DEAD Talks

By David FerrugioSociety & Culture Health & Fitness Mental Health Religion & Spirituality Spirituality

Favorites
282
Followers
Typical duration
65 min
per episode
If it hooks
42%
finish an episode

Based on Podcast App listening data

DEAD Talks episodes

October 19 Her 10-Year-Old Sent 2 Impossible Signs After She Died with Rachel Stewart (#284)
Rachel’s ten-year-old daughter Kenadie got a headache on Christmas Eve. A month later, she was gone. Rachel thought that was the end, until two things happened she still can’t explain: a hummingbird in her garage, and a playing card that shouldn’t exist. Today she shares both, and how she and her husband Shane turned their loss into For11, a community helping people stay connected to the ones they’ve lost.

Join the For 11 Community: https://community.for11together.com/community-join

Social Media:
Instagram, TikTok & YouTube: @for11_together
Facebook: For 11

📖 You're Not Dead Yet: How Grief and Loss Can Teach You to Live:
Learn more and order David’s book at ⁠DeadTalks.net/Book⁠

Sign Up For E-Mail Updates Here: https://www.deadtalks.net/signup

Support the Show
Join the DEAD Talks Patreon for just $2 to support the mission—and get episodes early & ad-free: https://www.patreon.com/cw/deadtalks

Hats, Shirts, Hoodies + More: https://cottonbureau.com/people/dead-talks

Exclusive Discounts
10% off Neurogum – powered by natural caffeine, L-theanine, and vitamins B6 & B12 to boost focus and energy: https://neurogum.com/deadtalks

About DEAD Talks
DEAD Talks with David Ferrugio approaches death differently. Each guest shares raw stories of grief, loss, or unique perspectives that challenge the “don’t talk about death” taboo. Grief doesn’t end—it evolves. After losing his father on September 11th at just 12 years old, David discovered the power of conversation. Through laughter, tears, and honest dialogue, DEAD Talks helps make it a little easier to talk about death, mourning, trauma, and the life that continues beyond it.

Connect with DEAD Talks (@deadtalkspodcast)
YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | www.deadtalks.net

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
54 min
October 12“I’m Pissed Off They Died”: Why There’s No Acceptance in Grief | Gary Sturgis (#283)
Gary Sturgis doesn’t believe in acceptance or closure. “How do you accept the fact that you lost someone you love?”
In 2013, Gary’s husband Rob was diagnosed with stage four metastatic melanoma. Gary had spent his career in a bank and suddenly became a full-time caregiver. After Rob died, he couldn’t find the support he needed, so he started a Facebook page to share his story. It grew into one of the largest grief communities online. Gary went on to write Surviving: Finding Your Way from Grief to Healing and now leads grief workshops and support groups.
In this conversation, we talk about:
Why Gary rejects the words “acceptance,” “closure,” and “moving on”

Why the second year of grief can be harder than the first

Loving again after losing a spouse, and why it’s hard to compete with a ghost

Telling grief apart from depression

His “Grief 101” workshops and what he wishes someone had told him

Mediums, faith, and what brings comfort

Why Gary says grief never “gets better,” but does get softer
Find Gary:
Website: https://sgrief.com/
Facebook: Surviving Grief
Book: SURVIVING GRIEF - 365 Days A Year: https://sgrief.com/sg365/

📖 You're Not Dead Yet: How Grief and Loss Can Teach You to Live:
Learn more and order David’s book at ⁠DeadTalks.net/Book⁠

Sign Up For E-Mail Updates Here: https://www.deadtalks.net/signup

Support the Show
Join the DEAD Talks Patreon for just $2 to support the mission—and get episodes early & ad-free: https://www.patreon.com/cw/deadtalks

Hats, Shirts, Hoodies + More: https://cottonbureau.com/people/dead-talks

Exclusive Discounts
10% off Neurogum – powered by natural caffeine, L-theanine, and vitamins B6 & B12 to boost focus and energy: https://neurogum.com/deadtalks

About DEAD Talks
DEAD Talks with David Ferrugio approaches death differently. Each guest shares raw stories of grief, loss, or unique perspectives that challenge the “don’t talk about death” taboo. Grief doesn’t end—it evolves. After losing his father on September 11th at just 12 years old, David discovered the power of conversation. Through laughter, tears, and honest dialogue, DEAD Talks helps make it a little easier to talk about death, mourning, trauma, and the life that continues beyond it.

Connect with DEAD Talks (@deadtalkspodcast)
YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | www.deadtalks.net

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
43 min
October 05What to Say to Someone Grieving + 3 Signs From the Other Side | Richard Greene (#282)
What do you say to someone who's grieving? According to Richard Greene, who has coached presidents and prime ministers, the answer is almost nothing.

Richard is a communication strategist, TED speaker, and Tony Robbins' former attorney. He studied how Bill Clinton made everyone feel like the only person in the room, and he breaks down the listening shift that helps someone who's hurting let their guard down and actually grieve.

Then it gets personal. One week after his father died, Richard got three signs he puts at one-in-a-billion odds, and Bill Nye isn't buying it. We also talk about the six hours his family spent with his father's body, why the bravest souls may choose the hardest lives, and why Einstein's E=mc² might point to a new definition of God.
In this episode:
"Ready to pounce" vs. "tabula rasa" listening

The 3 questions to ask someone who's hurting

Why silence is the most powerful thing you can offer

Signs from loved ones after death

"Life happens for you, not to you"

Sitting with a loved one's body after death

📖 You're Not Dead Yet: How Grief and Loss Can Teach You to Live:
Learn more and order David’s book at ⁠DeadTalks.net/Book

For more on Richard Greene:
Author: "Words That Shook The World" (https://www.amazon.com/dp/0735202966)
TEDTalk: bit.ly/RichardGreeneTEDTalk
Website: http://www.richardgreene.org

Sign Up For E-Mail Updates Here: https://www.deadtalks.net/signup

Support the Show
Join the DEAD Talks Patreon for just $2 to support the mission—and get episodes early & ad-free: https://www.patreon.com/cw/deadtalks

Hats, Shirts, Hoodies + More: https://cottonbureau.com/people/dead-talks

Exclusive Discounts
10% off Neurogum – powered by natural caffeine, L-theanine, and vitamins B6 & B12 to boost focus and energy: https://neurogum.com/deadtalks

About DEAD Talks
DEAD Talks with David Ferrugio approaches death differently. Each guest shares raw stories of grief, loss, or unique perspectives that challenge the “don’t talk about death” taboo. Grief doesn’t end—it evolves. After losing his father on September 11th at just 12 years old, David discovered the power of conversation. Through laughter, tears, and honest dialogue, DEAD Talks helps make it a little easier to talk about death, mourning, trauma, and the life that continues beyond it.

Connect with DEAD Talks (@deadtalkspodcast)
YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | www.deadtalks.net

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1 hr 11 min
September 28 A Catholic Priest Who Helps Souls Cross Over: Afterlife, Trauma & Grief with Father Nathan Castle (#281)
A Catholic Priest Who Helps Souls Cross Over: Afterlife, Trauma & Grief with Father Nathan Castle (#281)

What happens to people who die suddenly and traumatically, and what can their stories teach those of us still grieving?
Father Nathan Castle, O.P., is a 70-year-old Dominican priest, author, and podcast host. For nearly 30 years he has had an unusual calling. More than 700 people who died in car crashes, floods, violence, and other sudden tragedies have come to him in dreams. With his prayer partners, he helps them find peace and move forward in the afterlife.
Whether you're a believer, a skeptic, or somewhere in between, this conversation offers a hopeful and surprisingly human view of death, grief, and what might come next. Most of all, it carries one message: don't let the worst thing that happened to you define you.

Connect with Father Nathan Castle:
Website: https://nathan-castle.com
Podcast: The Joyful Friar (Apple Podcasts / Spotify)
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@FatherNathanCastleOP
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/father_nathan_castle
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fathernathancastle
📖 You're Not Dead Yet: How Grief and Loss Can Teach You to Live:
Learn more and order David’s book at ⁠DeadTalks.net/Book⁠

Sign Up For E-Mail Updates Here: https://www.deadtalks.net/signup

Support the Show
Join the DEAD Talks Patreon for just $2 to support the mission—and get episodes early & ad-free: https://www.patreon.com/cw/deadtalks

Hats, Shirts, Hoodies + More: https://cottonbureau.com/people/dead-talks

Exclusive Discounts
10% off Neurogum – powered by natural caffeine, L-theanine, and vitamins B6 & B12 to boost focus and energy: https://neurogum.com/deadtalks

About DEAD Talks
DEAD Talks with David Ferrugio approaches death differently. Each guest shares raw stories of grief, loss, or unique perspectives that challenge the “don’t talk about death” taboo. Grief doesn’t end—it evolves. After losing his father on September 11th at just 12 years old, David discovered the power of conversation. Through laughter, tears, and honest dialogue, DEAD Talks helps make it a little easier to talk about death, mourning, trauma, and the life that continues beyond it.

Connect with DEAD Talks (@deadtalkspodcast)
YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | www.deadtalks.net

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1 hr 12 min
September 21 9/11 Families vs. Saudi Arabia: The Lawsuit 25 Years Later (#280)
Twenty-five years after 9/11, the legal fight for answers is still ongoing.
DEAD Talk host, David Ferrugio (who lost his father on 9/11) sits down with attorney John Eubanks of Motley Rice, who represents 9/11 families in the long-running litigation against Saudi Arabia, to break down where the case stands today, what evidence has emerged, why key government documents remain classified or heavily redacted, and what could happen next.
They discuss alleged Saudi connections to individuals who assisted two of the 9/11 hijackers, the fight to obtain documents from the U.S. government, the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA), the upcoming federal appeals process, and why — nearly 25 years later — families are still seeking accountability and the full truth.
📖 You're Not Dead Yet: How Grief and Loss Can Teach You to Live:
Learn more and order David’s book at ⁠DeadTalks.net/Book⁠

Sign Up For E-Mail Updates Here: https://www.deadtalks.net/signup

Support the Show
Join the DEAD Talks Patreon for just $2 to support the mission—and get episodes early & ad-free: https://www.patreon.com/cw/deadtalks

Hats, Shirts, Hoodies + More: https://cottonbureau.com/people/dead-talks

Exclusive Discounts
10% off Neurogum – powered by natural caffeine, L-theanine, and vitamins B6 & B12 to boost focus and energy: https://neurogum.com/deadtalks

About DEAD Talks
DEAD Talks with David Ferrugio approaches death differently. Each guest shares raw stories of grief, loss, or unique perspectives that challenge the “don’t talk about death” taboo. Grief doesn’t end—it evolves. After losing his father on September 11th at just 12 years old, David discovered the power of conversation. Through laughter, tears, and honest dialogue, DEAD Talks helps make it a little easier to talk about death, mourning, trauma, and the life that continues beyond it.

Connect with DEAD Talks (@deadtalkspodcast)
YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | www.deadtalks.net

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
49 min
September 14 25 Years After His Brother Ran Toward the Towers on 9/11 | Jay Winuk (#279)
Jay Winuk lost his brother Glenn on 9/11. Glenn was a lawyer, volunteer firefighter, and EMT who helped evacuate his office before heading toward the World Trade Center to help. His family later learned he entered the complex, but exactly what happened in his final moments remains unknown.
Jay and I reflect on 9/11 from two different perspectives: I lost my father, who was working on the 105th floor of the North Tower, while Jay lost his brother after Glenn ran toward the danger to serve others.
We discuss grief, unanswered questions, funerals without remains, and how Glenn’s legacy ultimately inspired Jay’s work with 9/11 Day and its mission of service and remembrance.
For more on Jay Winuk foundation 911 Day check it out here: https://www.911day.org/

📖 You're Not Dead Yet: How Grief and Loss Can Teach You to Live Learn more and order the book at ⁠DeadTalks.net/Book⁠

Sign Up For E-Mail Updates Here > https://www.deadtalks.net/signup

Support the Show
Join the DEAD Talks Patreon for as little as $2 to support the mission—and get episodes early & ad-free: https://www.patreon.com/cw/deadtalks

Hats, Shirts, Hoodies + More: https://cottonbureau.com/people/dead-talks

Exclusive Discounts
10% off Neurogum – powered by natural caffeine, L-theanine, and vitamins B6 & B12 to boost focus and energy: https://neurogum.com/deadtalks

About DEAD Talks
DEAD Talks with David Ferrugio approaches death differently. Each guest shares raw stories of grief, loss, or unique perspectives that challenge the “don’t talk about death” taboo. Grief doesn’t end—it evolves. After losing his father on September 11th at just 12 years old, David discovered the power of conversation. Through laughter, tears, and honest dialogue, DEAD Talks helps make it a little easier to talk about death, mourning, trauma, and the life that continues beyond it.

Connect with DEAD Talks (@deadtalkspodcast)
YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | www.deadtalks.net

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
51 min
September 07 9/11 Took My Dad When I Was 12: Grief 25 Years Later with David Kessler (#278)
Twenty-five years after losing his father in the September 11 attacks, DEAD Talks host David Ferrugio sits on the other side of the microphone for one of his most personal conversations yet.
World-renowned grief expert David Kessler interviews David about losing his father at just 12 years old, growing up as “the 9/11 kid,” the guilt that followed, and what it means to grieve a death the entire world continues to watch and remember.
They explore the memories David has lost—and the ones he has spent years trying to recover—the pressure he felt to become “the man of the house,” how grief changes over decades, and why sadness and joy don't have to be mutually exclusive.
David also opens up about the experience that brought his childhood grief full circle when his mother nearly died in 2023, the lessons behind his new book, You’re Not Dead Yet: How Grief and Loss Can Teach You to Live, and why continuing to live fully can be one of the greatest ways we honor the people we’ve lost.
This is a conversation about September 11, grief, loss, trauma, guilt, mortality, legacy, healing, meaning, and what it looks like to keep living when someone you love is gone.

You’re Not Dead Yet: How Grief and Loss Can Teach You to Live is available now wherever books are sold.

📖 You're Not Dead Yet: How Grief and Loss Can Teach You to Live Learn more and order the book at ⁠DeadTalks.net/Book⁠
Sign Up For E-Mail Updates Here: https://www.deadtalks.net/signup

Support the Show:
Join the DEAD Talks Patreon for just $2 to support the mission—and get episodes early & ad-free: https://www.patreon.com/cw/deadtalks

Hats, Shirts, Hoodies + More: https://cottonbureau.com/people/dead-talks

Exclusive Discounts
10% off Neurogum – powered by natural caffeine, L-theanine, and vitamins B6 & B12 to boost focus and energy: https://neurogum.com/deadtalks

About DEAD Talks
DEAD Talks with David Ferrugio approaches death differently. Each guest shares raw stories of grief, loss, or unique perspectives that challenge the “don’t talk about death” taboo. Grief doesn’t end—it evolves. After losing his father on September 11th at just 12 years old, David discovered the power of conversation. Through laughter, tears, and honest dialogue, DEAD Talks helps make it a little easier to talk about death, mourning, trauma, and the life that continues beyond it.

Connect with DEAD Talks (@deadtalkspodcast)
YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | www.deadtalks.net

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
55 min
August 31 9/11 Kids: Losing Our Fathers and Growing Up With Grief with Katie Pereira (#277)
David sits down with Katie Pereira for a deeply personal conversation between two people who both lost their fathers on September 11, 2001.
Katie was just seven years old when her father, Franco Lalama, was killed in the World Trade Center. David was twelve when he lost his father that same morning. Twenty-five years later, they compare what it was like growing up as “9/11 kids,” living with such a public loss, watching the footage, approaching the anniversary each year, and grieving all the memories with their fathers they never got to make.
They also talk about childhood trauma, dark humor, the strange guilt and gratitude that can coexist with grief, how losing a parent changes the way you see life, and why Katie still finds herself watching 9/11 footage hoping she might somehow catch one last glimpse of her dad.
Katie also shares how Comfort Zone Camp helped give her childhood back after loss—and how she eventually turned that experience into a career helping grieving children.
A raw conversation about 9/11, losing a parent, childhood grief, resilience, and what it means to keep living after the day that changed everything.

For more on the incredible organization for grieving children check out Comfort Zone Camp here: https://comfortzonecamp.org/

📖 You're Not Dead Yet: How Grief and Loss Can Teach You to Live Learn more and order the book at ⁠⁠DeadTalks.net/Book⁠⁠
Sign Up For E-Mail Updates Here: ⁠https://www.deadtalks.net/signup⁠

Support the Show:
Join the ⁠DEAD Talks Patreon⁠ for just $2 to support the mission—and get episodes early & ad-free: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/cw/deadtalks⁠

Hats, Shirts, Hoodies + More: ⁠https://cottonbureau.com/people/dead-talks⁠

Exclusive Discounts⁠10% off Neurogum⁠ – powered by natural caffeine, L-theanine, and vitamins B6 & B12 to boost focus and energy: ⁠https://neurogum.com/deadtalks⁠

About DEAD Talks
DEAD Talks with David Ferrugio approaches death differently. Each guest shares raw stories of grief, loss, or unique perspectives that challenge the “don’t talk about death” taboo. Grief doesn’t end—it evolves. After losing his father on September 11th at just 12 years old, David discovered the power of conversation. Through laughter, tears, and honest dialogue, DEAD Talks helps make it a little easier to talk about death, mourning, trauma, and the life that continues beyond it.

Connect with DEAD Talks (@deadtalkspodcast)⁠YouTube⁠ | ⁠Facebook⁠ | ⁠Instagram⁠ | ⁠TikTok⁠ | ⁠www.deadtalks.net⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
55 min
August 24 Des Bishop: Can You Ever Really Get Over Grief? (#276)
Comedian Des Bishop opens up about losing both parents, why their deaths affected him so differently, and the complicated idea of ever truly “getting over” grief.
Des talks about using humor to process death, recording his thoughts in the raw days after his mother died, sobriety and recovery, anxiety, masculinity, complicated family relationships, and the moment he realized that constantly turning grief into material may have kept him from fully sitting with it. He also reflects on generational patterns, love, vulnerability, and what he hopes to do differently if he becomes a father.

Des Bishop's comedy special Bridge and Tunnel is available now on Hulu and YouTube.

DEAD Talks Podcast — Episode 276

📖 You're Not Dead Yet: How Grief and Loss Can Teach You to Live Learn more and order the book at ⁠DeadTalks.net/Book⁠
Sign Up For E-Mail Updates Here > https://www.deadtalks.net/signup

Support the Show
Join the DEAD Talks Patreon for just $2 to support the mission—and get episodes early & ad-free: https://www.patreon.com/cw/deadtalks

Hats, Shirts, Hoodies + More: https://cottonbureau.com/people/dead-talks

Exclusive Discounts
10% off Neurogum – powered by natural caffeine, L-theanine, and vitamins B6 & B12 to boost focus and energy: https://neurogum.com/deadtalks

About DEAD Talks
DEAD Talks with David Ferrugio approaches death differently. Each guest shares raw stories of grief, loss, or unique perspectives that challenge the “don’t talk about death” taboo. Grief doesn’t end—it evolves. After losing his father on September 11th at just 12 years old, David discovered the power of conversation. Through laughter, tears, and honest dialogue, DEAD Talks helps make it a little easier to talk about death, mourning, trauma, and the life that continues beyond it.

Connect with DEAD Talks (@deadtalkspodcast)
YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | www.deadtalks.net

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1 hr 2 min
August 17He's The Conjuring Investigators' Grandson — And He Doesn't Believe In Demons | Chris McKinnell (#275)
Chris McKinnell, grandson of legendary paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, has spent more than 40 years investigating ghosts, hauntings, consciousness and the unexplained.
But after growing up inside the world that inspired The Conjuring films, Chris came to a surprising conclusion: he doesn’t believe in demons.
In this episode of Dead Talks, Chris shares terrifying firsthand paranormal encounters, what he learned from Ed and Lorraine Warren, why he believes fear can shape paranormal experiences, and his evidence for consciousness surviving death.
We also explore ghosts, poltergeists, manifestation, near-death experiences, the power of belief, quantum physics, the afterlife, and deeply personal encounters Chris says he had with his deceased fiancée, grandmother and great-grandfather.
In this episode:
Ed & Lorraine Warren and the real Warren legacy

Why Chris McKinnell no longer believes in demons

The paranormal cases that terrified him as a teenager

Ghosts, poltergeists and unexplained phenomena

Consciousness and life after death

His fiancée visiting him after she died

Whether fear and belief can influence paranormal experiences

What The Conjuring gets people thinking about—and what Chris sees differently
Learn more about Chris McKinnell and the Warren Legacy Foundation:
www.chrismckinnell.com
www.warrenlegacyfoundation.com
@warrenfiles on IG

📖 You're Not Dead Yet: How Grief and Loss Can Teach You to Live Learn more and order David's book at ⁠DeadTalks.net/Book⁠
Sign Up For E-Mail Updates Here: https://www.deadtalks.net/signup

Support the Show
Join the DEAD Talks Patreon for just $2 to support the mission—and get episodes early & ad-free: https://www.patreon.com/cw/deadtalks

Hats, Shirts, Hoodies + More: https://cottonbureau.com/people/dead-talks

Exclusive Discounts
10% off Neurogum – powered by natural caffeine, L-theanine, and vitamins B6 & B12 to boost focus and energy: https://neurogum.com/deadtalks

About DEAD Talks
DEAD Talks with David Ferrugio approaches death differently. Each guest shares raw stories of grief, loss, or unique perspectives that challenge the “don’t talk about death” taboo. Grief doesn’t end—it evolves. After losing his father on September 11th at just 12 years old, David discovered the power of conversation. Through laughter, tears, and honest dialogue, DEAD Talks helps make it a little easier to talk about death, mourning, trauma, and the life that continues beyond it.

Connect with DEAD Talks (@deadtalkspodcast)
YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | www.deadtalks.net

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1 hr 10 min

About DEAD Talks

From the publisher's feed

DEAD Talks with David Ferrugio is a podcast about death, grief, loss, and what it means to truly live. After losing his father on 9/11, David created a space for honest, emotional, and sometimes funny conversations about the one thing we all face but rarely talk about.