Tendrils of Grief

Michelle Anhang lost her husband to suicide when she was 34 years old. She had two young children to take care of and the stigma was so bad that her family thought it was better to tell friends he passed away in an accident. This meant that Michelle had to live with this grief secret for over ten years before she had the courage to reveal the truth.   Today, she is a Certified Professional Co-Acti...

Kelly Frager partners with organizations to help them optimize the power of their people through training and consulting. On this week's episode, Kelly talks a lot on the topics of work etiquette and shares what coworkers can do to show up for a grieving coworker. She also shares a quick and handy list of things to say and things not to say when someone has recently lost someone. Grief will always...

Monica Jayne is an Authentic Relating facilitator and helps her clients create and embody more connected, vulnerable and authentic interactions and relationships in their life. She has studied alongside vulnerability expert Brené Brown, relationship and polarity expert Alison Armstrong, mindset expert Dr. Joe Dispenza, and sexuality expert Jaiya. If you find yourself putting other people's needs b...

Pastor Jeeva Sam has helped hundreds of families on their grief journey. He has over 35+ years of active congregational ministry before retiring in 2017. Susan is a spiritual person and not a religious one, but when she saw her husband dying, she really struggled with her relationship with God. Some of the most hurtful things that were said to her were from good-intentioned Christians. Pastor Jeev...

Cathy Campbell is a Licensed Professional Counselor and has worked in a variety of different roles including, Hospice Grief Counselor, an Adjunct College Professor, a Causality and Death Notification Coordinator, and a Mental Health Counselor for our military. To continue our holiday grief series, Cathy shares advice on how to best navigate, set proper boundaries and expectations, and how to creat...

Dr. Ashley Wellman is a scholar and professor that specialises in homicide, victimology, and trauma since 2008. She is also a children's book author. As a widower and single mother, she had to find her way again and rebuild her life after the sudden passing of her husband. She shares her story and how she was able to navigate her grief journey.     Key Takeaways: Dr. Ashley had four miscarriages a...

Katie Rössler has been working as a licensed counselor and grief healer for over 12 years. Currently based in Germany, she helps people from all over live healthier and happier lives. In today's episode, she shares strategies you can adopt during the holidays when things feel very tough, especially if you feel like you have this external (or internal) pressure to look like you have it all together...

Today, we are kicking off a holiday series for grief. The goal behind is to provide tips and tricks on how people can best manage their grief during their holidays and not feel jealousy or animosity towards our family members and loved ones. This series will also provide resources so that you can help a friend you know who is grieving in the best way possible. This podcast showcase's Susan and Sus...

Raelin Saindon is a childhood abuse survivor and shares her story in this week's episode. She did not only lose her step-father, but she lost her entire extended family as well, while her sister; who did not experience the same abuse, got to keep her family. Raelin shares how she has been able to heal from her deep wounds and be an inspiration to others in the work that she does.    Key Takeaways:...

Victoria Volk is a certified Grief Recovery Specialist and the author of The Guided Heart. Victoria spent her entire life trying to figure out what was wrong with her, why she'd get angry for almost no reason, and the inner despair that she had in her heart. It wasn't until she discovered the Grief Recovery Institute that things clicked for her. She had let her grief become part of her identity an...

Tanya Tenica Patxot lost her highschool sweetheart at 24 years old. She was pregnant with their second child at the time and had a hard time coping with everything that was going on. It was almost expected that Tanya would have everything 'under control', but on the inside, she was suffering. Tanya shares that when dealing with grief, you also have to deal with the underlying trauma that gets crea...

Tina Hicks is the CEO of Jolt of Energy and is a workout and life coach. She helps her clients find the good and positive in life when things seem to be really heavy and weighing down on you. It all starts with mindset and practicing gratitude every day. It might not seem like much, but sometimes taking the smallest steps towards a positive change can really impact your entire outlook on life. Tin...

Wendy Andrew is a lifelong animal lover and vegetarian for over 30+ years. After leaving her job with the police, she became a dog walker and pet bereavement counselor. Through her years of work in this field, Wendy quickly realized this form of grief was often dismissed by employers, family, and friends. In this week's episode, Wendy shares how the loss of a pet is no joke and can be quite trauma...

Kathy Sanderson always dreamed about having a big family, but unfortunately it was just not in the cards. Kathy and husband would try, but they would end up having miscarriage after miscarriage. Despite having 3 children, Kathy could not carry her babies to term and she felt a lot of shame around this. Kathy shares her grief story and how she was able to overcome her feelings of inadequacy as a wo...

Jillie Maria is a Transformational Catalyst, Certified Akashic Records Practitioner, & Intuitive specializing in grief and trauma work. She holds space for deep healing, one client at a time. Jillie shares why it's important to grieve different life transitions, even if you haven't physically lost someone. Your body keeps emotions in and pushing those down will only cause your emotions to resurfac...

Jennifer Warren lost her husband when he was in his early 40s. It was a sudden loss and it took her by surprise. She started her blog as a way to detail the very raw and emotional journey of her grief. It was a place where she could be vulnerable and share things that her friends didn't know she was going through. Through all of this, she found gratitude and the goodness of others. Find out more a...

Sherrie Toews is the Founder and CEO of Effortless Momentum as well as a licensed marriage family therapist and breakthrough coach. When it comes to grief, it can be so hard working through your emotions. If you find yourself hung up or stuck, a therapist can help you through your grief process. In this episode, Sherrie shares some strategies on the best ways to navigate your grief and communicate...

Lisa Zawrotny is a Certified Stress Management Coach and specializes in productivity and organization. She is also the host of the Positively Living podcast. When it comes to your loved one's possessions, what do you do when you know it's time to make space? How do you continue to honor them? Lisa helps define the balance and works with what you feel is right. She offers advice on this week's epis...

Dr. Chris Sopa is an industrial-organizational psychologist, speaker, and researcher who has spent the last 20 years studying human potential, self-awareness, and 'selective mind theory™' (the ability to select the thoughts that will drive the behaviors we seek). Dr. Chris' passion can be found at the juncture of the mind (logic) and the heart (intuition), both working together as channels that gu...

Marni Battista is a dating and relationship coaching and the Founder of Dating with Dignity and the Institute for Living Courageously. Marni coached Susan through this new dating world she found herself in after 20 years of being married to Paul. Marni shares advice for widows out there who are ready to start dating again, but aren't sure how.    Key Takeaways: Dating after loss is scary. Susan hi...

After her son passed away from cancer, Erica went on an 8-year journey where she felt and acted insane. It was eventually discovered that Erica had PTSD and it's taken her only up until last year to finally feel somewhat normal again and to recognize her triggers. She shares both the emotional and physical toll the loss of her son took on her and what has helped bring her back to a bit of normalcy...

Kate Arnold is the Washington D.C. Franchise Owner of The Bar Method. When she found out there wasn't a Bar Method studio in D.C., she knew she had to be the one to fix that! The positive community makes this place so much more than just a fitness gym. She shares why it's so important to care for your mental health and practice self-care as well as offers tips on how to best incorporate a bit of g...

Becky Tuma lost her daughter, McKenna, to sudden infant death syndrome when she was only 3 months old. Becky returned to work after two weeks and the work environment was different. People were trying to ignore the elephant in the room. Becky shares her grief journey and shares advice on how to best handle grief in the workplace.   Key Takeaways: How do you get back to work after experiencing a de...

Faith Wilcox lost her daughter, Elizabeth, to a rare form of cancer called Osteosarcoma. The journey was very tough, but over the years Faith has learned to love and appreciate the beauty of life. She shares her grief journey and the strategies she used to move forward after the passing of her daughter.    Key Takeaways: Faith lost her daughter to cancer and shares her story.  When her daughter, E...

Betsy Kammerud is a licensed clinical social worker providing clinical service to Hospice Savannah families for over eight years. One approach does not fit everyone on their grief journey. In this episode, Betsy shares her advice on how grieving families can build healthy coping mechanisms when dealing with a loss of a loved one.    Key Takeaways: A little bit about Betsy and her background in hos...