little blessing that’s fine but it’s person central and we do whatever represents the deceased the best.”

Talking about the movement itself, Ceri-Lou said it encourages people to look at death as something which isn’t scary but an essential part of life.

“It’s a safe space for people to get together and talk about what options you have when you die. Sometimes we hold pizza and Prosecco evenings and talk about death.

“Think about it when you don’t need to, because when it comes you already have a plan in place because when it happens you should be coming together to support your family and each other and not worrying about what their favourite blouse is or what their favourite poem is.

“We’re not scary people and we’re not here to glamorise death in any way. Most of us can’t control when we die but we can have some say in what happens after we pass away, whether that’s being buried in a natural burial ground or something else.

“Educate yourself now when you’re alive so your loved ones are left without the added stresses of ‘did I do the right thing?’ Think about it now when you don’t need to and make it easier for your loved ones.

Ceri-Lou is hosting a Dying Awareness event at Cardiff and Glamorgan Crematorium in Barry, which aims to take the fear and mystery out of death and what happens surrounding a funeral.

The free event is part of the Dying Matters Awareness Week and will include industry professionals, including funeral directors, bereavement counsellors, cremation experts, palliative care organisations and organ donation advocates.

It takes place on Wednesday, May 16, from 5.30pm to 8.30pm.