Holiday's of any kind, including birthdays, and cultural celebrations and even significant life events like graduations and weddings, aren't always happy for people grieving. In this episode, Dr. Sarah Elizabeth, certified grief coach, encourages friends and family of people grieving to be more sensitive to their loved ones, including "grief with a lower-case g" including less obvious, more hidden types of grief, like the grief after a miscarriage, even years later, that an acquaintance or new friend might not even know about. Like in episode 1, where Dr. Sarah reminds us that Grief is NOT Linear, and Grief is totally unique, and in episode 3 where recommendations are giving when supporting people grieving, this episode offers specific examples and food for thought for "holiday's" that may not only be happy for many.

In this episode, artist, educator and advocate, Nicklin Heap, shares the often overlooked aspects of grief that are part of the joyful transformation of gender transition.

If you would like to support the Transgender community, you can do so through these organizations: TransEquality and/or Trans Life Line.

For more info about Nicklin's art and work, feel free to learn more here.

In this episode, Dr. Sarah Elizabeth, Grief Support Specialist, talks with a mother of a young adult with complex medical needs and autism, who is also a social worker & therapist, and founder of No Apology Events. If you feel moved to make a small financial contribution towards spaces that are more inclusive for families and children/tweens/teens/young adults with unique abilities and special needs, please consider supporting this beautiful non-profit.Please feel free to join HealingTogether444 for one of two remaining HealingCircles (online) for May.

THURSDAY May 14th, 7pm CST/8pm EST/5pm PST on ZOOM (90 min) for anyone divorced or getting divorced, or post breakup of a romantic partnership, or end/change of a familial relationship or platonic friendship, or death of a loved one (specifically a spouse/partner)

THURSDAY May 27th, 7pm CST/8pm EST/5pm PST on ZOOM (90 min) for any kind of grief, including death of a pet, or person, job loss, relationship change, change with aging or accident, change with a child/young adult, etc.

Men often grieve differently than women. This episode focuses on men's grief, citing Men & Grief, by the late Carol Staudacher, who was also the author of Beyond Grief, and welcomes a guest, Phillip, to share about his anticipatory grief about his father's impending death.

Here's the link for FIVE online Grief Healing Circles scheduled for May 2026.

Here's the link for the event for Men hosted by my dear friend, Daniel Roller.

Children, tweens, teens grieve, too. Death of a loved one, human or animal, grief after divorce, or other causes of grief are common. Many adults have little training about child development and strategies about talking with children about grief, and death. In this episode, Dr. Sarah Elizabeth, certified grief coach, shares some recommendations from:

Motherless Mothers: How Losing a Mother Shapes the Parent You Become by Hope Edelman

How Do We Tell the Children?: A Step-By-Step Guide for Helping Children and Teens Cope When Someone Dies by Dan Schaefer, Ph.D., & Christine Lyons

A Parent's Guide to Raising Grieving Children: Rebuilding Your Family After the Death of a Loved One by Phyllis Rolfe Silverman, & Madelyn Kelly

Five online Grief Healing Circles have been scheduled for May, targeted to different audiences, like people divorced, and women whose mothers have died. For information and registration, please visit: bit.ly/444HealingTogether

This BONUS Episode is written FOR children/young people (8-12ish year olds). It's VERY similar to the 1st Episode, about the 6 learnings about grief, but less wordy and more interactive...inviting the listener to repeat after Dr. Sarah with some of the learnings (Grief is Normal, Grief is Unique, Grief isn't Linear, Grief is Love, etc).

An 8 year old who heard it wrote to me, "Thank you for creating the grief podcast. It helped me control my grief and be calm. It makes me calm when you say, 'Grief is normal.'" A 4th grader referenced she found the rollercoaster reference to be helpful. A 6th grader wrote that the podcast taught them, "It's never bad to feel hurt or weak" and ended the letter with, "Please keep doing this."

Sarah Elizabeth, Ph.D., has a Bachelor's in Early Childhood/Elementary Education, and Master's in Literacy Education and a Doctorate in Education. She has been teaching teachers for over 20 years. This BONUS episode, for children (and their caregivers/teachers), will hopefully help them and the adults in their lives, too.

Please feel free to write to Dr. Sarah at [email protected] if you/your child found this helpful, and would like more BONUS tracks specifically for younger people.

On this episode, Dr. Sarah Elizabeth, certified grief coach, welcomes her first guest, Debra (Gauthier) Valentino, enrolled member of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin, Bear Clan, and a descendant of the Menominee tribe of Wisconsin to share her experiences still feeling connected to her husband whose body stopped working some years ago. Sarah shares some more of her late mother's words from before she transitioned to the Spirit World, and some of her first experiences of wondering if her mother's spirit was still present and communicating.

If you feel moved by this episode, please consider donating, and/or asking if you can support with time or other contributions, Wise Women Gathering Place, link to donate here, or Center for Native Futures, link to donate here.

BOOKS referenced:

Motherless Daughters: A Legacy of Loss (1994) by Hope Edelman (Motherless Daughters (20th Anniversary Edition) 2014 by Hope Edelman)

SIGNS: The Secret Language of the Universe by Laura Lynne Jackson

Western culture hasn't supported grief over the long haul over the past decades. Because grief isn't linear or short, and there aren't enough supports for people grieving, in this episode Dr. Sarah Elizabeth, certified grief coach, shares excerpts from Hope Edelman's book, The AfterGrief: Finding Your Way Along the Long Arc of Grief, and author and teacher from Burkina Faso, Sobonfu Somé's words, from this writing that include historical context around grief, and encouraging words for us all to find ways to grieve, and celebrate the life of people and pets no longer with us on Earth, as we continue to HealTogether.

Dr. Sarah is available for grief coaching, 1:1 or in small groups. Please feel free to be in touch at [email protected]

Regret over wishing something had gone differently or something could have been said, or not said, can be difficult to release. In this episode, Dr. Sarah Elizabeth, certified grief coach, shares from her personal experience, very helpful advice from a therapist of hers, as well as practical tips for anyone trying to process their grief, and any regret they may have.

A short excerpt from Zen Shorts by Jon J. Muth is also shared.

Please feel free to be in touch with Dr. Sarah at [email protected] for grief coaching, or with suggestions for future episodes.

Sometimes when a loved one is grieving, no matter the cause of the grief, whether it be the death of a person or animal, miscarriage, divorce, job loss, etc, friends or family don't always know what to say or do to support their grieving loved one. In this brief 8 minute episode, Dr. Sarah Elizabeth, certified grief coach, offers practical suggestions, including tailoring your responses to your loved one who is grieving, and reaching out over the long haul, not just in the short term.

Listeners are invited to share additional resources and tips in the comments, and feel free to be in touch with Dr. Sarah for 1:1 grief coaching or group grief circles at [email protected]

RESOURCES:

- Brief ARTICLE on 6 alternatives to saying "Let Me Know What I Can Do"

- Hope Edelman's The Aftergrief: Finding Your Way Along the Long Arc of Loss

- Don't Ask for the Dead Man's Golf Clubs: What to Do and Say (and What Not To) When a Friend Loses a Loved One by Lynn Kelly