Grief Dreams Podcast

Jason Wendroff-Rawnicki is a certified yoga educator and dōTERRA Essential Oil specialist, who has a MA in psychology. He co-founded Shine Yoga Center in New Jersey and travels nationally & internationally leading classes, workshops, retreats and educating about the benefits and powers of essential oils. In June of 1998, his sister Lauren died in a car accident. Knowing that he needed more than ta...

Barron Steffen is a longtime student on the spiritual path of Siddha Yoga, a big band crooner, and a widower. He has been a big wave surfer, a 1980s Italian pop singer, and an award-winning elementary school teacher. Steffen has now fully transitioned from the elementary school classroom to his company, The Yoga of Mindset, where he teaches children and adults how to use their thoughts so they're...

Lindsey Whissel Fenton is a senior producer at WPSU, the PBS/NPR affiliate station in Central Pennsylvania. She’s an Emmy award-winning storyteller who is passionate about using public media to build empathy. Lindsey produced, directed, and wrote the documentary Speaking Grief and continues to produce content for the initiative’s website and social media presence.    In this episode we talk about...

Julie Rennie has done Accounting and Income Tax for most of her career primarily as a self-employed individual and currently runs a law practice as a Licensed Paralegal out of Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. Julie married Mark Black (Dr. Joshua Black’s father) in 1977 spending the next few decades as Julie Black. The positive blessings and outcomes from this marriage were building her faith in God and...

Dr. T.J. Wray is a Professor of Religious Studies at Salve Regina University in Newport, Rhode Island where she teaches a diverse array of classes, ranging from grief and loss to women of the Bible. A prolific writer, Dr. Wray is the author of many articles and books, including the best-selling “Surviving the Death of a Sibling: Living Through Grief When an Adult Brother or Sister Dies” and “Grief...

Flora Baker is a travel writer and author from London, UK. Flora was 20 years old when her mum died suddenly of breast cancer, and 29 when her dad died of fibrosis. After a decade of grieving, Flora now uses her personal narrative writing and her online presence to engage with the global grief community and help others through their own experiences of loss. Flora’s new book, ‘The Adult Orphan Club...

Philip Goldberg is the author or co-author of some 25 books published in more than a dozen languages; a public speaker and workshop leader; a spiritual counselor, meditation teacher and ordained Interfaith Minister. A Los Angeles resident, he cohosts the Spirit Matters podcast, leads American Veda Tours and blogs regularly on Elephant Journal and Spirituality & Health. His book American Veda was n...

Jane Edberg is a published writer working in poetry, flash non-fiction and memoir. She holds a Master of Fine Arts in Studio Arts. She is a retired art professor who taught Art Appreciation, Photography and Design at various Universities and spent twenty years full-time at Gavilan College. She is currently working on a hybrid memoir of images and prose called “The Fine Art of Grieving” and authors...

Alexa Norton recently graduated from Utah Valley University in Public Relations. Alexa suffered the death of her Dad, Daryl Gene Norton, over 3 years ago in a skiing accident at Snowbird Ski Resort. She has recently started an Instagram account that focuses on the grief journey @griefshine   In this episode we talk about the relationship with her dad, seeing her dad as a person, her dad’s reaction...

Gary Alan Shockley is an award winner artist, author and grief counselor living in Boiling Springs Pennsylvania. He has two master’s degrees, one in theology and another in Spiritual Formation and Counseling. Gary has served as a pastor and a professional Healthcare Chaplain aligned with two Inpatient Hospice Units in North Carolina where he worked with dying patients and their families. From deca...

John Dietsch is an award-winning writer, producer, director, talent, and consultant on hundreds of film and television shows focusing on the outdoors, travel, and fly fishing. As a life coach, teacher, TV personality, Aspen Colorado guide, and host of fly fishing trips across the globe, John helps his clients and students follow their passion by connecting with nature. He is perhaps best known in...

Erica Buist is a journalist from London, England and writes mostly for the Guardian. February 2021 will see the publication of her first book, This Party's Dead, in which she investigates death anxiety by travelling to seven death festivals following the sudden loss of her father-in-law.    In this episode we talk about the death of her father-in-law, her agoraphobia following the loss, visiting 7...

Chelsea Rushton holds a BFA in Creative Writing and an MFA in Visual Art. Her art practice integrates somatics, ritual, and spirituality to explore how creative process can document and facilitate personal and collective growth and evolution. She works as a Technical Writer in the Department of Architecture at the University of California, Berkeley. Her parents both died suddenly, within eight mon...

Dr. Virginia Marsico is a Chiropractic Physician currently practicing in central Florida. After treating patients with conventional chiropractic care, she realized that many of the obstacles preventing her patients from achieving optimal health were not physical in origin. She now focuses on helping patients become their best by focusing on the mind-body-gut connection through functional medicine,...

In this guest update episode we talk with Rebecca MacDonald from episode 109. Rebecca is a self-taught keepsake artist working and living in Ontario with her husband and dog. Since immigrating to Canada in 2009, Rebecca has experienced loss many times. The passing of her grandfather in 2014 meant the loss of a loved one and a source of inspiration in her life. His courage and compassion continue t...

We rereleased this episode (E109) as our next episode features an update on the guest.   Rebecca MacDonald is a self-taught memorial jewelry artist working and living in Ontario with her husband and dog. Since immigrating to Canada 10 years ago, Rebecca has experienced loss many times as she moved throughout the country. Her grandfather has been a huge inspiration in her life and dealing with his...

Lisa Keefauver spent the past 2 decades as a clinical social worker and narrative therapist. She witnessed first hand the unnecessary suffering of so many individuals because their families, communities, and culture weren’t supporting them in their grief. And then, it happened to her too. At 40, Lisa became a widow. In 2011, her husband Eric died in her arms, leaving her a single mother to their 7...

Dr. Sharon Prentice is a psychotherapist and spiritual counselor whose work focuses on helping patients process the grief of losing a loved one. Becoming Starlight is her memoir of healing from the devastating loss of her daughter and husband. She experienced a unique spiritual experience, known as a Shared Death Experience (SDE), which gave her a peek into foreverness and a sense of peace that wa...

Lisa Bonneville has been volunteering and working in palliative care for about 7 years and her current work life includes a hospice, a funeral home, and caring for palliative Catholic Nuns. She currently holds certificates in Thanatology, as a Death Doula, and as a personal support worker.   In this episode we talk about life during the pandemic, changing her life path, the death of her grandma, u...

In this guest update episode we talk with Molly Schultz from Episode 82. Molly is a stay at home mom of 6 kids all under the age of 8 (she added one since her last episode). Additionally, she blogs about her journey at www.triedandtruemama.com and through her Instagram @triedandtruemama.   In this episode we talk about her newest child (Bowie), her grief from the death of her father since last com...

We rereleased this episode (E82) as our next episode features an update on the guest.   Molly Schultz is a stay at home mom of 5 kids under the age of 6. Molly’s dad was diagnosed with pancreatic just a few months after her twins were born. Before he died, he signed over custody of his son (Molly’s half-brother) Easton to her. Molly recently started a blog this summer to document the grief journey...

Becky Aud-Jennison had a lengthy career in human services, starting as a nurses aide, then nurse, then clinical mental health professional and mind-body practitioner. In 2018 Becky created The Death Dialogues Project with an aim of getting conversations surrounding dying, death, grief and the aftermath out of the closet.   In this episode we talk about cultural differences between USA and New Zeal...

Andrea Wilson Woods is a writer who loves to tell stories, and a patient advocate who founded the nonprofit Blue Faery: The Adrienne Wilson Liver Cancer Association. Andrea is the CEO and co-founder of Cancer University, a for-profit, social-benefit, digital health company. With Cancer U, Andrea synergizes her talents of coaching, writing, teaching, and advocacy. Andrea obtained her master’s degre...

Janna Lopez has over 25 years in media, communications, and editorial endeavors. She has spent the last ten years as owner, publisher and editor of several regional magazines. As a word enthusiast, she's helped multi-million dollar companies craft their stories, and currently leads workshops and coaches clients about midlife identity loss and grief. She is the author of the new book, Me, My Selfie...

Dr. Sarah Neustadter is a licensed psychologist based in Los Angeles, specializing in suicide prevention, loss, and grief, including those grieving the suicide of a loved one. She has over a decade of professional experience identifying and treating those at risk of suicide, especially teenagers. She holds a PhD in clinical and transpersonal psychology from the Institute of Transpersonal Psycholog...