Laugh At The Odds Podcast with Heidi & Dave

This episode contains strong language and references to sex and drugs. Listener discretion is advised.In Episode 10 of Laugh at the Odds Podcast with Heidi and Dave, we speak with New York comedian and COVID-19 widower, Rich Kiamco, on grief and humor. We also discuss the circumstances of his partner Sandy's passing, from his COVID positive diagnosis to his quick decline, as well as the unique challenges that widowed members of the LGBTQIA+ community face, such as disenfranchised grief. ABOUT...

In Episode 9 of Laugh at the Odds Podcast with Heidi and Dave, we talk about Heidi's very recent loss, Dave’s own losses from years prior, and how these have affected us both as widowed people, as well as Benji. We also speak with Nancy Saxton-Lopez and Ken Dolan-Del Vecchio, both therapists who ran a pet loss group for 30 years, and co-authors of “The Pet Loss Companion; Healing Advice From Family Therapists Who Lead Pet Loss Groups,” and co-hosts of the podcast “The Pet Loss Companion.” The...

In Episode 8 of Laugh at the Odds Podcast with Heidi and Dave, we speak with Kristin Meekhof about her work as a therapist, wellness coach, and her writing. We will delve into the research she did for her work and what she learned about resilience and storytelling from speaking with widows around the world.ABOUT OUR GUESTS:Kristin Meekhof is a licensed master's level social worker, co- author of the best-selling book, "A Widow's Guide to Healing" (Sourcebooks, 2015), a life coach and a resili...

In Episode 7 of Laugh at the Odds Podcast with Heidi and Dave, we speak with Desiree’ Tulsidai Kinney and learn about her passions and how devoting her time and energy to them has impacted her grief and healing. ABOUT OUR GUESTS:Desiree’ Tulsidai Kinney is the CEO and Founder of The Business Matchmaker. She serves in Wealth Management at a Fortune 500 in New York City, and is an Empowerment Speaker, Career Coach, and Media/TV Personality. As seen on CBS2 News, NY1 News, News 12, Fox Business,...

In Episode 6 of Laugh at the Odds Podcast with Heidi and Dave, we start our mini-series on grief and race, and how the latter impacts various ethnic and racial groups differently. This week, we focus on how Asians and Asian Americans grieve, seek help, and heal from their losses. We also talk about the model minority myth, and how this notion and the expectations thrust upon us Asians are detrimental to not just our healing and recovery from grief as widows, but also in our everyday lives, pa...

In Episode 5 of Laugh at the Odds Podcast with Heidi and Dave, we speak with Kelley Lynn - actor, comedian, TED Talk speaker, author and a recently remarried widow - about her iconic 2017 TED Talk about grief, which garnered 1 and a half million views, and nearly 6000 comments on YouTube. We also talk about the importance of language and how it shapes our perspectives, which in turn shape our world. And we also discuss her book, her wedding in the time of COVID, and how she pays it forward to...

In Episode 4 of Laugh at the Odds Podcast with Heidi and Dave, we explore what it’s like for three healthcare warriors to work with COVID patients while grieving and healing from their own losses. Through our show, we give them a platform to share their experiences, and hold space for them as they talk about not just the challenges they face as recent widows, but also process how their own experiences with loss have helped them become better nurses and social workers who interface daily with ...

In Episode 3 of Laugh at the Odds Podcast with Heidi and Dave, we have the honor of speaking with Michele Neff Hernandez, who founded Soaring Spirits International in 2008, three years after losing her husband in a sudden and unexpected cycling accident. We sit down and talk about how she turned her tragic loss, and her personal need to find other widows, into a mission of connecting people. This consequently created the ripple effect of a worldwide community and a nonprofit that has served o...

In Episode 2 of Laugh at the Odds Podcast with Heidi and Dave, we sit down with a small, tightknit group of widows and one widower who found each other and formed deep bonds and likely lifelong friendships. We explore how they crossed paths and gained a sense of community and helped each other heal. ABOUT OUR GUESTS:1) Lynn Nguyen was widowed from her late husband Can in 2015. She currently works as a project manager in IT Finance and recently relocated from Texas to beautiful Clearwater, Flo...

In this maiden episode of "Laugh at the Odds Podcast with Heidi and Dave," we sit down with Kathryn Monaco Douglas of Widowed Not Alone, which started out 15 years ago as an in-person bereavement group for widows and widowers on Long Island, NY, and has since branched out nationally as a result of the pandemic and the necessity of going virtual. We also take a deep dive and discuss Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, and how Widowhood and Secondary Losses strip us widows down to our most basic and p...