Grief is a deeply personal experience that affects each individual differently.

In this episode of the Delgado Podcast, Dr. Jacob Sermeno, LCSW highlights the importance of distinguishing between adaptive grief, a normal response to loss, and complicated grief, which involves prolonged symptoms like avoidance, hyper-attachment, or significant daily impairment. Recognizing these differences helps clinicians provide tailored support to those struggling to process loss.

Cultural factors and societal norms play a significant role in how grief is expressed. Jacob emphasizes the need for cultural humility, encouraging clinicians to create safe, nonjudgmental spaces where clients can process their emotions authentically. Whether navigating cultural expectations or personal barriers like suppressed emotions, clinicians can empower clients to grieve in ways that honor their experiences while promoting healing.

Jacob also shares advice for those supporting grieving loved ones. Simple acts of presence, such as listening without judgment or offering a kind word, can provide immense comfort. He reminds us that grief is not linear and that it’s okay to have both good and bad days. Whether you’re a clinician or a friend, understanding and respecting the grieving process is essential to providing meaningful care.

Conversation includes:

The clinical distinction between adaptive and complicated grief.

About Dr. Sermeno

In this episode of the Delgado Podcast, Dr. Jyoti Mishra, a neuroscientist and associate professor of psychiatry at UC San Diego, discusses the growing field of climate trauma and its effects on mental health. Dr. Mishra provides an in-depth analysis of how environmental disasters like wildfires contribute to collective trauma, impacting entire communities with symptoms such as PTSD, anxiety, depression, and cognitive dysfunctions, including decision-making challenges and difficulty maintaining focus. Drawing from her research, Dr. Mishra explains how the brain's threat response, often referred to as "fire brain," becomes hyper-aroused in the aftermath of trauma, leading to short-term and long-term psychological and neurological effects.

This episode offers practical strategies for mental health professionals and community leaders to address climate trauma effectively. Dr. Mishra highlights the importance of interventions such as psychological first aid, mindfulness practices, and physical activity to build resilience during the acute and chronic phases of recovery. She also explores the role of eco-therapy in helping survivors reconnect with nature to promote healing and discusses the need for community-wide approaches to address collective trauma. For clinicians, this conversation offers evidence-informed insights into understanding and treating the unique mental health challenges posed by climate-related disasters.

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Books referenced:

Join us for a conversation with Dr. Hanna Reichel, an associate professor of Reformed Theology at Princeton Theological Seminary. In this interview, Dr. Reichel shares their unique journey of faith, from growing up in Germany with minister parents to exploring various religious communities..

Discover how Dr. Reichel's global perspective on faith informs their understanding of the universal nature of the church and its diverse expressions across cultural contexts. Dive into their experiences within Catholic and Protestant settings, where doctrinal differences posed challenges and opportunities for belonging.

Explore the intersection of theology with politics, economics, and justice as Dr. Reichel emphasizes the importance of inclusive spaces for LGBTQ+ individuals within religious communities. Gain insights into fostering understanding, making room for diverse identities, and creating environments of support.

This conversation delves into the complexities of faith and identity, highlighting the need for open dialogue and affirmation in religious spaces.

Topics:

Blog:

YouTube:

We’re honored to learn from Dr. Terri Daniel about her academic work on toxic theology as a contributing factor in complicated mourning and work as an interfaith chaplain.

Topics covered:

You can watch the full episode on YouTube here.

Dr. Terri Daniel is an inter-spiritual hospice chaplain, end-of-life educator, and grief counselor certified in death, dying and bereavement by the Association of Death Education and Counseling and in trauma support by the International Association of Trauma Professionals.

She conducts workshops throughout the U.S. and is an adjunct instructor in thanatology and chaplaincy at Marian University, the University of Maryland and the Graduate Theological Union. She is also the founder of The Conference on Death, Grief and Belief, and the Ask Doctor Death podcast.

Over the years Terri has helped hundreds of people learn to live, die and grieve more consciously. Her work is acclaimed by hospice professionals, spiritual seekers, counselors, theologians, and academics worldwide.

Learn more by checking Dr. Terri Daniel’s books, resources and conferences.

You can read a summary of this blog and get links to video clips here:

Father Kearns was a former fundamentalist who became the first openly transgender man ordained in the Old Catholic priesthood. He believes in the transformative power of story and has made it his life's work to explore the intersection of theology, church life, and creativity.

Father Kearns grew up in a rural area in the 80s and 90s when access to information and language around gender identity was limited. He struggled with his own gender dysphoria but didn't have the words to express it or anyone to know how to talk about it. As a result, he felt a sense of isolation and had to form his identity in a vacuum. This experience of not being able to name himself was alienating and made him feel like he was the only one in the world. It's a reason he became a writer and storyteller.

As he began to question his faith and re-examine his relationship with scripture, Father Kearns found it helpful to read books from theologians who were doing theology from a very particular place and were naming the place they were doing it from. He found this approach to be eye-opening and it helped him to better understand the context in which the Bible was written and how different lenses can affect how we read and interpret scripture.

Topics covered in this episode:

• Challenges of Identity Formation for Gender Minorities

About Father Shannon T.L. Kearns:

Shannon is a Humanitas New Voices Fellow for 2022 and was a recipient of the Playwrights’ Center Jerome Fellowship in 20/21 and he was a Lambda Literary Fellow for 2019 (in playwriting) and 2022 (in screenwriting) and a Finnovation Fellow for 2019/2020. He is a sought after speaker on transgender issues and religion as well as a skilled facilitator of a variety of workshops.

His work with Brian G. Murphy at QueerTheology.com has reached more than a million people all over the world through videos, articles, and online courses and community.

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We’re honored to learn from Dr. Matthew Ichichashi Potts about his book, Forgiveness: An Alternative Account, which is focused on understanding the practice of forgiveness in an unforgiving world.

In this episode, Dr. Potts shares:

• When forgiveness causes emotional distress

Matthew Ichihashi Potts, MDiv ’08, PhD ’13, was appointed the Pusey Minister in the Memorial Church and the Plummer Professor of Christian Morals in 2021. Matt has served on the faculty at Harvard Divinity School since 2013, and has focused his teaching on sacramental and moral theology, ministry and pastoral theology, religion and literature, and preaching.

He is the author of two books, Cormac McCarthy and the Signs of Sacrament: Literature, Theology, and the Moral of Stories (Bloomsbury, 2015) and Forgiveness: An Alternative Account (Yale University Press, 2022). He has also published scholarly essays in several leading journals and invited essay collections, and he sits on the editorial board of the journal Literature and Theology. He is also co-host of the podcast Harry Potter and the Sacred Text.

We’re honored to learn from Dr. M. Daniel Carroll R. (Rodas) about the key ethical concerns and social critiques of Amos, Isaiah, and Micah. It’s the topic of his book: The Lord Roars: Recovering the Prophetic Voice for Today.

In this episode, Dr. Carroll shares:

• Understanding Amos, Isaiah, and Micah: Prophets on Ethics

M. Daniel Carroll R. (PhD, University of Sheffield) is Scripture Press Ministries Professor of Biblical Studies and Pedagogy at Wheaton College and Graduate School in Wheaton, Illinois. He previously taught for many years at El Seminario Teológico Centroamericano in Guatemala City, Guatemala, and then at Denver Seminary, where he founded IDEAL, a Spanish language training program. Carroll is the author or editor of more than a dozen books, including The Bible and Borders: Hearing God’s Word on Immigration, Wrestling with the Violence of God: Soundings in the Old Testament, and a major commentary on the book of Amos.

We’re honored to learn from Valerie Brown about ways to cultivate hope, compassion, and mindfulness amid seasons of grief and loss. It’s the topic of her book “Hope Leans Forward: Braving Your Way Toward Simplicity, Awakening & Peace.”

In this episode, she shares:

• On writing "Hope Leans Forward" during a time of grief and loss

Valerie Brown is a Buddhist-Quaker Dharma teacher, facilitator, and executive coach. A former lawyer and lobbyist, she is co-director of Georgetown’s Institute for Transformational Leadership as well as founder and chief mindfulness officer of Lead Smart Coaching.

She is an ordained Buddhist Dharma teacher in the Plum Village tradition, founded by Thich Nhat Hanh, and is a certified Kundalini yoga teacher. In her leadership development and mindfulness practice, she focuses on diversity, social equity, and inclusion. Brown is an award-winning author whose books include The Road That Teaches and The Mindful School Leader with Kirsten Olsen. She holds a Juris Doctor from Howard University School of Law.

In this week’s podcast, we’re honored to learn from Dr. Ken Duckworth about his fantastic book entitled “You Are Not Alone: The NAMI Guide to Navigating Mental Health.”

His book is a comprehensive guide on how to compassionately support friends, family, and loved ones in their mental health journeys. His book combines evidence-based research on what treatments work for different mental health issues, insights from renowned clinical experts, and over 130 stories from people sharing their mental health challenges, along with insights from caregivers.

It’s an all-in-one handbook that will help you grow in compassion for others with mental health challenges, as well as encouragement for those of us who struggle with emotional pain or other mental health issues. It’s definitely one of those books that everyone needs on their bookshelf.

In today’s podcast, Dr. Duckworth discusses:

Ken Duckworth, MD is the Chief Medical Officer of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) and has been the medical director since 2003. He is also assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and an adjunct clinical assistant professor of health and policy management at the Boston University School of Public Health. Dr. Duckworth has served as a board member of the American Association for Community Psychiatry and worked for years as a psychiatrist on an assertive community treatment team.

In this week’s podcast, we’re honored to learn from Lore Ferguson Wilbert about her new book entitled, “A Curious Faith: The Questions God Asks, We Ask, And We Wish Someone Would Ask Us.“

Her book explores the powerful ways our faith and doubt can impact our understanding of God. Lore invites us all to embrace curiosity in our faith journey, and to get comfortable with not always finding all the answers. Most importantly, she encourages readers to find their comfort and ultimate answers in Christ.

Lore Ferguson Wilbert is the founder of Sayable.net and the author of Handle with Care, winner of a 2021 Christianity Today Book Award. She has written for Christianity Today, Fathom magazine, and She Reads Truth and served as general editor of B&H’s Read and Reflect with the Classics. She is currently pursuing an M.A. in Christian spiritual formation and leadership from Friends University.

You can get watch the video from today's conversation here:

You can also view and/or download past episodes here: