In order to break down certain prejudices and learn a little more about this career choice and the person behind it, Le Soleil met professionals who have chosen a career that has little appeal among the general public. Today, thanatologist.
Daniel Dionne, thanatologist for 30 years and especially thanatopractitioner at Lépine Cloutier, chose to practice his profession by preparing deceased people for their final journey.
As a pure science student at CEGEP, Daniel Dionne didn’t know which career path to choose. Long studies at the university did not appeal to him. One of his friends told him about his father’s profession. He saw himself becoming an embalmer.
Mr. Dionne is initially surprised by his friend’s vision and eventually decides to enroll at Rosemont College in Montreal.
“It’s a human domain. People don’t come to us to buy a trip or a car. It’s a necessary step that people don’t want to take. We work a lot with people’s pain. On my part, the work must be impeccable because it is the last time people will see a loved one. »
–Daniel Dionne
A decision that shocked his mother. “I found out later but my mother was distraught. My father told him to let me go. He thought I belonged there. »
Great psychological capacity
We don’t joke with death. Training to become a thanatologist begins with a day of observation in the laboratory of a funeral home. “We don’t know what to expect. We’re not big in our pants. Of the 30 students, half dropped out,” Mr. Cloutier recalls.
During this ritual, students generally do not touch bodies, but on this day the embalmer needed help placing a body in its casket. “It fell on me. My path was set. »
But Mr. Dionne will experience his true confrontation with death during his internship. “The girl was my age. She died in an accident. It was the first time I saw someone die so young. I was sad. I told myself that this person had their whole life ahead of them,” he recalls.
There are older people in his laboratory, but also children. “Luckily we don’t have many children, but psychologically it’s never easy. We put ourselves in the parents’ shoes…”
In order not to be overwhelmed by his emotions, Mr. Cloutier puts his activity aside when he returns home. “What happens at work stays at work. When I get to our house, it’s my life. Otherwise, I don’t know whether I would still be working in this area. “It’s difficult to work with people who have died and the grief of those around them,” he admits.
“Soft hands”
When he talks about his job, most people feel uncomfortable. In order not to waste his time, he immediately told the woman who would become his partner about his job.
“In the beginning, people were very reserved about my work. You step back and go “Yark.” I showed him my hands and said, Look, they aren’t dirty or scratched. I always wear gloves. »
–Daniel Dionne
“When her friends said to her, “Do you let him touch you?” She replied, “What is your boyfriend doing? Mechanic. Are his hands clean, rough? Daniels are clean and soft. “I’m not afraid,” he continues.
When death scares people, it also arouses their curiosity. “We see in people’s eyes, ‘I want to know how it works.’ They always say, ‘Me, it’s about to go in the oven.’ Nobody’s going to see it and I don’t want to know about it,” he explains.
“I tell them well, but your loved ones may want to say hello one last time. I believe in the need to see. Tomorrow I’ll be told that my father has died and that I won’t be able to see him again. There is something that will harm me for the rest of my life. After the discussion, people often say to me: “They do whatever they want,” he continues.
Human
He is the father of two sons and defines himself as someone who loves life and good times.
“Back then, the village undertaker was the person who laughed the least and was always serious. Who had no life other than his funeral home. But if you meet me on the street today, you will never believe that I do this job. »
–Daniel Dionne
The proximity to death made him aware of the fragility of life. “I am a connoisseur. “It doesn’t mean I have to do anything, but I organize my life so that I get the most out of it,” he reveals.
When Daniel Dionne talks about his own death, he has tears in his eyes. “When I’m working, I don’t think I’ll end up on this table, but sometimes I think about my loved ones. For this reason, I avoid getting emotionally involved in my work, but nothing prevents us, even if we are professionals, from shedding a little tear with my family. It shows that we are human too,” he emphasizes.
In the face of death, people’s reactions can also be disproportionate. “One day I picked up the body of a deceased person from home. His partner called me a thief. I didn’t blame him. »
When Mr. Dionne saw her again at the funeral home, she apologized and thanked him for making her husband so handsome.