Good Days, Bad Days

We talk with Dr. Joshua Black, grief dream researcher, about what grief dreams mean, why we have them, and how they can help us heal. Check out Dr. Black's podcast, grief dreams!

For more information, check out his website.
Or follow him on Instagram!

The lovely Genell Gorman shared with us the loss of her father, how the pain she tried to suppress just turned into a monster after 16 years, and how she has used her grief to help other women as a Fatherless Daughter Coach. 

Genell has learned some truly amazing tools to re-shape thinking around grief, abandonment, and how to re-parent our inner child.
 
I learned a lot from this episode and I hope you do too!

I am honored I got to sit down with licensed family and marriage therapist, Kimberly Sandstrom to talk about grief, the grief around divorce, and how loss can impact our self-identity. She goes over the coping mechanisms we can use to help us move forward and tools to allow us to create space for self-forgiveness to adapt to our new life.

I love her so much. She is an incredibly wise woman and shared some great insights on this episode, I hope you enjoy!

For more information on Kimberly, visit her website: KimberlySandstrom.com 

I remember the first time I met Jackie on the very first day of law school. Instantly I felt her kind energy, and we became fast friends. She is no doubt one of the funniest people I know, and she coincidentally married another person who is ALSO one of the funniest people I know. Together, they have kept me laughing for years. 

Jackie and her husband, Paul, struggled with fertility and, after more than a year of trying without success, pursued IVF. In this episode, Jackie is so open and honest about her IVF journey, the difficulties in battling anxiety, the traumatic premature birth of her daughter via emergency c-section, as well as her unexpected second pregnancy of her son.

I learned a lot about the IVF process that I didn't know about. I feel much more capable of supporting someone as a friend who is going through this process after speaking with Jackie. I highly recommend everyone give this episode a listen, as you likely know someone struggling with infertility.  

I read Mira's article about her husband's passing and knew I absolutely had to connect. Mira talks about her husband's diagnosis of stage 4 melanoma, his passing, and how she has coped with the loss through writing. She is such an amazing and REAL person. We even had a good cry together after I stopped recording.  I'm sure you will get a lot out of this episode, I know I sure did. 

The first episode in our grief & faith series but ended up being SO MUCH MORE. After a walk across the U.S. for Nuclear Disarmament in 1986, Ben found his passion for advocacy & social justice, specifically, violence against women. He is also a suicide survivor. After losing his dad to suicide, he has volunteered with organizations focused on suicide prevention and helping those who were left behind. We talked about life after death, what it means to be a UU, and you can even expect a Kermit the Frog and Elmo voice impression in this episode!

To learn more about Ben, check out his website, Voices of Men.

If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, please call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline: 1-800-273-8255

In a time when you need your family most, it is common for conflict to occur. Emotions run high after a loss, people grieve in different ways, so how do you handle it? Here is a super quick episode with some actionable tips for handling conflict after a loss. 

Joy Abrams sits down and talks with us about her addiction to alcohol, her traumatic birth of her rainbow baby, Patrick, as well as the transformation she has undergone while sober. She is an incredibly brave, driven, and accomplished woman and I am grateful to know her. 

This is Part 2 of Brittany Sandoval's story. We explore what it is like raising two kiddos with a metabolic disorder and her diagnosis with Lupus. We also talk about how grief can occur without death and how faith can be tested during tough times. 

I am so incredibly honored to share with you the story of a very dear friend of mine, Brittany Sandoval. She has been through so so much, and I have been continually inspired by her ability to cope with everything life throws at her. We had so much to discuss, so this is actually part 1 of our conversation. Part 2 will be available on Episode 4, which should release soon! 

I hope you enjoy!