I’m not going to lie, today’s episode is a heavy conversation; a much needed conversation about grief and loss, 10/10 of us will die - it’s inevitable, we’ll experience the passing of someone that we love and have to navigate our response to grief and loss inside the communities that we live.

Jess’s experience with grief, and the way she beautifully, rawly and openly shares her story is as complex as grief itself. It’s heart-wrenching, joy-filled, tear-jerking with the critical punctuation of swear words required to share such an experience.

After losing her first born son, Monty, in 2006, Jess Williams experienced post traumatic growth thanks to her community. Her passion with the GroundSwell Project, and the Compassion Community where she is pulled to talk about death and grief in workplaces, keeps her up at night; and she invites everyone to be a part of the collective change around death and dying in Australia

Whilst there are some components of this conversation that are tough to hear it is a truly remarkable conversation that ended with some long hugs between Jess and I. And that’s the power of creating connections and safe spaces to talk about grief and death. I would encourage you to lean into these conversations, to build your community around you, and to know that there are people sharing in these stories too.

Grab your tissues, be kind to yourself, and carve out the space to soak up this life-affirming conversation with Jess Williams.