Until you are in the position of making final service plans with funeral homes in Roy, WA for a loved one, you likely don’t think about embalming. You might even assume it is a part of the process no matter what—that it is required. However, embalming is something the funeral home should never force upon you. If they do, choose another funeral home. While it is a good idea in some circumstances, it is not a requirement and you need to think carefully about what you want for your loved one.

Embalming is something families generally want to do if they are going to have a viewing for their loved one, or an open casket at their funeral. The process will keep their loved one’s body in the best conditions for those services. But embalming uses chemicals that some people don’t necessarily want to place in their loved one. The chemicals can seep out into the soil after burial and harm the environment. There are alternatives sometimes, but not always, so you will want to ask about that.

This embalming process makes your loved one look as if they are sleeping and resting for their visitation or funeral service. Sometimes, seeing a person in that state can give family peace of mind about their status. It can also give them closure, seeing the person in a casket. It’s one way to remind everyone that the person is indeed gone and not coming back.

However, embalming does have a cost to it and if you are on a limited budget, you might not be able to afford this extra service. Instead of embalming, you could skip that service, have a closed casket, or another kind of service. Your budget is going to determine a lot about what you can and can’t do for the final services.

Embalming is a highly common service that is often used in conjunction with funeral services, especially with a visitation and/or open casket funeral is involved. But it is not a required service and there are things you can do to get around it, if you so choose. Don’t let a funeral home tell you that you have to do it because that is not the case. Use another funeral home before you feel forced into this service, or any other, for that matter.

When you are working with funeral homes in Roy, WA, ask about the embalming options if you are having your loved one go through a regular funeral service and burial. You might want to include it to get the benefits of an open casket and the closure it can bring. Or, your budget might force you to avoid it and there are options for that as well. The professionals at Weeks’ Dryer Mortuary understand that you are going through a hard time and this topic, among many others, is just not easy. But we’re here to help you through the decision by giving you the information you need.