Don't Be Caught Dead: Grief, Loss, Death Literacy and Getting Prepared

What happens when someone you love is dying—and how can a little preparation make an already difficult time less uncertain?

In this episode, I’m joined by Stephanie Wood, an award-winning Australian long-form feature journalist who writes for The Good Weekend, The Guardian and Vogue. Stephanie is the author of Fake: A Startling True Story of Love in a World of Liars, Cheats, Narcissists, Fantasists, and Phonies, which was adapted into a Paramount+ drama series. She also writes Vamp, a weekly Substack newsletter exploring midlife, resilience, meaning-making and ageism.

Stephanie shares the story of her father’s final days after years of illness, and the experience of supporting him through palliative care. Her father had an advance care directive that set out his wishes, including that he did not want further treatment. Stephanie reflects on how having those wishes documented meant the family could focus on whether he was comfortable, rather than having to work out what he would have wanted.

We talk about the emotional reality of being beside someone who is dying, the importance of compassionate and patient palliative care, and how family disagreements can add another layer of distress. Stephanie also opens up about the years she spent clearing the family home after her father died—and the memories, stories and complicated feelings attached to the things we inherit.

The conversation also turns to who will support us as we age. Stephanie explains why she is considering engaging a death doula if she becomes unwell, challenging the assumption that having children guarantees someone will be there to advocate for us. Together, we explore why planning ahead is about more than paperwork: it’s about making our wishes known and reducing uncertainty for the people who may one day speak on our behalf.

Remember: You may not be ready to die, but at least you can be prepared.

Take care,

Catherine

We'd love to hear from you. Send us a text :-)

MY LOVED ONE HAS DIED, WHAT DO I DO NOW?

Our guide, ‘My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now?’ provides practical steps for the hours and days after a loved one's death. Download it here.

SUPPORT SERVICES
If you're feeling overwhelmed by grief, find support through our resources and bereavement services here.

The free 3-minute Critical Info Check helps you see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

Three minutes. One next step.

Go to gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au

Every Tuesday at 7pm, I host Critical Chat Tuesdays —
free, online conversations where you can ask questions or just listen.

No pressure.
 No expectation.

Because this isn’t about planning for “someday” —
 it’s about being ready for whatever life throws your way.

Join anytime at criticalinfo.com.au/events

Support the show

YOUR NEXT STEP

Take the free 3-minute Critical Info Check to see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

https://gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au/

NEED SUPPORT?

The Critical Info Resource Hub connects you with organisations and services offering grief, bereavement and other practical support.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/support/

KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING

Join Critical Chat Tuesday, a free online conversation every Tuesday at 7pm Melbourne time.

Find out more:

https://criticalinfo.com.au/events

IF SOMEONE HAS DIED

If someone you love has died, our After-Death Guide — My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now? — provides practical guidance to help you navigate what needs to happen next.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/product/my-loved-one-has-died/

LEARN MORE

https://criticalinfo.com.au/

For resources mentioned in this episode, check the links and information provided in the episode description.

What if the wishes you express about your funeral and what happens to your body after death aren’t legally binding?

In this episode, I’m joined by Dr Kate Falconer, a Senior Lecturer at the School of Law and Radical Humanities Laboratory at University College Cork, where she teaches Trusts Law, Property Law and Death Law. Kate’s research explores the law of the dead, bodily disposal, and the way death intersects with private law — from funeral disputes to emerging technologies such as digital avatars. She is co-editor of Life and Death in Private Law and Treasurer and co-founder of the Australian Death Studies Society.

We begin with a remarkable Australian legal case from 1908: a preserved stillborn child displayed in a jar at a Sydney ‘freak show’, and the court’s decision about whether human remains could be treated as property. Kate explains the common-law “no property in a corpse” rule, the work-or-skill exception that emerged from Doodeward and Spence, and the separate possessory rights that can allow someone to take responsibility for a body for the purpose of burial or other final care.

From there, we explore why funeral disputes can become so emotionally charged, including cases involving cultural obligations, kinship and the return of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ancestors to Country. Kate describes how courts have become more willing to consider family wishes, cultural and religious factors, and practical circumstances — while explaining why the law can still place an executor in the key decision-making role.

We also look at the legal and ethical questions raised by digital afterlives. Who controls a person’s data after they die? What happens when a company offering an AI avatar closes down, or changes its terms and conditions? Kate discusses the risks around consent, data, grief and commercial services, and contrasts these with the State Library of Queensland’s “Charlie” digital veteran, an AI-generated composite based on historical material rather than one real person.

Finally, we discuss the future of death law, including whether people’s wishes about their bodies should become legally binding, and how legislation may need to respond to water cremation, natural burial and human composting. Kate’s practical message is clear: talk with the people close to you about what you want, make sure they understand your wishes, and think carefully about who you appoint as executor.

Remember; You may not be ready to die, but at least you can be prepared.

Take care,
Catherine

We'd love to hear from you. Send us a text :-)

MY LOVED ONE HAS DIED, WHAT DO I DO NOW?

Our guide, ‘My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now?’ provides practical steps for the hours and days after a loved one's death. Download it here.

SUPPORT SERVICES
If you're feeling overwhelmed by grief, find support through our resources and bereavement services here.

The free 3-minute Critical Info Check helps you see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

Three minutes. One next step.

Go to gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au

Every Tuesday at 7pm, I host Critical Chat Tuesdays —
free, online conversations where you can ask questions or just listen.

No pressure.
 No expectation.

Because this isn’t about planning for “someday” —
 it’s about being ready for whatever life throws your way.

Join anytime at criticalinfo.com.au/events

Support the show

YOUR NEXT STEP

Take the free 3-minute Critical Info Check to see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

https://gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au/

NEED SUPPORT?

The Critical Info Resource Hub connects you with organisations and services offering grief, bereavement and other practical support.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/support/

KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING

Join Critical Chat Tuesday, a free online conversation every Tuesday at 7pm Melbourne time.

Find out more:

https://criticalinfo.com.au/events

IF SOMEONE HAS DIED

If someone you love has died, our After-Death Guide — My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now? — provides practical guidance to help you navigate what needs to happen next.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/product/my-loved-one-has-died/

LEARN MORE

https://criticalinfo.com.au/

For resources mentioned in this episode, check the links and information provided in the episode description.

What happens at the end of life when the systems we rely on don't recognise who we are, or who we love?

In this episode, I'm joined by Zoe Hinton, ACON's Community Health Promotion Officer for End of Life and Palliative Care. Zoe works within The LOVE Project (Living Older Visibly and Engaged), ACON's initiative supporting older LGBTQ+ people to stay socially connected, visible and engaged in community, and helps deliver ACON's Taking Control toolkit for palliative care and end of life decisions.

We talk about the nuances LGBTQ+ people face when accessing palliative care, from doctors who assume you have an opposite sex partner, to legal and superannuation systems built around one married partner and dependent children. Zoe explains why chosen family matters so much, how partners who were never openly recognised can be shut out of homes, estates and even funerals, and why so many older community members fear being forced back into the closet when they enter aged care.

Zoe also busts the myth that palliative care is only for your final weeks, shares simple questions allies can ask aged care providers about LGBTQ+ safety policies and staff training, and reminds us that documentation isn't just paperwork. It's also the conversations we have with the people who will speak for us.

But this conversation ultimately comes back to grief and ritual. From the AIDS Memorial Quilt to lighting a candle or dancing with friends, Zoe shows how we can create our own rituals to honour the people we love, especially when the official funeral doesn't reflect who they were. As Zoe puts it, grief is messy, and you are a person changed completely.

Remember; You may not be ready to die, but at least you can be prepared.

Take care,

Catherine

We'd love to hear from you. Send us a text :-)

MY LOVED ONE HAS DIED, WHAT DO I DO NOW?

Our guide, ‘My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now?’ provides practical steps for the hours and days after a loved one's death. Download it here.

SUPPORT SERVICES
If you're feeling overwhelmed by grief, find support through our resources and bereavement services here.

The free 3-minute Critical Info Check helps you see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

Three minutes. One next step.

Go to gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au

Every Tuesday at 7pm, I host Critical Chat Tuesdays —
free, online conversations where you can ask questions or just listen.

No pressure.
 No expectation.

Because this isn’t about planning for “someday” —
 it’s about being ready for whatever life throws your way.

Join anytime at criticalinfo.com.au/events

Support the show

YOUR NEXT STEP

Take the free 3-minute Critical Info Check to see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

https://gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au/

NEED SUPPORT?

The Critical Info Resource Hub connects you with organisations and services offering grief, bereavement and other practical support.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/support/

KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING

Join Critical Chat Tuesday, a free online conversation every Tuesday at 7pm Melbourne time.

Find out more:

https://criticalinfo.com.au/events

IF SOMEONE HAS DIED

If someone you love has died, our After-Death Guide — My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now? — provides practical guidance to help you navigate what needs to happen next.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/product/my-loved-one-has-died/

LEARN MORE

https://criticalinfo.com.au/

For resources mentioned in this episode, check the links and information provided in the episode description.

What can a cemetery teach us about the people who came before us — and what can the history of poison and medicine tell us about the way we understand death today?

In this episode, I'm joined by Rae, who is completing a Master of Ancient History specialising in poison and medicine. Her research spans death and dying across the ancient and more recent historical world. Rae also gives cemetery tours at Brighton Cemetery, where she helps bring the stories of the people buried there back to life.

We talk about the hidden stories held within cemeteries, how researchers uncover the lives behind gravestones, and why cemeteries can act as community memory. Rae also shares her fascination with poison and medical history, including arsenic-based green dye, the history of women's medicine and the forgotten contributions of women such as Metrodora.

But this conversation ultimately comes back to grief. Rae challenges the idea that people in ancient societies were somehow indifferent to death simply because it was more common. Looking at historical evidence, we explore how deeply people have always cared about the people they lost — and what history can teach us about death, health and ourselves.

Remember; You may not be ready to die, but at least you can be prepared.

Take care,

Catherine

We'd love to hear from you. Send us a text :-)

MY LOVED ONE HAS DIED, WHAT DO I DO NOW?

Our guide, ‘My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now?’ provides practical steps for the hours and days after a loved one's death. Download it here.

SUPPORT SERVICES
If you're feeling overwhelmed by grief, find support through our resources and bereavement services here.

The free 3-minute Critical Info Check helps you see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

Three minutes. One next step.

Go to gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au

Every Tuesday at 7pm, I host Critical Chat Tuesdays —
free, online conversations where you can ask questions or just listen.

No pressure.
 No expectation.

Because this isn’t about planning for “someday” —
 it’s about being ready for whatever life throws your way.

Join anytime at criticalinfo.com.au/events

Support the show

YOUR NEXT STEP

Take the free 3-minute Critical Info Check to see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

https://gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au/

NEED SUPPORT?

The Critical Info Resource Hub connects you with organisations and services offering grief, bereavement and other practical support.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/support/

KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING

Join Critical Chat Tuesday, a free online conversation every Tuesday at 7pm Melbourne time.

Find out more:

https://criticalinfo.com.au/events

IF SOMEONE HAS DIED

If someone you love has died, our After-Death Guide — My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now? — provides practical guidance to help you navigate what needs to happen next.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/product/my-loved-one-has-died/

LEARN MORE

https://criticalinfo.com.au/

For resources mentioned in this episode, check the links and information provided in the episode description.

What if the phone in your pocket is one of the most meaningful grief objects you own?

In this episode, I'm joined by Distinguished Professor Larissa Hjorth, a digital ethnographer and socially engaged artist at RMIT University here in Melbourne, where she holds an Australian Research Council Future Fellowship in the School of Media and Communication. For two decades, Larissa's work has explored the role mobile media plays in intergenerational connection, intimacy, ageing, loss and death across Japan, South Korea, China and Australia. Her current Fellowship, The Mourning After, examines mourning through mobile media, from the death of a loved one to ecological grief, framing grief as a cultural practice and building what she calls grief literacy. It builds on her earlier book, Haunting Hands (Oxford University Press, 2017), and her latest book, Mourning on Mobile Media: Everyday Affective Witnessing (MIT Press), is free to read online. In 2025 Larissa curated an exhibition of the same name at RMIT Design Hub Gallery, exploring grief as a social practice for hopeful futures.

I was lucky enough to visit The Mourning After, and in this conversation Larissa takes us behind the curtain. We talk about how she brought together 13 artists and 26 free public workshops to make grief visible, from Maree Clarke's kopi mourning caps, heavy with clay and worn until they fall away, to custodian guides that give our treasured objects a story to carry into the future. Larissa explains why ritual matters so much, why grief doesn't have to be dark, and why creative practice can say what words often can't.

We then move into the digital world. Larissa shares what she has learnt about posting as a form of eulogy, why choosing not to share can be just as meaningful as sharing, and how people hold onto old phones rather than risk losing a loved one's voice message. We explore the phone as a witness in moments of disaster and collective grief, what happens when social media accounts are left without a legacy contact, and the ethics of death bots and AI afterlives. As Larissa puts it, when you ask someone about their phone, you're really inviting them to talk about their life, their relationships and their losses.

Remember; You may not be ready to die, but at least you can be prepared.

Take care,

Catherine

We'd love to hear from you. Send us a text :-)

MY LOVED ONE HAS DIED, WHAT DO I DO NOW?

Our guide, ‘My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now?’ provides practical steps for the hours and days after a loved one's death. Download it here.

SUPPORT SERVICES
If you're feeling overwhelmed by grief, find support through our resources and bereavement services here.

The free 3-minute Critical Info Check helps you see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

Three minutes. One next step.

Go to gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au

Every Tuesday at 7pm, I host Critical Chat Tuesdays —
free, online conversations where you can ask questions or just listen.

No pressure.
 No expectation.

Because this isn’t about planning for “someday” —
 it’s about being ready for whatever life throws your way.

Join anytime at criticalinfo.com.au/events

Support the show

YOUR NEXT STEP

Take the free 3-minute Critical Info Check to see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

https://gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au/

NEED SUPPORT?

The Critical Info Resource Hub connects you with organisations and services offering grief, bereavement and other practical support.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/support/

KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING

Join Critical Chat Tuesday, a free online conversation every Tuesday at 7pm Melbourne time.

Find out more:

https://criticalinfo.com.au/events

IF SOMEONE HAS DIED

If someone you love has died, our After-Death Guide — My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now? — provides practical guidance to help you navigate what needs to happen next.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/product/my-loved-one-has-died/

LEARN MORE

https://criticalinfo.com.au/

For resources mentioned in this episode, check the links and information provided in the episode description.

Losing a child, a parent, a distant cousin: the data says your grief isn't the same, and neither is what helps.

In this episode, I'm speaking with Dr Candice Mace, a clinical psychologist, research supervisor and sessional academic at Deakin University and The Cairnmillar Institute, where she also completed her Doctorate of Psychology (Clinical). Candice's clinical and academic work centres on grief, loss and trauma, and her doctoral research, in collaboration with Dr Russell Deighton, demonstrated the effectiveness of the Integrating Grief Program Victoria, a telephone-based grief counselling service delivered in partnership with Griefline. Her first study, published in Death Studies, found that brief telehealth grief counselling significantly reduced psychological distress among 197 people bereaved by sudden or traumatic death.

Candice explains why grief found her before she found it, walks through the difference between the acute and adaptive phases of grief using her ball in the box analogy, and makes the case for why the popular five stages of grief were never actually designed to describe bereavement at all. We get into why grief research has historically been so thin, what changed when Prolonged Grief Disorder was added to the DSM in 2022, and why grief itself isn't a disorder, it's a normal response that can sometimes need specialised support.

We spend real time on what her research actually found: brief telehealth counselling helps, but not equally for everyone. Losing a child produced the highest and most persistent distress of any relationship type. Cause of death mattered too, with cancer and drug overdose bereavements arriving with the highest initial distress, for very different reasons. And counterintuitively, people with only medium levels of social support sometimes did better than those with high support, because not all support is the support a grieving person actually needs. Candice closes by sharing her own experience of grief after losing her sister, and what she has learned about tolerating grief rather than locking it away.

What you'll hear in this episode:

• Why grief found Candice before she found it, and how counselling hundreds of bereaved people at Griefline shaped her research questions
• The difference between acute and adaptive grief, and Candice's ball in the box analogy for how grief changes over time, not in size but in how often it gets triggered
• Why the five stages of grief were never designed to describe bereavement at all, and why treating them as gospel can make people doubt their own grief
• Why grief has historically been under-researched, and what changed once prolonged grief disorder was added to the DSM in 2022
• What the Integrating Grief Program Victoria actually is, how Victoria Police refers people into it, and who it isn't designed for
• Why brief telehealth grief counselling worked, but not equally for everyone: the surprising role of relationship to the deceased, cause of death, age and social support
• Why losing a child produced the highest and most persistent psychological distress of any relationship type in the data
• Why cancer and drug overdose deaths arrived with the highest initial distress, for very different reasons, and what happened to that distress over six sessions
• Why medium levels of social support sometimes outperformed high levels, and what that reveals about the difference between well-meaning help and useful help
• What complex or prolonged grief actually looks like in Candice's clinical work, and how it differs from grief that simply hurts
• Candice's own experience of grief after losing her sister, and why she now believes in tolerating grief rather than locking it away

Connect with Dr Candice Mace

Website: https://macecp.com.au/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/candice-mace-11943b24/

Resources Mentioned

Calling in Grief
Calling in Grief: A retrospective analysis of the effectiveness of a telehealth grief counselling program through a community-based organisation by Candice Mace and Russell McKenzie Deighton, published in Death Studies.
Read the research on PubMed

Integrating Grief Program Victoria (IGP-V)
A partnership between Victoria Police and Griefline providing grief support for people affected by a death.
Learn more about IGP-V

Griefline
Free grief and loss support, information and resources for people experiencing grief.
Visit Griefline

Lifeline
24/7 crisis support for anyone experiencing emotional distress or a crisis.
Visit Lifeline Australia

Beyond Blue
Information and support for people experiencing anxiety, depression or a difficult time.
Visit Beyond Blue

The Compassionate Friends Australia
Peer support for parents, siblings and families following the death of a child, sibling or grandchild.
Visit The Compassionate Friends Australia

Support After Suicide
Support, counselling, groups and resources for people bereaved by suicide.
Visit Support After Suicide

StandBy – Support After Suicide
Free support for people, families and communities affected by suicide bereavement across Australia.
Visit StandBy

Remember: you may not be ready to die, but at least you can be prepared.

Take care,

Catherine

We'd love to hear from you. Send us a text :-)

MY LOVED ONE HAS DIED, WHAT DO I DO NOW?

Our guide, ‘My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now?’ provides practical steps for the hours and days after a loved one's death. Download it here.

SUPPORT SERVICES
If you're feeling overwhelmed by grief, find support through our resources and bereavement services here.

The free 3-minute Critical Info Check helps you see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

Three minutes. One next step.

Go to gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au

Every Tuesday at 7pm, I host Critical Chat Tuesdays —
free, online conversations where you can ask questions or just listen.

No pressure.
 No expectation.

Because this isn’t about planning for “someday” —
 it’s about being ready for whatever life throws your way.

Join anytime at criticalinfo.com.au/events

Support the show

YOUR NEXT STEP

Take the free 3-minute Critical Info Check to see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

https://gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au/

NEED SUPPORT?

The Critical Info Resource Hub connects you with organisations and services offering grief, bereavement and other practical support.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/support/

KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING

Join Critical Chat Tuesday, a free online conversation every Tuesday at 7pm Melbourne time.

Find out more:

https://criticalinfo.com.au/events

IF SOMEONE HAS DIED

If someone you love has died, our After-Death Guide — My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now? — provides practical guidance to help you navigate what needs to happen next.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/product/my-loved-one-has-died/

LEARN MORE

https://criticalinfo.com.au/

For resources mentioned in this episode, check the links and information provided in the episode description.

What if you spent your whole childhood feeling something you couldn’t name, only to discover the answer on your mother’s deathbed?

In this episode, I sit down with Nikki Domeney, a Project Coordinator at Social Engine and board member of Black Duck Group, whose own story of discovering her Indigenous heritage just eighteen months before her mother passed away has shaped everything about how she now supports others through grief, identity and connection to Country. Nikki describes growing up feeling “like she had two heads” — carrying an intuitive, spiritual knowing she had nowhere to place, until she learned her mother and grandmother were part of the Stolen Generation, disconnected from their Gamilaroi heritage in New South Wales.

We talk about what it meant for Nikki to walk onto Country for the first time in Dirranbandi, meeting cousins she’d never known, and giving them back stories of the aunty and mother they’d lost touch with. Nikki explains Wayapa Wuurrk, an Earth-centred wellbeing practice built around fourteen elements that helps people — Indigenous and non-Indigenous alike — reconnect with the land, with grief, and with themselves, and why it’s now being used in Victorian early childhood education and corporate settings alike.

We also go deep into intergenerational trauma and the emerging science of epigenetics, what it’s like to hold both an Indigenous and Celtic heritage at once, the guilt and nuance of “walking two worlds,” and Nikki’s work helping business leaders understand the difference between lore and law. It’s a generous, moving conversation about grief, belonging, and what it takes to reclaim what was taken.

What you’ll hear in this episode:

• How Nikki discovered her Indigenous heritage just eighteen months before her mother died, and what it was like meeting her mob for the first time at her mother’s deathbed
• The Stolen Generation story behind Nikki’s family, and how her mother and grandmother were separated from their Gamilaroi culture and Country
• What it felt like to set foot on Country in Dirranbandi for the first time, and the “coming home” moment with a cousin who looked just like her mum
• What self-sovereignty means, and why Nikki sees reclaiming identity as an act of returning to yourself
• What Wayapa Wuurrk is: the fourteen elements, its Indigenous origins, and how it’s being used in Victorian early education and corporate workplaces
• How Nikki uses Wayapa to hold space for grief, including a story about supporting a school leader and her team through the death of a student
• Intergenerational trauma, epigenetics and “cellular memory” — and why Nikki says most of us are carrying trauma we’re not even conscious of
• The nuance of “walking two worlds” as someone with lighter skin and no lived experience of overt racism, and how Nikki holds that alongside her own identity journey
• Lore versus law: what Nikki has learned about trust, compliance and old ways of being through her work as a people and culture leader
• What Nikki hopes to pass on to her own children, and why she believes everyone is a storyteller on a healing journey

Connect with Nikki Domeney

Black Duck Group: https://www.blackduckgroup.org.au/

Social Engine: https://www.socialengine.org.au/

Resources Mentioned in This Episode

Wayapa Wuurrk: https://wayapa.com/

Remember; You may not be ready to die, but at least you can be prepared.

Take care,

Catherine

We'd love to hear from you. Send us a text :-)

MY LOVED ONE HAS DIED, WHAT DO I DO NOW?

Our guide, ‘My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now?’ provides practical steps for the hours and days after a loved one's death. Download it here.

SUPPORT SERVICES
If you're feeling overwhelmed by grief, find support through our resources and bereavement services here.

The free 3-minute Critical Info Check helps you see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

Three minutes. One next step.

Go to gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au

Every Tuesday at 7pm, I host Critical Chat Tuesdays —
free, online conversations where you can ask questions or just listen.

No pressure.
 No expectation.

Because this isn’t about planning for “someday” —
 it’s about being ready for whatever life throws your way.

Join anytime at criticalinfo.com.au/events

Support the show

YOUR NEXT STEP

Take the free 3-minute Critical Info Check to see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

https://gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au/

NEED SUPPORT?

The Critical Info Resource Hub connects you with organisations and services offering grief, bereavement and other practical support.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/support/

KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING

Join Critical Chat Tuesday, a free online conversation every Tuesday at 7pm Melbourne time.

Find out more:

https://criticalinfo.com.au/events

IF SOMEONE HAS DIED

If someone you love has died, our After-Death Guide — My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now? — provides practical guidance to help you navigate what needs to happen next.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/product/my-loved-one-has-died/

LEARN MORE

https://criticalinfo.com.au/

For resources mentioned in this episode, check the links and information provided in the episode description.

Did you know that around sixty percent of burial disputes that end up in Australian courts involve an Aboriginal person, and that appointing an executor can be the one thing that prevents it?

In this episode, I'm speaking with Professor Prue Vines, a leading Australian legal academic at the Faculty of Law, UNSW Sydney, where she has taught since 1990. Prue is co-author, with Rosalind Croucher, of the country's leading succession law textbook, Succession: Families, Property and Death, and sole author of Law and Justice in Australia. She is also the author of the Aboriginal Wills Handbook, and her research sits right at the intersection of law and death, with a particular and long standing focus on developing culturally appropriate wills for Indigenous Australians and on the burial rights disputes that so often follow when that planning hasn't happened.

Prue and I talk about why succession law can feel so harsh when emotion meets property, and why a will should really be thought of as part of planning for the people you leave behind, not just a piece of paper about money. She walks me through what a will actually does, including the part most people never think about: appointing an executor who has the legal right to decide what happens to your body. We get into the risks of DIY wills, how to choose an executor you can truly trust, and what the probate and intestacy process actually looks like when someone dies with or without a will.

A large part of our conversation is dedicated to Prue's decades of work with Aboriginal communities across Australia, developing wills that actually reflect how kinship, family and obligation work in those communities rather than imposing a Western template. She explains how appointing an executor became the single most important reason many Aboriginal elders chose to make a will in the first place, because it settles who has the right to decide what happens to a person's body. We go deep on burial rights: why disputes over where someone is laid to rest disproportionately involve Aboriginal Australians, what dispossession has done to people's ability to be buried on country, the different ways communities have adapted, from smoking ceremonies to carrying home a handful of earth, and the real court cases Prue has seen where a missing will meant a family was torn apart over a burial decision that should never have needed a judge.

Prue closes by making the case for enduring power of attorney and guardianship alongside a will, and pushes back on the idea that will disputes are becoming more common than they really are.

Remember; you may not be ready to die, but at least you can be prepared.

Take care,

Catherine

We'd love to hear from you. Send us a text :-)

MY LOVED ONE HAS DIED, WHAT DO I DO NOW?

Our guide, ‘My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now?’ provides practical steps for the hours and days after a loved one's death. Download it here.

SUPPORT SERVICES
If you're feeling overwhelmed by grief, find support through our resources and bereavement services here.

The free 3-minute Critical Info Check helps you see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

Three minutes. One next step.

Go to gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au

Every Tuesday at 7pm, I host Critical Chat Tuesdays —
free, online conversations where you can ask questions or just listen.

No pressure.
 No expectation.

Because this isn’t about planning for “someday” —
 it’s about being ready for whatever life throws your way.

Join anytime at criticalinfo.com.au/events

Support the show

YOUR NEXT STEP

Take the free 3-minute Critical Info Check to see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

https://gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au/

NEED SUPPORT?

The Critical Info Resource Hub connects you with organisations and services offering grief, bereavement and other practical support.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/support/

KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING

Join Critical Chat Tuesday, a free online conversation every Tuesday at 7pm Melbourne time.

Find out more:

https://criticalinfo.com.au/events

IF SOMEONE HAS DIED

If someone you love has died, our After-Death Guide — My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now? — provides practical guidance to help you navigate what needs to happen next.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/product/my-loved-one-has-died/

LEARN MORE

https://criticalinfo.com.au/

For resources mentioned in this episode, check the links and information provided in the episode description.

In this episode, I'm joined by Ben Kelly, CEO of the Australasian Cemeteries and Crematoria Association (ACCA), the peak body representing the cemetery and crematoria sector across Australia and New Zealand.
Ben takes us behind the gates of an industry most of us never think about until we have to. We talk about why cremation now accounts for 75 to 85 per cent of dispositions in Australia, why your postcode can determine how far your loved one has to travel to be cremated, and why there's no single national law governing what a cemetery can and can't do.
We get into the thornier questions too: who actually owns a grave (hint: you don't), what happens when a family plot sits unused for decades, and the surprisingly heated debate over pets being buried alongside their owners. Ben also walks us through “limited tenure” – the practice of reusing graves after a set period – and why it might be one of the only real answers to Australia's shrinking burial space.
Beyond the practicalities, Ben shares how cemeteries are quietly becoming community hubs: death cafes, baby loss memorial services, AI-powered digital storytelling projects, and even wildlife pantries for injured possums and koalas. And we don't shy away from the harder side of his industry – the funding cemeteries rarely get, and the toll the work takes on the people who show up for grieving families every day.'

Remember; You may not be ready to die, but at least you can be prepared.

Take care,
Catherine

We'd love to hear from you. Send us a text :-)

MY LOVED ONE HAS DIED, WHAT DO I DO NOW?

Our guide, ‘My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now?’ provides practical steps for the hours and days after a loved one's death. Download it here.

SUPPORT SERVICES
If you're feeling overwhelmed by grief, find support through our resources and bereavement services here.

The free 3-minute Critical Info Check helps you see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

Three minutes. One next step.

Go to gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au

Every Tuesday at 7pm, I host Critical Chat Tuesdays —
free, online conversations where you can ask questions or just listen.

No pressure.
 No expectation.

Because this isn’t about planning for “someday” —
 it’s about being ready for whatever life throws your way.

Join anytime at criticalinfo.com.au/events

Support the show

YOUR NEXT STEP

Take the free 3-minute Critical Info Check to see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

https://gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au/

NEED SUPPORT?

The Critical Info Resource Hub connects you with organisations and services offering grief, bereavement and other practical support.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/support/

KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING

Join Critical Chat Tuesday, a free online conversation every Tuesday at 7pm Melbourne time.

Find out more:

https://criticalinfo.com.au/events

IF SOMEONE HAS DIED

If someone you love has died, our After-Death Guide — My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now? — provides practical guidance to help you navigate what needs to happen next.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/product/my-loved-one-has-died/

LEARN MORE

https://criticalinfo.com.au/

For resources mentioned in this episode, check the links and information provided in the episode description.

What if there is no such thing as a child being too young for a funeral?

In this episode, I sit down with Gail Eaton-Briggs, a Tasmanian author, celebrant, leadership coach and founder of EveryWhen Solutions. With more than 40 years of experience in early childhood education, child safety and leadership, and as an authorised celebrant since 2006, Gail has supported hundreds of families through funerals and celebrations of life.

Gail's new picture book, Remembering Nanny: Milly and Tom's First Funeral, follows two young children through the days after their grandmother's death, from the morning they find Mum crying on the back steps, through choosing what to take with them, to the funeral itself and the small, tender rituals that help a family grieve together. We talk about why she believes there is no such thing as “too young” for a funeral, the box of teddy bears she keeps in the boot of her car for children who need a hug, and why a beautiful picture book alone wasn't enough, so she wrote a companion guide too.

Gail shares some of the most memorable services she has led, including an unexpectedly joyful celebration at a group home and the loved ones who asked to reopen the curtains so they could keep the coffin company over morning tea. We also talk about her earlier book, Conscious Grit: From Stuck to Unstoppable, the personal tipping point that led her to leave a senior public service career, and the head, heart and gut model she now uses in her coaching and leadership work.

Remember; you may not be ready to die, but at least you can be prepared.

Take care, 

Catherine.

We'd love to hear from you. Send us a text :-)

MY LOVED ONE HAS DIED, WHAT DO I DO NOW?

Our guide, ‘My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now?’ provides practical steps for the hours and days after a loved one's death. Download it here.

SUPPORT SERVICES
If you're feeling overwhelmed by grief, find support through our resources and bereavement services here.

The free 3-minute Critical Info Check helps you see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

Three minutes. One next step.

Go to gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au

Every Tuesday at 7pm, I host Critical Chat Tuesdays —
free, online conversations where you can ask questions or just listen.

No pressure.
 No expectation.

Because this isn’t about planning for “someday” —
 it’s about being ready for whatever life throws your way.

Join anytime at criticalinfo.com.au/events

Support the show

YOUR NEXT STEP

Take the free 3-minute Critical Info Check to see what you’ve already got covered — and what your next step could be.

https://gettingstarted.criticalinfo.com.au/

NEED SUPPORT?

The Critical Info Resource Hub connects you with organisations and services offering grief, bereavement and other practical support.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/support/

KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING

Join Critical Chat Tuesday, a free online conversation every Tuesday at 7pm Melbourne time.

Find out more:

https://criticalinfo.com.au/events

IF SOMEONE HAS DIED

If someone you love has died, our After-Death Guide — My Loved One Has Died, What Do I Do Now? — provides practical guidance to help you navigate what needs to happen next.

https://criticalinfo.com.au/product/my-loved-one-has-died/

LEARN MORE

https://criticalinfo.com.au/

For resources mentioned in this episode, check the links and information provided in the episode description.