A Place For Us

When my daughter Shayna passed, I was searching for anything that could help me make sense of my grief. That’s when I discovered the animated film Coco . Like many, I found comfort in its message—that our loved ones continue to “live” as long as we remember them. It was beautiful, heartwarming, and—at the time—exactly what I needed. But now, with the spiritual understanding I’ve gained over the ye...

I’m a solar-driven person. All year long, we’re told that after December 22nd, “the light returns.” It sounds dramatic. Reassuring. Almost instant. But that’s not really how it works. The winter solstice isn’t the sudden return of light — it’s simply the end of the descent into darkness . The turnaround is real, but it’s subtle. At first, the change is measured in seconds , not minutes. Sunrise st...

Some conversations don’t end when the recording stops. They linger. They echo. They rearrange something inside you. This conversation with Angela Jean did that for me. I’ve spent years exploring grief—my own, and the grief of others. I’ve talked with countless people about loss, trauma, and what it means to keep living when life no longer makes sense. And yet, this episode slowed me down in a diff...

Grief can break us open in deep ways. Sometimes it reveals truths we never expected. Other times it shows us parts of ourselves we never knew were missing. When Rich Boerner lost his mother, he expected sadness. He expected longing. He expected the familiar ache that comes when a loved one dies. But he did not expect a discovery that would completely rewrite his identity. In this article, we explo...

Introduction: When Grief Takes Everything There is a kind of loss that breaks the world in half. If you are reading this, you may know that kind of loss—where life divides into a before and an after , and nothing in the “after” looks familiar. I know this kind of loss because I lost my daughter, Shayna. Her death shattered me, and it reshaped every belief I once held about myself, life, and God. B...

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit grief2growth.substack.com/subscribe This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit grief2growth.substack.com/subscribe

When I sat down with Samina Bari, I expected a meaningful conversation. We scheduled this interview months ago. I did not expect her story to echo my present life so closely. Many of you know my friend Mike passed earlier this year. He and his wife, Lisa, are two of my closest friends. We live just a few yards apart and spent nearly one evening every weekend together. My wife and I have been walki...

I’ve had many powerful conversations on the Grief 2 Growth podcast, but every now and then, I sit down with someone who shifts my inner landscape. My recent interview with internationally bestselling author and dream expert Theresa Cheung did exactly that. Going into this conversation, I expected to learn a few new things about dream symbolism or the psychology of sleep. What I didn’t expect was t...

When I sit down with a guest for Grief 2 Growth , I never know exactly where the conversation will go. I prepare, of course. I read, I research, I feel into the person’s story. But now and then, someone arrives with a presence that shifts the room the moment they appear on screen. That was my experience with Andy Chaleff . From the first minutes of our conversation, I sensed that this wasn’t just...

There are conversations that sit with you long after they’re over. Conversations that don’t drift away when you hit “stop recording,” but settle into your spirit and stay there. My interview with Theo Boyd is one of those conversations. I talk with many people who have experienced unimaginable loss. But every so often, someone comes along whose story carries a texture, a weight, a depth that chang...

Every November/December, the world slips into this shimmering, glitter-covered dream where joy is supposed to be automatic. The songs promise it’s “the most wonderful time of the year.” The commercials show families who apparently have never argued, burned dinner, or lost anyone they love. But the reality? For many of us, the holidays feel like a weight. We dread it. We’re supposed to travel throu...

There are moments in life when love and suffering walk into the room together, holding hands like old friends. They don’t knock. They don’t ask whether you’re ready. They simply arrive — uninvited, unexpected, inseparable. That was the heart of my conversation with Zach Beach , a therapist, poet, teacher, and the author of Love and Suffering: A Spiritual Guide for Helpers, Healers, and Humans . Th...

From the moment we’re born, a veil descends — not as punishment, but as part of the plan. Across cultures and centuries, humanity has described this same forgetting: the angel’s touch, the river of oblivion, the dream that feels like life. Now, physics and technology are beginning to echo those ancient whispers. What if the goal was never to escape the illusion — but to awaken within it? What if y...

I’ve spent nearly a decade walking with people through grief—my own, and the grief of the parents, spouses, and seekers I coach. I’ve studied the heart, the mind, the soul, and the afterlife. I’ve looked at grief through the lenses of love, energy, and purpose. But my recent conversation with Cedric Bertelli reminded me of something simple, and yet profound: 👉 Healing doesn’t start in the mind. I...

You know, sometimes I feel like I’ve just had it with Democrats. We always find a way to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Democrats always find a way to argue amongst ourselves. And I think this is one of those moments. The government reopens, the narrative landed, the voters responded last Tuesday. I’m saying to Democrats, take the freakin’ win. Showdowns are not policy machines. They are...

When we think of grief, most of us think of death. We think of funerals, loss, and final goodbyes. But there’s another kind of grief that rarely gets acknowledged—grief that’s harder to name, harder to explain, and often invisible to the world. It’s the grief of chronic illness. In my recent conversation with Brenda Snow , author of Diagnosed and founder of Snow Companies , we dove deep into this...

Grief breaks us. It rips through our lives like a storm with no warning, often leaving us feeling uprooted and alone. But what if grief isn’t a punishment, or a mistake, or something to be avoided—but a necessary turning point on our soul’s journey? In a deeply powerful conversation on the Grief 2 Growth podcast, I sat down with mystic, spiritual teacher, and beloved creator of the Life Explained...

What if the line between life and death isn’t the end — but a beginning? For Charlie Bynar, life was divided into two halves: before Isaac and after Isaac. When her only child passed at the age of sixteen, her world was reduced to rubble. But in the depths of grief, something extraordinary happened. She began receiving messages. This wasn’t wishful thinking or desperate imagination. Charlie — a fo...

Life after child loss can seem impossible. But, Melissa Hull found a way. “Love will always outlast life.” – Melissa Hull When Melissa Hull lost her 4½-year-old son Drew in a tragic drowning accident, she wasn’t sure she wanted to keep living. The grief was suffocating. The guilt, unbearable. But what emerged over the next 25 years was a powerful evolution—one rooted not in “moving on,” but in bri...

“You don’t become a medium. You remember who you are.” Effie Linke What if the pain of your loss isn’t the end—but the beginning of something bigger? For many of us, the death of a loved one, the unraveling of a belief system, or the deep ache of grief can lead us down a path we never expected: a spiritual awakening after loss . In this episode of Grief 2 Growth , I speak with Effie Linke , a gift...

“I was on an AM frequency, and everyone else was on FM. Until I met her.” – Hannah Rumsey What happens when the person who made you feel most seen in the world is suddenly gone,and no one seems to understand why you’re hurting? Grieving the loss of a friend is a form of grief that remains largely invisible in our society. It doesn’t come with formal rituals, time off work, or even the same sympath...

“Maybe God took my child because I strayed.” That sentence was whispered to me through tears during a recent session. I’ve changed the details to protect her privacy, but the ache behind those words? It’s heartbreakingly real. And far too common. My client had lost a child, an infant, only a few months old. Unimaginable pain. The kind of grief that tears open the structure of your souland asks eve...

What if your anxiety, grief, or sense that something is off … is actually a signal that you’re awakening? In this time of global upheaval, many of us are asking big questions: * Who am I, really? * What’s happening to the world? * Is there a higher purpose to this pain? In this compelling conversation, I sat down again with Rafael Garcia — spiritual teacher, multidimensional traveler, and near-dea...

Is There Proof of the Afterlife? What if death isn’t the end? What if our loved ones aren’t truly gone? And what if understanding that could soften the sharp edges of your grief? If you’re new here, welcome. I’m glad you’re here. I want to start by sharing something foundational to my work: the question of whether there is life after death. After four decades of studying this subject—across scienc...

When you lose your only sibling, it doesn’t just break your heart — it shatters your sense of self. Sibling loss is a grief that often goes unacknowledged. Parents lose a child. Spouses lose a partner. But siblings? They’re expected to be strong, to support others, and to move on. For Deb Strebel , the death of her 15-year-old brother Lee was not just a personal tragedy. It became the catalyst for...