Behavioral Grief Reactions: Why Grief Changes What You Do, Not Just How You Feel

You have been saying yes to everything because stopping feels terrifying. You have not responded to a text in two weeks. You reorganized the closet three times this month. You are on your second bottle of wine more nights than you want to admit. You got the tattoo.

That is not you being impulsive, flaky, or self-destructive. That is grief taking the wheel.

In episode four of the six-part Common Grief Reactions series, Dr. Heather Taylor gets into the behavioral side of grief, the part that shows up in your daily habits, your relationships, your phone, your pantry, and your couch. The part that tends to carry the most shame and gets explained away as stress or a personality change or just a weird phase, when really it is grief trying to metabolize itself through action, avoidance, or control.

If you have ever looked at what you have been doing since your loss and thought "what is wrong with me," this episode is for you. Nothing is wrong with you. You are grieving, and those two things explain a lot.

In this episode you will learn:

Behavioral grief patterns discussed in this episode:

Over-functioning, under-functioning, grief avoidance, numbing behaviors, alcohol use after loss, doom scrolling, impulse decisions, isolation, social withdrawal, grief and anger, grief and irritability, busyness as avoidance, grief coping strategies, grief behaviors, grief and control

Story Time with Heather:

Dr. Taylor shares what happened the week after her brother died, when she poured herself and her whole grieving family into making holiday gift card aprons for Barnes and Noble, and what it taught her about over-functioning as a grief response. She also talks about her depression slippers, the one-year anniversary, and what it looked like when the over-functioning finally gave way.

STAY Framework connection:

This episode works with two letters. T, Track the Loss, which means tracing a behavior back to its source and asking what loss is actually underneath it. And Y, Yield to the Moment, which means responding to what is genuinely needed right now, not what your pre-grief self would have done or what the productivity app on your phone is telling you to do.

Practical tools from this episode:

Series navigation:

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Grief is not a problem to solve. It is a human experience to move through, and most of us were never taught how.

Grief is the New Normal is hosted by Dr. Heather Taylor, licensed psychologist and grief specialist with over a decade of experience in grief, trauma, and reproductive psychology. This show exists to change the conversation around loss by expanding what grief looks like, who it belongs to, and what it actually means to integrate it into your life.

Whether you're grieving a death, a diagnosis, a relationship, an identity shift, or the world as you knew it, your grief is real, it deserves space, and you are not behind. And if you're a clinician, coach, or helper carrying your own grief while holding space for others, this show was built for you too.

Dr. Taylor brings research-informed frameworks, honest clinical perspective, and the STAY framework, a grief-informed approach to living with loss that goes far beyond the five stages. Expect nuance, depth, and conversations that take grief seriously.

No toxic positivity. No fixing. Just honest conversation, real validation, and a community built around grief literacy, disenfranchised grief, anticipatory grief, collective grief, and the full spectrum of human loss.

grief support podcast · disenfranchised grief · anticipatory grief · grief after loss · grief for clinicians · grief-informed care · grief literacy · coping with grief · grief and identity · mental health and grief · reproductive grief · pet loss grief · collective trauma and grief ·  grief integration · STAY framework

New episodes dropping regularly

Connect with Dr. Heather Taylor:

Website: griefisthenewnormal.com

Instagram: @grief_is_the_new_normal

Substack: How We STAY with Grief https://drheathertaylor.substack.com/

Newsletter: Bridging the Grief Gap on LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-taylor-psyd-licensed-psychologist/

Journal: Authentically Unapologetic, available on Amazon https://a.co/d/0dM0DloC

Contact: [email protected]

This episode is sponsored by Oasys EHR. Try Oasys free for your first month. Use code HEATHER-2865 at oasysehr.com.

Music by The Dadicorns. Copyright 2026.

Grief is not just about death. It lives inside fertility journeys, inside the waiting and the not knowing, inside the losses that do not come with funerals or casseroles or anyone checking in six months later. And sometimes it lives right alongside joy, which is one of the most disorienting and least talked about parts of the whole experience.

In this episode, Dr. Heather Taylor sits down with Jessica Vickers, licensed marriage and family therapist, certified perinatal mental health counselor, EMDR clinician, and founder of the Happiest Healers Club. Jessica shares her own grief story, her clinical approach to perinatal and infertility loss, how EMDR supports grief integration, and why therapists need community and play just as much as their clients do.

This one is warm, real, a little bit Disney-filled, and deeply human.

In this episode you will learn:

Topics and concepts discussed in this episode:

Ambiguous grief, infertility grief, perinatal loss, miscarriage, pregnancy loss, EMDR for grief, bilateral stimulation, grief integration, continuing bonds, survivor guilt, grief and joy, caregiver fatigue, anticipatory grief, disenfranchised grief, grief and the nervous system, clinician burnout, therapist self-care, meaning-making after loss, grief and community

Jessica Vickers is a licensed marriage & family therapist, and also a certified perinatal mental health counselor. Jessica has been a therapist for over 13 years, and specializes in working with women of color and women going through the perinatal journey. Jessica utilizes EMDR in her virtual private practice. She is a Black woman, a wife, a mom, and the founder of The Happiest Healers Club. @jessicavickersmft on Instagram

Grief is not a problem to solve. It is a human experience to move through, and most of us were never taught how.

Grief is the New Normal is hosted by Dr. Heather Taylor, licensed psychologist and grief specialist with over a decade of experience in grief, trauma, and reproductive psychology. This show exists to change the conversation around loss by expanding what grief looks like, who it belongs to, and what it actually means to integrate it into your life.

Whether you're grieving a death, a diagnosis, a relationship, an identity shift, or the world as you knew it, your grief is real, it deserves space, and you are not behind. And if you're a clinician, coach, or helper carrying your own grief while holding space for others, this show was built for you too.

Dr. Taylor brings research-informed frameworks, honest clinical perspective, and the STAY framework, a grief-informed approach to living with loss that goes far beyond the five stages. Expect nuance, depth, and conversations that take grief seriously.

No toxic positivity. No fixing. Just honest conversation, real validation, and a community built around grief literacy, disenfranchised grief, anticipatory grief, collective grief, and the full spectrum of human loss.

grief support podcast · disenfranchised grief · anticipatory grief · grief after loss · grief for clinicians · grief-informed care · grief literacy · coping with grief · grief and identity · mental health and grief · reproductive grief · pet loss grief · collective trauma and grief ·  grief integration · STAY framework

New episodes dropping regularly

Connect with Dr. Heather Taylor:

Website: griefisthenewnormal.com

Instagram: @grief_is_the_new_normal

Substack: How We STAY with Grief https://drheathertaylor.substack.com/

Newsletter: Bridging the Grief Gap on LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-taylor-psyd-licensed-psychologist/

Journal: Authentically Unapologetic, available on Amazon https://a.co/d/0dM0DloC

Contact: [email protected]

This episode is sponsored by Oasys EHR. Try Oasys free for your first month. Use code HEATHER-2865 at oasysehr.com.

Music by The Dadicorns. Copyright 2026.

Grief Brain Is Real: The Neuroscience of Cognitive Grief Reactions

You have reread that email four times and still cannot tell anyone what it said. You walked into a room and have no idea why you are there. You used to read a book a week and now you cannot get through a chapter. You feel like you are failing at being a functional adult.

You are not failing. You are grieving. And your brain is in the middle of one of the most demanding neurological processes it will ever be asked to do.

In episode three of the six-part Common Grief Reactions series, Dr. Heather Taylor goes upstairs into the mind to explain what is actually happening in the grieving brain, why it happens, and what to do about it with compassion instead of shame.

In this episode you will learn:

Cognitive grief symptoms discussed in this episode:

Memory loss and forgetfulness, concentration difficulties, decision fatigue, time distortion, intrusive thoughts and looping memories, dissociation, executive dysfunction, task initiation problems, neurofatigue, grief fog, brain fog after loss

Story Time with Heather:

Dr. Taylor shares what happened to her own reading life after her brother died, how the one escape that had carried her since childhood suddenly stopped working, and how she and her clients have found ways to adapt rather than just wait for the fog to lift. She also shares a sneak peek at her new spinoff podcast, Grief Between the Pages, exploring grief through the lens of romantasy and fiction.

STAY Framework connection:

This episode works with the S in STAY: Slow Down. Dr. Taylor breaks down why trying to out-discipline or out-willpower grief brain makes it worse, and what it actually looks like to reduce cognitive load as an act of care rather than surrender.

Practical tools from this episode:

Research and references:

Series navigation:

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Grief is not a problem to solve. It is a human experience to move through, and most of us were never taught how.

Grief is the New Normal is hosted by Dr. Heather Taylor, licensed psychologist and grief specialist with over a decade of experience in grief, trauma, and reproductive psychology. This show exists to change the conversation around loss by expanding what grief looks like, who it belongs to, and what it actually means to integrate it into your life.

Whether you're grieving a death, a diagnosis, a relationship, an identity shift, or the world as you knew it, your grief is real, it deserves space, and you are not behind. And if you're a clinician, coach, or helper carrying your own grief while holding space for others, this show was built for you too.

Dr. Taylor brings research-informed frameworks, honest clinical perspective, and the STAY framework, a grief-informed approach to living with loss that goes far beyond the five stages. Expect nuance, depth, and conversations that take grief seriously.

No toxic positivity. No fixing. Just honest conversation, real validation, and a community built around grief literacy, disenfranchised grief, anticipatory grief, collective grief, and the full spectrum of human loss.

grief support podcast · disenfranchised grief · anticipatory grief · grief after loss · grief for clinicians · grief-informed care · grief literacy · coping with grief · grief and identity · mental health and grief · reproductive grief · pet loss grief · collective trauma and grief ·  grief integration · STAY framework

New episodes dropping regularly

Connect with Dr. Heather Taylor:

Website: griefisthenewnormal.com

Instagram: @grief_is_the_new_normal

Substack: How We STAY with Grief https://drheathertaylor.substack.com/

Newsletter: Bridging the Grief Gap on LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-taylor-psyd-licensed-psychologist/

Journal: Authentically Unapologetic, available on Amazon https://a.co/d/0dM0DloC

Contact: [email protected]

This episode is sponsored by Oasys EHR. Try Oasys free for your first month. Use code HEATHER-2865 at oasysehr.com.

Music by The Dadicorns. Copyright 2026.

What Grief Reveals: Liberation Psychology, Emotional Suppression, and the Power of Story with Dr. Rohit Agrawal

Grief does not exist in a vacuum. It lives inside systems, inside bodies, inside communities that have been taught to look away from pain. In this episode, Dr. Heather Taylor sits down with Dr. Rohit Agrawal, licensed clinical psychologist and liberation psychology practitioner, to explore what grief reveals when we actually stop running from it.

This conversation goes deep. From why men are emotionally robbed by cultural norms around masculinity, to how Dungeons and Dragons can be a vehicle for grief processing, to what radical extremism and substance use have in common at their root, Dr. Rohit brings a framework that expands what grief-informed care can actually look like.

If you have ever wondered why grief can feel both devastating and clarifying, or why so many people are in pain even as access to mental health care increases, this episode will shift how you think about both.

In this episode you will learn:

Concepts and frameworks discussed in this episode:

Liberation psychology, internalized oppression, systemic grief, disenfranchised grief, existential grief, memento mori, values clarification, somatic grounding, bibliotherapy, tabletop role-playing games as therapeutic modality, D&D therapy, masculinity and emotional restriction, shame and suicide risk in men, continuing bonds, the dual process of meaning-making, grief as catalyst, the Bechdel test and non-toxic masculinity in storytelling

About Dr. Rohit Agrawal:

Dr. Rohit Agrawal is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist and practitioner at Center Focused Therapy in Chicago, IL. In his work with clients, Rohit challenges the impact of systemic oppressions on individuals and communities. He is passionate about demystifying mental healthcare and combating internalized presumptions of power, privilege, and normalcy that have a profound impact on community health. Rohit co-facilitates a weekly interpersonal Men of Color process group, destigmatizing the conditioning men have received around emotional vulnerability and relationship-building.

Outside of his clinical work, Rohit engages in professional and community education and consultation to depathologize suffering and promote forms of sustainable community care. His outlook is informed by bell hooks, Irvin Yalom, Lillian Comas-Diaz, Carl Rogers, Thích Nhất Hạnh, and R.D Laing.

Outside of his involvement in the psychology field, Rohit is an avid Dungeons & Dragons player and Game Master, and deeply believes in the power of tabletop gaming as a vehicle for storytelling, creative expression, and community connection. He is currently building up his social media channel and presence to combine gaming, storytelling, and liberation psychology. Check out Free Action when it goes live in Winter 2025.

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Grief is not a problem to solve. It is a human experience to move through, and most of us were never taught how.

Grief is the New Normal is hosted by Dr. Heather Taylor, licensed psychologist and grief specialist with over a decade of experience in grief, trauma, and reproductive psychology. This show exists to change the conversation around loss by expanding what grief looks like, who it belongs to, and what it actually means to integrate it into your life.

Whether you're grieving a death, a diagnosis, a relationship, an identity shift, or the world as you knew it, your grief is real, it deserves space, and you are not behind. And if you're a clinician, coach, or helper carrying your own grief while holding space for others, this show was built for you too.

Dr. Taylor brings research-informed frameworks, honest clinical perspective, and the STAY framework, a grief-informed approach to living with loss that goes far beyond the five stages. Expect nuance, depth, and conversations that take grief seriously.

No toxic positivity. No fixing. Just honest conversation, real validation, and a community built around grief literacy, disenfranchised grief, anticipatory grief, collective grief, and the full spectrum of human loss.

grief support podcast · disenfranchised grief · anticipatory grief · grief after loss · grief for clinicians · grief-informed care · grief literacy · coping with grief · grief and identity · mental health and grief · reproductive grief · pet loss grief · collective trauma and grief ·  grief integration · STAY framework

New episodes dropping regularly

Connect with Dr. Heather Taylor:

Website: griefisthenewnormal.com

Instagram: @dr.heathertaylor

Substack: How We STAY with Grief https://drheathertaylor.substack.com/

Newsletter: Bridging the Grief Gap on LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-taylor-psyd-licensed-psychologist/

Journal: Authentically Unapologetic, available on Amazon https://a.co/d/0dM0DloC

Contact: [email protected]

This episode is sponsored by Oasys EHR. Try Oasys free for your first month. Use code HEATHER-2865 at oasysehr.com.

Music by The Dadicorns. Copyright 2026.

Grief is not just sadness. It is rage, relief, guilt, numbness, joy, and everything in between, often all in the same afternoon. In this episode, Dr. Heather Taylor continues her six-part series on common grief reactions by unpacking the emotional chaos of grief and why it is not only normal, it is expected.

If you have ever cried in the car and then laughed twenty minutes later and felt terrible about it, or waited for the "real" feelings to arrive and felt scared when nothing came, this episode gives you language for what is actually happening and permission to stop judging yourself for it.

In this episode you will learn:

Feelings and concepts discussed: Sadness, rage, guilt, relief, numbness, joy, emotional whiplash, delayed grief, disenfranchised grief, grief as a container, affect labeling, completion cycles, grief witnesses.

Story Time with Heather: Dr. Taylor shares a personal story about training for a half marathon after her heart failure diagnosis and the unexpected emotional release that came with crossing the finish line, a powerful example of delayed grief finding its moment.

Resources and concepts mentioned:

This is Part 2 of 6 in the Grief Reactions Series: Part 1: Physical | Part 2: Emotional | Part 3: Cognitive | Part 4: Behavioral | Part 5: Spiritual and Existential | Part 6: Social

Episode Timestamps:

00:00 Grief Is the New Normal 00:54 Emotional Chaos Explained 02:09 The Myth That Grief Should Look Like Sadness 03:58 Joy, Guilt, and the Emotional Waves 06:29 Numbness and Delayed Grief Reactions 08:43 Story Time with Heather: The Half Marathon 13:32 Taboo Feelings: Relief, Anger, Guilt, and More 17:26 What To Do With Your Grief Feelings 19:40 Practical Anchors and Finding Your Witnesses 21:25 Weekly Reflection and Invitation 23:31 Next Episode and Wrap Up

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Grief is not a problem to solve. It is a human experience to move through, and most of us were never taught how.

Grief is the New Normal is hosted by Dr. Heather Taylor, licensed psychologist and grief specialist with over a decade of experience in grief, trauma, and reproductive psychology. This show exists to change the conversation around loss by expanding what grief looks like, who it belongs to, and what it actually means to integrate it into your life.

Whether you're grieving a death, a diagnosis, a relationship, an identity shift, or the world as you knew it, your grief is real, it deserves space, and you are not behind. And if you're a clinician, coach, or helper carrying your own grief while holding space for others, this show was built for you too.

Dr. Taylor brings research-informed frameworks, honest clinical perspective, and the STAY framework, a grief-informed approach to living with loss that goes far beyond the five stages. Expect nuance, depth, and conversations that take grief seriously.

No toxic positivity. No fixing. Just honest conversation, real validation, and a community built around grief literacy, disenfranchised grief, anticipatory grief, collective grief, and the full spectrum of human loss.

grief support podcast · disenfranchised grief · anticipatory grief · grief after loss · grief for clinicians · grief-informed care · grief literacy · coping with grief · grief and identity · mental health and grief · reproductive grief · pet loss grief · collective trauma and grief ·  grief integration · STAY framework

New episodes dropping regularly

Connect with Dr. Heather Taylor:

Website: griefisthenewnormal.com

Instagram: @grief_is_the_new_normal

Substack: How We STAY with Grief https://drheathertaylor.substack.com/

Newsletter: Bridging the Grief Gap on LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-taylor-psyd-licensed-psychologist/

Journal: Authentically Unapologetic, available on Amazon https://a.co/d/0dM0DloC

Contact: [email protected]

This episode is sponsored by Oasys EHR. Try Oasys free for your first month. Use code HEATHER-2865 at oasysehr.com.

Music by The Dadicorns. Copyright 2026.

Grief Integration, Parenting After Loss, and the Healing Power of Story with Liz Quinn

Grief doesn't disappear. It changes shape, and over time, it becomes part of who you are. In this episode, Dr. Heather Taylor sits down with Liz Quinn, host of the Healing Hearts Podcast, for an honest and deeply human conversation about what it means to carry loss across years, across identities, and across generations.

Liz has navigated three profound losses: her daughter Alivia in 2008, her father in 2018, and her mother in 2020. What began as a search for community in a space with few resources became a mission to create one. The Healing Hearts Podcast exists because Liz knows what it feels like to be searching and find nothing that fits.

In this conversation, Liz and Dr. Taylor explore what grief integration actually looks like in practice, not as a finish line but as a living, evolving relationship with the people we love and have lost.

What you'll hear in this episode:

How grief shifts over 17 years and what "lighter" actually means when you're a loss parent

The beautiful and complicated work of parenting after loss, including open conversations with children, the Alivia angel tree, and why her daughter carried an eight-pound teddy bear everywhere at eighteen months

Why identity loss after losing a parent hits differently, and how Liz's mother's death became the pivot point for a 100-pound wellness journey, a master's degree in library science, and a full career shift into grief advocacy

The role of ritual in grief, and why some years call for a botanical garden and some years call for letting the kids camp in the backyard while you stay inside

What Liz would tell herself in those early days after losing Alivia, and why "keep moving forward" means something entirely different when you understand that they come with you

Liz's new pregnancy and infant loss book, written by loss moms for loss moms, designed to land in hospital memory boxes so families have what they need before they even know to look for it

Resources and links mentioned:

Healing Hearts Podcast: Instagram at healing_hearts_podcast

Phoenix Bears (weighted bears for bereaved families)

Touch of Teddy (loss teddy bear ornaments, free in October for Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month)

October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month

Chapter Markers:

00:00 Intro 00:25 Meet Liz Quinn 00:40 Healing Hearts Origin Story 02:30 What Grief Feels Like After 17 Years 06:13 Parenting After Loss 12:31 Rituals, Symbols, and Honoring Alivia 13:51 The Alivia Teddy Bear 17:23 Losing Both Parents 21:46 Identity Shifts and Life After Loss 25:07 Grief Training and Education Study 26:00 About the Healing Hearts Podcast 29:44 Seasonal Grief and Anniversary Rituals 34:30 What She Would Tell Her Early Self 37:06 Key Takeaways 38:08 Connect with Liz and Upcoming Projects 39:53 Outro

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Liz Quinn is the host of the Healing Hearts Podcast, an author, and a grief advocate. After losing her firstborn daughter, Alivia, and both of her parents, Liz began sharing stories of love, loss, and hope to remind others they are not alone in their grief

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Grief is not a problem to solve. It is a human experience to move through, and most of us were never taught how.

Grief is the New Normal is hosted by Dr. Heather Taylor, licensed psychologist and grief specialist with over a decade of experience in grief, trauma, and reproductive psychology. This show exists to change the conversation around loss by expanding what grief looks like, who it belongs to, and what it actually means to integrate it into your life.

Whether you're grieving a death, a diagnosis, a relationship, an identity shift, or the world as you knew it, your grief is real, it deserves space, and you are not behind. And if you're a clinician, coach, or helper carrying your own grief while holding space for others, this show was built for you too.

Dr. Taylor brings research-informed frameworks, honest clinical perspective, and the STAY framework, a grief-informed approach to living with loss that goes far beyond the five stages. Expect nuance, depth, and conversations that take grief seriously.

No toxic positivity. No fixing. Just honest conversation, real validation, and a community built around grief literacy, disenfranchised grief, anticipatory grief, collective grief, and the full spectrum of human loss.

grief support podcast · disenfranchised grief · anticipatory grief · grief after loss · grief for clinicians · grief-informed care · grief literacy · coping with grief · grief and identity · mental health and grief · reproductive grief · pet loss grief · collective trauma and grief ·  grief integration · STAY framework

New episodes dropping regularly

Connect with Dr. Heather Taylor:

Website: griefisthenewnormal.com

Instagram: @grief_is_the_new_normal

Substack: How We STAY with Grief https://drheathertaylor.substack.com/

Newsletter: Bridging the Grief Gap on LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-taylor-psyd-licensed-psychologist/

Journal: Authentically Unapologetic, available on Amazon https://a.co/d/0dM0DloC

Contact: [email protected]

This episode is sponsored by Oasys EHR. Try Oasys free for your first month. Use code HEATHER-2865 at oasysehr.com.

Music by The Dadicorns. Copyright 2026.

Physical Grief Reactions: When Loss Lives in the Body

Grief isn't just emotional. It lives in your chest, your gut, your sleep, and your nervous system. In this episode, Dr. Heather Taylor kicks off a six-part series on the six categories of grief reactions by exploring one of the most overlooked: the physical symptoms of grief.

If you've been exhausted for no clear reason, dealing with unexplained aches, chest tightness, or stomach issues since a loss, this episode is for you. Your body isn't broken. It's grieving.

In this episode you'll learn:

Physical grief symptoms discussed: Fatigue, chest tightness, heart palpitations, takotsubo cardiomyopathy (broken heart syndrome), appetite changes, GI disruption, headaches, muscle tension, sleep disruption, panic-like sensations, unexplained aches, and dissociation.

Resources and concepts mentioned:

This is Part 1 of 6 in the Grief Reactions Series: Part 1: Physical | Part 2: Emotional | Part 3: Cognitive | Part 4: Behavioral | Part 5: Spiritual and Existential | Part 6: Social

Episode Timestamps:

00:00 Welcome and Series Introduction 01:58 Why Grief Hits the Body First 03:09 Cultural Context and Children's Body Signals 04:15 Common Physical Symptoms of Grief 07:21 Griefiversaries and Why the Body Braces 10:15 Your Nervous System in Grief Mode 12:02 Practical Body Care Tools 14:59 Guided Body Check-In 16:06 Key Takeaways and Next Episode

Grief is not a problem to solve. It is a human experience to move through, and most of us were never taught how.

Grief is the New Normal is hosted by Dr. Heather Taylor, licensed psychologist and grief specialist with over a decade of experience in grief, trauma, and reproductive psychology. This show exists to change the conversation around loss by expanding what grief looks like, who it belongs to, and what it actually means to integrate it into your life.

Whether you're grieving a death, a diagnosis, a relationship, an identity shift, or the world as you knew it, your grief is real, it deserves space, and you are not behind. And if you're a clinician, coach, or helper carrying your own grief while holding space for others, this show was built for you too.

Dr. Taylor brings research-informed frameworks, honest clinical perspective, and the STAY framework, a grief-informed approach to living with loss that goes far beyond the five stages. Expect nuance, depth, and conversations that take grief seriously.

No toxic positivity. No fixing. Just honest conversation, real validation, and a community built around grief literacy, disenfranchised grief, anticipatory grief, collective grief, and the full spectrum of human loss.

grief support podcast · disenfranchised grief · anticipatory grief · grief after loss · grief for clinicians · grief-informed care · grief literacy · coping with grief · grief and identity · mental health and grief · reproductive grief · pet loss grief · collective trauma and grief ·  grief integration · STAY framework

New episodes dropping regularly

Connect with Dr. Heather Taylor:

Website: griefisthenewnormal.com

Instagram: @grief_is_the_new_normal

Substack: How We STAY with Grief https://drheathertaylor.substack.com/

Newsletter: Bridging the Grief Gap on LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-taylor-psyd-licensed-psychologist/

Journal: Authentically Unapologetic, available on Amazon https://a.co/d/0dM0DloC

Contact: [email protected]

This episode is sponsored by Oasys EHR. Try Oasys free for your first month. Use code HEATHER-2865 at oasysehr.com.

Music by The Dadicorns. Copyright 2026.

What happens when grief walks into the office and no one knows what to do with it?

In this episode of Grief is the New Normal, Dr. Heather Taylor sits down with Judi Johnson, grief coach and workplace grief educator from New Zealand, to talk about one of the most underaddressed intersections in professional life: grief in the workplace. From construction sites to corporate boardrooms, grief doesn't clock out when we do, and the cost of ignoring it is higher than most organizations realize.

Judi brings both professional expertise and lived experience to this conversation, including her own journey through childlessness not by choice, the compression of multiple grief events, and working in high-risk environments without the support or language to name what she was carrying.

In this episode, Judi and Dr. Taylor cover:

- Grief literacy in the workplace and why most organizations are starting from zero

- How grief symptoms mimic mental health conditions and why that distinction matters for job performance and safety

- Spatial awareness, decision making, delayed reactions, and the real cognitive impact of grief on the job

- Why childless not by choice grief is one of the most invisible and disenfranchised losses in professional settings

- The compounding effect of grief for marginalized groups including expats, LGBTQIA+ employees, and those navigating infertility

- How people pleasing and masking keep grieving employees stuck in silence

- Practical, low-barrier steps leaders and HR teams can take today to build grief-informed workplaces

- Why bereavement leave policies often fail grieving employees before the grief has even begun

- Buddy systems, honest one-on-ones, and the small shifts that create cultures of compassionate support

About Judi Johnson: Judi is a certified coach and ICF-accredited grief practitioner based in Auckland, New Zealand. She works privately with clients who are childless not by choice (CNBC), helping them navigate grief and build a fulfilling, joyful life. In addition to 1-1 coaching, she delivers grief education to workplaces, particularly in high-risk industries such as construction, highlighting how grief impacts cognitive function, safety, and productivity. Her mission is to work with businesses to create compassionate, grief informed workplace cultures.

https://linktr.ee/embraceyourfuture.judi

Two handouts- coping mechanisms and breaking free from people pleasing https://www.embraceyourfuture.net/copingmechanisms https://www.embraceyourfuture.net/breakingfree

Keywords this episode speaks to: grief in the workplace, workplace grief support, childless not by choice grief, disenfranchised grief, grief-informed workplaces, employee wellbeing, bereavement leave, grief and job performance, HR grief training, grief and safety, grief coach, anticipatory grief, grief literacy, childless grief, infertility grief, marginalized grief, compassionate workplace culture, grief and mental health

Resources mentioned: The Grieving Brain by Mary-Frances O'Connor Embrace Your Future: embraceyourfuture.net World Childless Week

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Grief is not a problem to solve. It is a human experience to move through, and most of us were never taught how.

Grief is the New Normal is hosted by Dr. Heather Taylor, licensed psychologist and grief specialist with over a decade of experience in grief, trauma, and reproductive psychology. This show exists to change the conversation around loss by expanding what grief looks like, who it belongs to, and what it actually means to integrate it into your life.

Whether you're grieving a death, a diagnosis, a relationship, an identity shift, or the world as you knew it, your grief is real, it deserves space, and you are not behind. And if you're a clinician, coach, or helper carrying your own grief while holding space for others, this show was built for you too.

Dr. Taylor brings research-informed frameworks, honest clinical perspective, and the STAY framework, a grief-informed approach to living with loss that goes far beyond the five stages. Expect nuance, depth, and conversations that take grief seriously.

No toxic positivity. No fixing. Just honest conversation, real validation, and a community built around grief literacy, disenfranchised grief, anticipatory grief, collective grief, and the full spectrum of human loss.

grief support podcast · disenfranchised grief · anticipatory grief · grief after loss · grief for clinicians · grief-informed care · grief literacy · coping with grief · grief and identity · mental health and grief · reproductive grief · pet loss grief · collective trauma and grief · moral injury · grief integration · STAY framework

New episodes dropping regularly

Subscribe to the Bridging the Grief Gap newsletter on LinkedIn for deeper dives, resources, and grief-literate tools

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/heather-taylor-psyd-licensed-psychologist

Grab the Authentically Unapologetic Grief Journal → https://a.co/d/4hbLtbX

www.thedrheathertaylor.com · [email protected]

https://linktr.ee/griefisthenewnormal

Follow @grief_is_the_new_normal on Instagram for grief education, mental health content, and yes, a little sass and dark humor too.

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What does it look like to build a sustainable, grief-informed clinical practice, not after grief ends, but while you are still living with it?

In this mini-series finale of Grief is the New Normal, Dr. Heather Taylor closes her four-part miniseries for clinicians, coaches, and helpers by tackling one of the most overlooked realities in the helping professions: grief does not end. It changes. And for clinicians who are grieving, that shift can reshape your professional identity, your clinical work, and the way you show up for the people you serve.

Drawing on her own experience of losing her brother nearly 17 years ago and completing her PsyD dissertation while actively grieving, Dr. Taylor challenges the narrative that you must wait for grief to resolve before you can thrive. You don't owe anyone a performance of healing.

In this episode, Dr. Taylor covers:

Whether you are a therapist, counselor, coach, or helper who is personally navigating loss while supporting others, this episode meets you where you are.

Keywords this episode speaks to: grief-informed practice, clinician grief, therapist burnout, sustainable therapy practice, grief integration, disenfranchised grief, grief and professional identity, grief for helpers, grief-informed care, secondary grief, anticipatory grief, clinician wellbeing, ethics and self-care, grief literacy

Timestamps: 00:00 Thriving While Grieving 00:27 Welcome and Series Finale 01:42 Grief Changes the Clinician 02:52 My Brother and Becoming Grief Informed 04:16 Integration Over Acceptance 04:56 Sustainable Practice for the Long Haul 05:43 Waves and Seasonal Cadence 07:28 Scheduling Variety and Burnout Reset 09:29 Ethics Include Your Wellbeing 10:29 Redefining Professionalism Through Grief 11:04 Closing Takeaways and Reflections 13:22 Outro and Resources

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Grief is not a problem to solve. It is a human experience to move through, and most of us were never taught how.

Grief is the New Normal is hosted by Dr. Heather Taylor, licensed psychologist and grief specialist with over a decade of experience in grief, trauma, and reproductive psychology. This show exists to change the conversation around loss by expanding what grief looks like, who it belongs to, and what it actually means to integrate it into your life.

Whether you're grieving a death, a diagnosis, a relationship, an identity shift, or the world as you knew it, your grief is real, it deserves space, and you are not behind. And if you're a clinician, coach, or helper carrying your own grief while holding space for others, this show was built for you too.

Dr. Taylor brings research-informed frameworks, honest clinical perspective, and the STAY framework, a grief-informed approach to living with loss that goes far beyond the five stages. Expect nuance, depth, and conversations that take grief seriously.

No toxic positivity. No fixing. Just honest conversation, real validation, and a community built around grief literacy, disenfranchised grief, anticipatory grief, collective grief, and the full spectrum of human loss.

grief support podcast · disenfranchised grief · anticipatory grief · grief after loss · grief for clinicians · grief-informed care · grief literacy · coping with grief · grief and identity · mental health and grief · reproductive grief · pet loss grief · collective trauma and grief · moral injury · grief integration · STAY framework

New episodes dropping regularly

Subscribe to the Bridging the Grief Gap newsletter on LinkedIn for deeper dives, resources, and grief-literate tools

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/heather-taylor-psyd-licensed-psychologist

Grab the Authentically Unapologetic Grief Journal → https://a.co/d/4hbLtbX

www.thedrheathertaylor.com · [email protected]

https://linktr.ee/griefisthenewnormal

Follow @grief_is_the_new_normal on Instagram for grief education, mental health content, and yes, a little sass and dark humor too.

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On Grief is the New Normal, host Dr. Heather Taylor interviews Long Island dentist and grief coach Dr. Parul Dua Makkar about sibling grief after her younger brother, Dr. Manu Dua, died from canver of the tongue in 2021 during COVID restrictions, leaving her to say goodbye by video call. They discuss how sibling loss can feel invisible and uniquely alters identity, future plans, and family dynamics, especially as Parul later lost her father suddenly. Parul shares Manu’s posthumously published book, Life Interrupted, and her tribute platform “Dua Good Job,” focused on doing good, oral cancer education, and grief support. They explore how grief shifts empathy in healthcare, the importance of boundaries and support, and why grieving people value others saying the sibling’s name and sharing memories.

00:00 Say Their Name

00:25 Podcast Welcome

00:48 Meet Dr Parul

01:18 Losing Manu in COVID

03:16 His Cancer Lessons

05:09 Life Interrupted

07:32 Why Sibling Grief Hurts

11:55 Talk About Our Siblings

13:17 Keeping Memories for Kids

14:27 Second Loss Losing Dad

18:22 Finding Peace After Loss

18:49 Grief Held in the Body

20:03 Micro Griefs in Dentistry

22:01 Empathy Gaps in Care

25:08 Choosing Meaning After Trauma

26:56 Do a Good Job Legacy

29:39 Identity and Boundaries

33:48 Advice for Sibling Grievers

35:35 Where to Connect

36:13 Closing and Resources

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Dr. Parul Dua Makkar is a general dentist, speaker, author, and grief coach for healthcare providers. After losing her only sibling, Dr. Manu Dua, to oral cancer, she turned her personal loss into a powerful mission. Through her initiative Dua Good Job, she educates healthcare professionals on early oral cancer detection, treatment navigation, and the emotional toll of caregiving and loss. Dr. Makkar is also dedicated to supporting clinicians facing burnout, grief, and moral injury, offering compassionate tools and coaching to help them heal while continuing to serve. Based in Long Island, NY, she blends clinical expertise with heartfelt advocacy to create space for wellness, awareness, and purpose in healthcare.

Guide to Oral Cancer Free eBook: https://www.duagoodjob.com/freeoralcancerguide

Books https://www.duagoodjob.com/offers/3oeb648R

Book a support call. https://www.duagoodjob.com/schedulecall

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Grief is not a problem to solve. It is a human experience to move through, and most of us were never taught how.

Grief is the New Normal is hosted by Dr. Heather Taylor, licensed psychologist and grief specialist with over a decade of experience in grief, trauma, and reproductive psychology. This show exists to change the conversation around loss by expanding what grief looks like, who it belongs to, and what it actually means to integrate it into your life.

Whether you're grieving a death, a diagnosis, a relationship, an identity shift, or the world as you knew it, your grief is real, it deserves space, and you are not behind. And if you're a clinician, coach, or helper carrying your own grief while holding space for others, this show was built for you too.

Dr. Taylor brings research-informed frameworks, honest clinical perspective, and the STAY framework, a grief-informed approach to living with loss that goes far beyond the five stages. Expect nuance, depth, and conversations that take grief seriously.

No toxic positivity. No fixing. Just honest conversation, real validation, and a community built around grief literacy, disenfranchised grief, anticipatory grief, collective grief, and the full spectrum of human loss.

grief support podcast · disenfranchised grief · anticipatory grief · grief after loss · grief for clinicians · grief-informed care · grief literacy · coping with grief · grief and identity · mental health and grief · reproductive grief · pet loss grief · collective trauma and grief · moral injury · grief integration · STAY framework

New episodes dropping regularly

Subscribe to the Bridging the Grief Gap newsletter on LinkedIn for deeper dives, resources, and grief-literate tools

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/heather-taylor-psyd-licensed-psychologist

Grab the Authentically Unapologetic Grief Journal → https://a.co/d/4hbLtbX

www.griefisthenewnormal.com · [email protected]

Follow @grief_is_the_new_normal on Instagram for grief education, mental health content, and yes, a little sass and dark humor too.

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