The Silent Why: finding hope in grief and loss

#056. Grief can be hard enough to talk about, but throw 'sex' into the same sentence and you've got the makings of an intriguing conversation that many people will willingly side-step. But it's a conversation that needs to be had. So what is 'sexual grief'? And how do we know if we've encountered it? This is The Silent Why, a podcast on a mission to open up conve...

I love the BBC TV sitcom Ghosts and so when I watched an episode in the latest series that revolved around grief and loss (the very themes my podcast is based on) I just had to re-watch it. Twice. And then I thought, why not share my musings with you too? And so a new addition to The Silent Why family was created. Welcome to The Silent Why, a podcast exploring every type of loss and grief and all...

#055. Let’s Chat… about you, me and personality. More to the point, how can a personality tool lead us towards knowing more about who we are and how we can better navigate loss, grief and stress.  These Let’s Chat… episodes pop-up every now and then instead of one of our 101 different types of loss, as I (Claire Sandys, co-host of The Silent Why podcast) chat to a guest who has experience or exper...

I’m back with another episode full of hope and encouragement from our podcast guests. Welcome to another My Why from me, Claire Sandys, co-host of The Silent Why podcast. My Why episodes are weekly audio shorts of my latest blog post. If you'd prefer to read it, you can find it here: thesilentwhy.com/post/hermontage2 Yes our podcast is about loss but it's also about hope. And the biggest...

#054. What’s it like grieving the loss of your child’s child? How does the grief of a grandparent differ from that of a parent?  This is The Silent Why, a podcast on a mission to open up conversations around loss and grief and to see if hope can be found in 101 different types of loss. Loss #36 of 101 - Loss of a young granddaughter Meet Greg Williams from Cayuga, Indiana, where he lives with his...

Loneliness is a huge thing in our society today and I'm learning how closely linked it is to loss. Welcome to another My Why from me, Claire Sandys, co-host of The Silent Why podcast.  My Why episodes are weekly audio shorts of my latest blog post. If you'd prefer to read it, you can find it here: thesilentwhy.com/post/areyoulonely Mother Teresa said: "Loneliness and the feeling of...

#053. We've all done it haven't we? Lost, damaged or deleted important photos and videos with absolutely no way of retrieving them. There's that sinking feeling followed by a knot in your stomach as you realise what just happened.  Loss #35 of 101 - Loss of photos This is The Silent Why, a podcast on a mission to open up conversations around loss and grief and to see if hope can be...

Last October I wrote a blog/episode called 'The Autumn Fall' about how autumn teaches us how beautiful it can be to let things go. I was fully expecting to be writing along the same lines this year, but to my surprise I was feeling very different. Welcome to another My Why from me, Claire Sandys, co-host of The Silent Why podcast.  My Why episodes are weekly audio shorts of my latest blo...

#052. Imagine working with sick and dying children, where feelings of loss are all too familiar. How would you prepare for going to work everyday? In this episode we chat to Hui-wen Sato, a Paediatric Intensive Care Unit nurse at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. This is The Silent Why, a podcast on a mission to open up conversations around loss and grief and to see if hope can be found in 101 diff...

A lot of people are curious about how to create your own podcast, so on the first anniversary of The Silent Why I thought I'd share my advice with you. This is my brief overview of what it takes to create and launch a podcast, and why we called ours The Silent Why. Welcome to another My Why from Claire Sandys (co-host of The Silent Why podcast).  My Why episodes are weekly audio shorts of my...

#051. Let’s Chat… about the challenges of returning to work for teachers after pregnancy loss and infertility. Educators don’t just have adult colleagues to navigate when going back to work after loss but also classrooms full of students.  These Let’s Chat… episodes pop-up every now and then instead of one of our 101 different types of loss, as I (Claire Sandys, co-host of The Silent Why podcast)...

Turns out - there's no 'fun' in funeral. They're just a really awkward, painful necessity to endure when someone dies.  Or are they? This week I share why I didn't want to attend family funerals, how my view has now changed, the value they hold in the grieving process, how mourning allows our grief space, and how not hiding death away allows us to face it and understand it...

#050. For this special episode we (your hosts, Chris & Claire) shared some thoughts and reflections while watching the live televised state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey in London (a mere few hours drive from where we live in England).  For this episode there's no script, no editing of what we say (partly because there's music in the background a lot and that mak...

As the UK remains in a period of national mourning following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, there’s a lot we can learn about our own response to it. And what does national mourning actually look like when you swap a Queen for a King? Welcome to another My Why from me, Claire Sandys, co-host of The Silent Why podcast.  My Why episodes are weekly audio shorts of my latest blog post. If you'd...

#049.  Reflections on, and tributes to, our longest-reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, after the announcement of her death three days ago. Elizabeth Alexandra May Windsor 21.04.1926 - 08.09.2022 We never considered that in the short time we'd be exploring 101 losses, we'd need to hastily prepare an episode on the loss of our Queen. Yet here we are. Loss #33 of 101. At 7pm on Thursday...

Earlier today our country was told that our Queen, the UK’s longest-reigning monarch, had died. These are my reflections, written just hours after receiving the news, on the loss of our Queen.  A huge loss for a grieving world, a history-changing loss to our grieving nation and a personal loss to a grieving family. Dedicated to the memory of Queen Elizabeth II: Elizabeth Alexandra May Windsor 21.0...

#048 If you're feeling any pain with the words 'back to school' - this episode is for you.  This last-minute Let's Chat... episode was inspired by a very honest Instagram video that I saw posted by a previous guest about the pain of ‘Back to School’ week. I know it’s a hard time for a lot of people, because it is for me too, so I reached out to this person to see if she’d retur...

September, seemingly a season of holding things in tension, or that's what's come to mind for me when ponding on this month. Welcome to another My Why from Claire Sandys (co-host of The Silent Why podcast).  My Why episodes are weekly audio shorts of my latest blog post, and if you'd prefer to read it, you can find it here: thesilentwhy.com/post/theseasonofseptember This My Why is t...

#047. Peter had big plans for his retirement. But within months of his career ending, while gardening at the Georgian house he was renovating with his husband, he felt a pain like a bee sting shoot up his arm. This turned out to be the first sign of a massive stroke which would see his retirement dreams being cruelly torn away. This is The Silent Why, a podcast on a mission to open up conversation...

Last Saturday (20 August 2022) Chris and I went to see Coldplay at Wembley Stadium in London, part of their Music of the Spheres World Tour. It was an amazing experience.  Welcome to another My Why from Claire Sandys, co-host of The Silent Why podcast.  My Why episodes are weekly audio shorts of my latest blog post. If you'd prefer to read it, you can find it here: thesilentwhy.com/post/askyf...

#046.  What's it like to spend your day job leading other people's funerals? And what are the top things you should put in place for your own? Welcome back to Let’s Chat… These episodes pop-up every now-and-then instead of one of our 101 different types of loss, as I (Claire Sandys, one of the co-hosts of The Silent Why podcast) chat to a guest who has experience or expertise in a partic...

Urgh. Providing creative content and hoping you can get paid for it is hard and confusing, but I think I've worked out why I had such a problem asking for money and how a shift in my mindset can help me, and my audience. Welcome to another My Why from me, Claire Sandys, co-host of The Silent Why podcast. My Why episodes are weekly audio shorts of my latest blog post. If you'd prefer to r...

#045. Vlad Korotkov & Irina Karaseva, had the typical dreams of parenting when they got pregnant with their first child in 2019, but sadly this was not going to be their experience. On The Silent Why podcast we're on a mission to open up conversations around loss and grief, to see if hope can be found in 101 different types of loss. Can it be found in the parenting of a child with disabil...

What form and shape does your grief take right now? Because working that out can actually help you through it, and those around you.  Welcome to another My Why from Claire Sandys, co-host of The Silent Why podcast.  My Why episodes are weekly audio shorts of my latest blog post. If you'd prefer to read it, you can find it here: thesilentwhy.com/post/softorspiky Around our village this week we...

#044.  Another milestone reached! We've hit loss number 30 on our mission to explore 101 different types, meaning we only have 71 (!) to go. In this episode we (Chris & Claire Sandys) pause briefly to discuss what we've learned so far on this journey. What are the takeaways? What has encouraged us? What will we try in the future? What's most memorable about the last 10 losses we...