Hope after Loss... Gentle conversations for grieving hearts

Can we experience happiness after losing someone we love without feeling that we're leaving them behind? In this episode of Hope After Loss, Marilyn Burns, M.S., L.P.C.C., explores the guilt that sometimes accompanies laughter, pleasure, and moments of happiness after a death. Drawing on her personal experience and professional perspective as a licensed counselor, Marilyn reflects on the endu...

What happens to all the love we still carry when someone we love is no longer here? When someone dies, the relationship changes—but the love doesn't simply disappear. We may still reach for the phone, think of something we want to tell them, hear a song that brings them close, or find ourselves wondering where all that love is supposed to go. In this episode of Hope After Loss, Marilyn Burns,...

What if the hardest person to forgive after a loss is yourself? Guilt and regret can begin long before someone dies.  When someone we love is ill, we may feel exhausted, impatient, frightened, or even wish for a break--and then feel guilty for having those feelings at all. After a death, those feelings can become even more powerful.  We replay conversations, decisions, things we said, and things w...

What happens when the funeral is over, the phone stops ringing, and everyone else seems to have returned to their lives—but you're still grieving? Grief doesn't follow a timetable. Whether it has been one year, five years, or twenty years since the death of someone you love, unexpected waves of sadness, memories, anniversaries, songs, and even ordinary moments can bring grief rushing bac...

Episode 11: When Grief Becomes Your Greatest Teacher: How Loss Changes Your Life Forever Grief changes us in ways we never expect. While none of us would choose the pain of losing someone we love, our losses can become some of life's greatest teachers. In this episode, Marilyn Burns, M.S., L.P.C.C., reflects on the unexpected lessons grief can bring—including deeper compassion, greater resili...

Children experience grief differently than adults, yet their pain is just as real. As a licensed professional clinical counselor for nearly five decades, I've had the privilege of walking alongside grieving children and their families. In this episode, I share what I've learned about how children process loss, the questions they often carry in their hearts, and how the caring adults in t...

Can Dreams Bring Hope? My Journey Can dreams bring comfort after the loss of someone we love? In this deeply personal episode, I share a dream that forever changed my understanding of grief—and ultimately led me to write my book, Lost No More . I explore how dreams can become a source of hope, healing, and connection during our darkest seasons. Whether you believe dreams are spiritual experiences,...

How do we move forward after losing someone we love without feeling like we're leaving them behind? In this episode of Hope After Loss , Marilyn Burns, M.S., L.P.C.C., explores one of the most common fears grieving people face: the belief that healing means forgetting. The truth is, grief isn't something we "get over." Instead, we learn how to carry our loss alongside our love,...

Signs From Our Loved Ones: Coincidence, Comfort, or Connection? After a significant loss, many people report experiences that leave them wondering whether their loved one is still near. In this episode, Marilyn Burns explores the common signs people describe after loss, including dreams, meaningful coincidences, familiar scents, songs, animals, and moments of unexpected peace. Through personal sto...

Episode 6: Faith After Loss: Finding Strength in Something Greater Than Your Pain Grief has a way of shaking not only our hearts, but our beliefs. In this episode of Hope After Loss , Marilyn Burns, M.S., L.P.C.C., explores what happens when loss leaves us questioning faith, meaning, and the very things that once grounded us. Whether your comfort comes through God, prayer, spiritual connection, na...

Grief doesn't just change our lives--it can change our sense of self.  In this episode of Hope After Loss , Marilyn Burns M.S., L.P.C.C. explores the deep sense of identity loss that often follows grief. When we lose someone we love, we don’t just lose the person — we also lose the parts of self connected to them, the roles we carried, and the life we once knew. Through compassionate reflecti...

Grief can feel like darkness—quiet, heavy, and hard to move through. In this episode, Marilyn gently explores what it means to live in that darkness, and how we begin, slowly and softly, to find our way again. When we are grieving, it’s common to feel lost, disconnected, and unsure of who we are or how to move forward. This isn’t weakness—it’s the mind and body trying to cope with something overwh...

There is a kind of grief that begins long before loss. In this episode, Marilyn shares the emotional reality of loving someone who is struggling, and what it feels like to live in the space between hope and fear. This is the space where you find yourself waiting…  waiting for the phone to ring…  waiting for things to change…  and carrying a quiet fear that never fully goes away. Through her person...

Grief is not just an emotional experience—it is also neurological. In this episode of Hope After Loss , Marilyn Burns, M.S., L.P.C.C., explores how the emotional brain responds to grief and loss, and why so many people experience overwhelming thoughts, anxiety, and emotional distress during the grieving process. This episode gently explains: – Why your thoughts may feel out of control after loss  ...

Disclaimer: This podcast is intended for educational and informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional counseling, diagnosis, or treatment. Listening to this podcast does not establish a therapist-client relationship. If you are in need of support, please seek help from a licensed professional in your area.  In this first episode of Hope After Loss: Conversations on Grief ,...