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As a former news anchor, Sherrie Dunlevy delivered bad news on a daily basis.
However, it was the news of a personal matter that would shatter her heart. Sherrie knew she would be delivering her son who would be born with complications and quickly swept away for medical care immediately after being delivered via cesarian. She and her husband would then spend the next 29 days holding their son until he passed away.
The years that followed led her on a path of trying to understand why people abandon those who are grieving. And, set the wheels in motion of a journey that would lead her to write a book and doing everything she could for herself to not live the rest of her life as nothing more than a grieving mother.
Wanting more for her life, she's found a way to live fully into who she was called to be, and even after the death of her beloved pet during the pandemic, learned the power of addressing and feeling the grief when it comes.
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Need help?
Are you ready to feel better? Learn more about how I can help your hurting heart HERE.
If you or anyone you know is struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, there are free resources available HERE.
Are you enjoying the podcast? Check out my bi-weekly newsletter, The Unleashed Letters.
💛Would you like to Learn Your Energy Type? Free Quiz ➡️HERE! ⬅️
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CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
Send Victoria a text message!
Support the show
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NEED HELP?
If you are struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, free resources are available HERE.
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
This episode is sponsored by Do Grief Differently™️, my twelve-week, one-on-one, in-person/online program for grievers who have suffered any type of loss to feel better. Click here to learn new tools, grief education, and the only evidence-based method for moving beyond the pain of grief.
Would you like to join the mission of Grieving Voices in normalizing grief and supporting hurting hearts everywhere? Become a supporter of th...
Does everything happen for a reason?
How much of our lives is left to chance, and how much of it is a reflection of our choices?
I explore these questions in this week's episode and more. Larry and Michelle shared their stories of love and loss and, although their stories of grief are vastly different, there are a few things incredibly similar in their stories: The willingness to love and be loved.
Listen to this week's episode and reflect on the choices you've made, the chances you've taken, and the beautiful gifts that you've gained as a result.
RESOURCES:
CONNECT:
______
Need help?
If you or anyone you know is struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, there are free resources available HERE.
Are you enjoying the podcast? Check out my bi-weekly newsletter, The Unleashed Letters.
💛Would you like to Learn Your Energy Type? Free Quiz ➡️HERE! ⬅️
______
SUPPORT THE SHOW:
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
Send Victoria a text message!
Support the show
_______
NEED HELP?
If you are struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, free resources are available HERE.
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
This episode is sponsored by Do Grief Differently™️, my twelve-week, one-on-one, in-person/online program for grievers who have suffered any type of loss to feel better. Click here to learn new tools, grief education, and the only evidence-based method for moving beyond the pain of grief.
Would you like to join the mission of Grieving Voices in normalizing grief and supporting hurting hearts everywhere? Become a supporter of th...
Michelle St Jane is no stranger to grief, like many guests who have shared their stories.
The traumatic experience of finding her grandfather deceased when she was 15 and the subsequent "Don't talk, don't tell" approach to grief laid the foundation for her in how she addressed her grief. She would later better understand the impact that her family of origin had on her life.
Michelle left her family of origin at age 17 to travel and later found herself in love, married, and with children. However, her life would be flipped upside down when, at the age of 27, she found herself a widow unexpectedly with a 9-month-old and 5 and 6-year-old in tow.
Years later, she would experience the loss of another love suddenly in a tragic accident. Additionally, she lost the opportunity to visit and say her goodbyes when a dear friend died during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Grief is cumulative, and it is cumulatively negative. Michelle shares how she's managed to get where she is now, what helped her most along the way, and the ultimate gift grief and loss have given her.
RESOURCES:
CONNECT WITH MICHELLE:
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Need help?
If you or anyone you know is struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, there are free resources available HERE.
Are you enjoying the podcast? Check out my bi-weekly newsletter, The Unleashed Letters.
💛Would you like to Learn Your Energy Type? Free Quiz ➡️HERE! ⬅️
______
SUPPORT THE SHOW:
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
Send Victoria a text message!
Support the show
_______
NEED HELP?
If you are struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, free resources are available HERE.
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
This episode is sponsored by Do Grief Differently™️, my twelve-week, one-on-one, in-person/online program for grievers who have suffered any type of loss to feel better. Click here to learn new tools, grief education, and the only evidence-based method for moving beyond the pain of grief.
Would you like to join the mission of Grieving Voices in normalizing grief and supporting hurting hearts everywhere? Become a supporter of th...
Grief makes grievers feel like they don't have choices. And, it can also be difficult to bring yourself to take a chance on something or someone. In this episode, I explore choice and chance with Larry.
Larry shares his stories of loss, focusing on a short-term love that touched his heart and life deeply, leaving a lasting impact. He shares the wisdom that came from that love experience with Gayle in his book, 126 Days, 11 Minutes: Our Love Story .
"I wrote this story as a tribute to Gayle's extraordinary courage and embrace of life. I encourage all of the Gayles and Larrys out there who may be afraid to love to reconsider. Life is meant to be lived and loved in the now, not in the yesterdays or tomorrows."
Also through this episode, he shares other lessons he's taken from his other losses, which include a tragic car accident that killed his aunt and older sister, leaving him as the sole survivor when he was 21.
We all can feel hope for the future, knowing that every one of us has been given the gift of the ability to choose. After listening to today's episode, reflect on the choices you've made that made the most impact. Perhaps there are even defining moments that changed the trajectory of your life, too?
RESOURCES/CONNECT:
______
Need help?
If you or anyone you know is struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, there are free resources available HERE.
Are you enjoying the podcast? Check out my bi-weekly newsletter, The Unleashed Letters.
______
WAYS TO SUPPORT THE SHOW:
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA (@theunleashedheart):
Send Victoria a text message!
Support the show
_______
NEED HELP?
If you are struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, free resources are available HERE.
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
This episode is sponsored by Do Grief Differently™️, my twelve-week, one-on-one, in-person/online program for grievers who have suffered any type of loss to feel better. Click here to learn new tools, grief education, and the only evidence-based method for moving beyond the pain of grief.
Would you like to join the mission of Grieving Voices in normalizing grief and supporting hurting hearts everywhere? Become a supporter of th...
I share my favorite takeaways and reflections from Ep. 52 with Staci Bartley and Ep. 53 with Tina Ginn, exploring the importance of learning from the past and having the forethought for preparing for the future.
Life is messy, and we can learn from our messes, and we can clean them up, too. If we could learn how to re-frame the challenges of our lives by asking ourselves better questions, I do believe we would spend far less time emotionally suffering. Staci, through early teen pregnancy and three marriages, she's learned this the hard way. And, perhaps that is the way? The mishaps, hurdles, and pivots that we find ourselves in are a part of the journey. But, I guess the better question is: Why does it take so many of us so long to get the memo?
Just as it takes us a while to realize that messes are a part of life and that we are capable of learning and cleaning them up and preventing future ones, so too, it takes us to learn a little too late how ill-prepared we are for tragedy or disaster.
Whether you want to learn how to prepare for love, tragedy, or disaster, the last two episodes are for you, and this episode includes my highlights.
RESOURCES:
CONNECT:
______
Need help?
If you or anyone you know is struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, there are free resources available HERE.
Are you enjoying the podcast? Check out my bi-weekly newsletter, The Unleashed Letters.
💛Would you like to Learn Your Energy Type? Free Quiz ➡️HERE! ⬅️
______
SUPPORT THE SHOW:
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
Send Victoria a text message!
Support the show
_______
NEED HELP?
If you are struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, free resources are available HERE.
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
This episode is sponsored by Do Grief Differently™️, my twelve-week, one-on-one, in-person/online program for grievers who have suffered any type of loss to feel better. Click here to learn new tools, grief education, and the only evidence-based method for moving beyond the pain of grief.
Would you like to join the mission of Grieving Voices in normalizing grief and supporting hurting hearts everywhere? Become a supporter of th...
Tina, like many grievers, has found her passion in her pain. What started out as a career as a financial advisor, where she was well-versed in risk management, morphed into helping others prepare for the worst in their lives.
Having lived through a forest fire evacuation order, the quick decline of a dear friend's health and death due to cancer, a traumatic car accident which later led to losing her job, to a subsequent divorce and estrangement with her children, Tina has learned the importance of connection and preparedness.
She brings her passion for helping people become prepared for the worst. She recognizes that the last thing people want to worry about, when tragedy strikes or when there are moments to make decisions, are the logistics of their lives.
Through her app, Your Backup Plan, she helps individuals get their lives in order so that, when tragedy or nature does strike, your life is in the palm of your hand. This not only makes your family's lives easier if something happens to you but also your own if it's you at the center of the unfortunate experience.
Tina says we shouldn't wait until someone is dying, or we are dying, to prepare; by then, it's too late. Additionally, the conversations you want to be having in these moments do not include the bills that need to be paid and how they're paid. Also for example, where social media passwords are, what to do with a beloved collection, or a last will and testament. These issues and logistics can be documented in advance so that anyone close can pick up the pieces with less stress. Also, in turn, this allows for more time for deep connection when it counts.
RESOURCES/CONNECT:
______
Need help?
If you or anyone you know is struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, there are free resources available HERE.
Are you enjoying the podcast? Check out my bi-weekly newsletter, The Unleashed Letters.
💛Would you like to Learn Your Energy Type? Free Quiz ➡️HERE! ⬅️
______
SUPPORT THE SHOW:
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA :
Send Victoria a text message!
Support the show
_______
NEED HELP?
If you are struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, free resources are available HERE.
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
This episode is sponsored by Do Grief Differently™️, my twelve-week, one-on-one, in-person/online program for grievers who have suffered any type of loss to feel better. Click here to learn new tools, grief education, and the only evidence-based method for moving beyond the pain of grief.
Would you like to join the mission of Grieving Voices in normalizing grief and supporting hurting hearts everywhere? Become a supporter of th...
From the age of 16, Staci Bartley was in the Relationship School of Hard Knox. She found herself pregnant at the age of 16. And, to do the "responsible" thing, she and her then-boyfriend (21 at the time) decided they would get married. A year later, she would end up a divorced single mother. However, at 21, she would expect a second child with a new man in her life, and, together, they decided to get married.
It would take a lot of heartbreak and breaking down to recognize that the effort to attain the perfect family and life contained within the constraints of a white picket fence was too much for her 13-year marriage to take. She would find herself, by this time, a single mom of 5. And, this time, she decided she would enter into any future relationships on her terms and that she would never marry again.
But life had other plans for her, and although Staci did ultimately find her happily ever after, it wasn't without a lot of relationship road-rash along the way.
Listen in on my conversation with Staci, Relationship Expert, and Mediator, to learn why and how the relationships we choose to enter into can be the most beautiful, trying, and teachable experiences of our lives. And, you can bet that grief has a whole lot to do with what we're talking about today. There is something for everyone to relate to in this episode.
RESOURCES/CONNECT WITH STACI:
________
Need help?
SUPPORT THE SHOW:
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA (@theunleashedheart):
Send Victoria a text message!
Support the show
_______
NEED HELP?
If you are struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, free resources are available HERE.
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
This episode is sponsored by Do Grief Differently™️, my twelve-week, one-on-one, in-person/online program for grievers who have suffered any type of loss to feel better. Click here to learn new tools, grief education, and the only evidence-based method for moving beyond the pain of grief.
Would you like to join the mission of Grieving Voices in normalizing grief and supporting hurting hearts everywhere? Become a supporter of th...
We often find our purpose through our pain. Or are lead to our purpose through our pain. Either way, there's often a strong, deep desire to find meaning through the terrible life experiences we've gone through.
I'm no exception to that, and many of my guests aren't either. Darren created AfterCloud, a "life-tech" app for capturing life's most precious moments and memories to make it both easy to do so, and in the process, create a legacy. It's also used in music therapy and has a lot of potential for many different types of scenarios. I could even see it being used by someone who wishes to document their rehabilitation process and journey after a tragic accident. They can then share their thoughts, feelings, etc., with whomever they choose.
My other guest, Arielle, has found her work in Hospice care to be enriched and deepened by her life experience with grief and loss.
Both guests, including myself, have found a way to turn the page on our grief. When we stop putting one foot in front of the other, that's when we get stuck on the page. We find ourselves ruminating in the story of what happened when we avoid digging into how it made us feel at the time. Furthermore, not delivering the communications to those who have hurt us, only further roots our grief more deeply into our hearts.
The beautiful thing about grief recovery is that it enables grievers to turn the page, address all of those emotions, and deliver those communications without ever speaking to the other person. And, if the person has died, it's still possible! And, to me, that's the amazing gift of grief recovery - it's a means, framework, and evidence-based program for turning the page.
RESOURCES:
______
Need help?
If you or anyone you know is struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, there are free resources available HERE.
Are you enjoying the podcast? Check out my bi-weekly newsletter, The Unleashed Letters.
______
SUPPORT THE SHOW:
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
Send Victoria a text message!
Support the show
_______
NEED HELP?
If you are struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, free resources are available HERE.
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
This episode is sponsored by Do Grief Differently™️, my twelve-week, one-on-one, in-person/online program for grievers who have suffered any type of loss to feel better. Click here to learn new tools, grief education, and the only evidence-based method for moving beyond the pain of grief.
Would you like to join the mission of Grieving Voices in normalizing grief and supporting hurting hearts everywhere? Become a supporter of th...
Arielle wasn't a newcomer to grief and loss by the time her husband decided to take his own life when she was only 29.
She shares the highs, lows, and fears of navigating all of the unknowns and changes that came with losing her beloved, Rick. She wondered if she would ever love again, and because she and Rick couldn't have children together, she then had to face the possibility that she would never become a mother. Would she meet someone who would want to have children? Would she meet someone while she's still young enough to begin the chapter of parenthood? So many unknowns and the loss of hopes, dreams, and expectations.
Spoiler alert! Arielle does eventually remarry but wedded bliss doesn't last long. After three miscarriages, she and her new love wondered if their mutual dreams and desires to be parents would ever come true.
Every miscarriage was different, and she shares exactly how different they were in this episode and how she found her way to wellness. She also shares the one thing that helped her soothe her own soul, not to mention how she found her own way to share with others how she was feeling without the pressure of needing to have what are often uncomfortable conversations.
RESOURCES:
CONNECT WITH ARIELLE:
______
Need help?
If you or anyone you know is struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, there are free resources available HERE.
Are you enjoying the podcast? Check out my bi-weekly newsletter, The Unleashed Letters.
______
WAYS TO SUPPORT THE SHOW:
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA (@theunleashedheart):
Send Victoria a text message!
Support the show
_______
NEED HELP?
If you are struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, free resources are available HERE.
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
This episode is sponsored by Do Grief Differently™️, my twelve-week, one-on-one, in-person/online program for grievers who have suffered any type of loss to feel better. Click here to learn new tools, grief education, and the only evidence-based method for moving beyond the pain of grief.
Would you like to join the mission of Grieving Voices in normalizing grief and supporting hurting hearts everywhere? Become a supporter of th...
In this episode, Darren shares how loss (and his son) inspired him to create a way to capture life's most precious moments, support others through caregiving and loving gestures, and leave a legacy for future generations.
After Cloud is, as Darren calls it, a life-tech app; for sharing what needs to be said, capturing what you never want to forget, and connecting with loved ones in a way that is both easy and joy-filled.
Through his losses, which include his older brother as a kid, and his father to cancer, and his mother-in-law to Lewy body dementia, Darren also shares what he's learned along the way about what's important to him and what he values. AfterCloud is both a mission of service and one of life preservation. Because we never know when it's our last day.
RESOURCES:
CONNECT WITH DARREN:
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Need help?
If you or anyone you know is struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, there are free resources available HERE.
If you'd like to share your grieving voice on the show or want to share your thoughts about an episode, please send an email to [email protected].
Are you enjoying the podcast? Check out my bi-weekly newsletter, The Unleashed Letters.
______
WAYS TO SUPPORT THE SHOW:
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA (@theunleashedheart):
Send Victoria a text message!
Support the show
_______
NEED HELP?
If you are struggling with grief due to any of the 40+ losses, free resources are available HERE.
CONNECT WITH VICTORIA:
This episode is sponsored by Do Grief Differently™️, my twelve-week, one-on-one, in-person/online program for grievers who have suffered any type of loss to feel better. Click here to learn new tools, grief education, and the only evidence-based method for moving beyond the pain of grief.
Would you like to join the mission of Grieving Voices in normalizing grief and supporting hurting hearts everywhere? Become a supporter of th...
From the publisher's feed
Grieving Voices is a podcast started by a lifelong griever for grievers. The mission of Grieving Voices is to change the conversation around grief, and how we address our own and that of others and…