The Widowed Mom Podcast

Grief is intense and complicated and completely unique to each and every person, so if you’re seeking reassurance that your experience is normal, you’re not alone… but it’s also not serving you.

Tune in this week to learn why we want to know if what we’re facing in grief is normal, how this question is unhelpful, and what you can ask instead.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://www.coachingwithkrista.com/266

Mentioned in this episode:

A Widow’s Guide to a Happier Holiday Season

Navigating the holidays after losing your loved one doesn't have to mean just gritting your teeth and surviving. Join Happier Holidays, a free 3-day online event for widows from November 10th through 12th, to learn practical tools for managing difficult emotions, releasing guilt, and taking control of your holiday season.

Happier Holidays 2026

When you’ve experienced so much sadness, it’s common to feel worn down by it. But sadness doesn’t exist to hold you back. It’s there to remind you that you’ve lost something you care about deeply. So, can we smile at our sadness, welcome it in a little more, and witness it?

In this episode, I'll show you the gifts sadness brings when we stop shoving it down by exploring themes of sadness from Disney's Inside Out movie.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://www.coachingwithkrista.com/265

Mentioned in this episode:

A Widow’s Guide to a Happier Holiday Season

Navigating the holidays after losing your loved one doesn't have to mean just gritting your teeth and surviving. Join Happier Holidays, a free 3-day online event for widows from November 10th through 12th, to learn practical tools for managing difficult emotions, releasing guilt, and taking control of your holiday season.

Happier Holidays 2026

What do you do when you want to love life again after loss, but your happiness and joy left with your person? After the death of her husband Rob, my client Christy O’Neil knew she wanted to actively create an extraordinary life.

She knew coaching would help her make life beautiful again, but she didn’t realize just how much, and she’s here to share her insights with you on this episode.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://www.coachingwithkrista.com/264

Mentioned in this episode:

A Widow’s Guide to a Happier Holiday Season

Navigating the holidays after losing your loved one doesn't have to mean just gritting your teeth and surviving. Join Happier Holidays, a free 3-day online event for widows from November 10th through 12th, to learn practical tools for managing difficult emotions, releasing guilt, and taking control of your holiday season.

Happier Holidays 2026

Among her many significant achievements, Elise Loehnen is the author of the NewYork Times bestseller, On Our Best Behavior: The Seven Deadly Sins and the Price Women Pay to Be Good, and she’s here today to help us make sense of our experience as women, especially in grief.

Elise gives us a masterclass on how we are socialized as women, the cataclysmic price we pay to be perceived as “good,” and how we can find a more honest way to express ourselves in the world.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://www.coachingwithkrista.com/263

Mentioned in this episode:

A Widow’s Guide to a Happier Holiday Season

Navigating the holidays after losing your loved one doesn't have to mean just gritting your teeth and surviving. Join Happier Holidays, a free 3-day online event for widows from November 10th through 12th, to learn practical tools for managing difficult emotions, releasing guilt, and taking control of your holiday season.

Happier Holidays 2026

Taylor Swift is someone I have a lot of admiration and respect for. She’s a phenomenal artist and businesswoman with a list of accomplishments longer than most, but she missed the mark a few weeks ago and we have to talk about it.

Hear my thoughts on Taylor’s decision to categorize her songs using the five stages of grief, and why perpetuating a one-size-fits-all approach might be the antithesis of helpful.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://www.coachingwithkrista.com/262

Mentioned in this episode:

A Widow’s Guide to a Happier Holiday Season

Navigating the holidays after losing your loved one doesn't have to mean just gritting your teeth and surviving. Join Happier Holidays, a free 3-day online event for widows from November 10th through 12th, to learn practical tools for managing difficult emotions, releasing guilt, and taking control of your holiday season.

Happier Holidays 2026

There are so many false binaries in grief that make the experience more painful than it already is. From forced gratitude to sweeping your sadness under the rug, none of it would be necessary if you started using the word ‘and’ more in your everyday life.

Learn why I believe ‘and’ is one of the most magical words we can use in grief, how ‘and’ makes room for everything you feel, and how you can begin embracing the power of ‘and.’

Get full show notes and more information here: https://www.coachingwithkrista.com/261

Mentioned in this episode:

A Widow’s Guide to a Happier Holiday Season

Navigating the holidays after losing your loved one doesn't have to mean just gritting your teeth and surviving. Join Happier Holidays, a free 3-day online event for widows from November 10th through 12th, to learn practical tools for managing difficult emotions, releasing guilt, and taking control of your holiday season.

Happier Holidays 2026

My Mom Goes On client Stephanie Hester-Rodriguez lost her husband in October 2021 after he contracted COVID. She went from living her happiest, best days to being thrown into the depths of grief.

Hear how her husband’s death ripped up the foundation of her life, shook her faith, and her process of rebuilding a life she loves.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://www.coachingwithkrista.com/260

Mentioned in this episode:

A Widow’s Guide to a Happier Holiday Season

Navigating the holidays after losing your loved one doesn't have to mean just gritting your teeth and surviving. Join Happier Holidays, a free 3-day online event for widows from November 10th through 12th, to learn practical tools for managing difficult emotions, releasing guilt, and taking control of your holiday season.

Happier Holidays 2026

Early acute grief often brings with it a sense of chaos and so many questions about what’s normal or what to expect. This time tends to feel like a roller-coaster for new widows because what they’re really looking for is reassurance, and I believe having accurate information and tools makes it easier.

I’m sharing my answers to five of the most common new widow questions, and introducing you to Grief Essentials: my new pilot program for those of you navigating early grief.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://www.coachingwithkrista.com/259

Mentioned in this episode:

A Widow’s Guide to a Happier Holiday Season

Navigating the holidays after losing your loved one doesn't have to mean just gritting your teeth and surviving. Join Happier Holidays, a free 3-day online event for widows from November 10th through 12th, to learn practical tools for managing difficult emotions, releasing guilt, and taking control of your holiday season.

Happier Holidays 2026

How are you doing? This is one of the most common questions widows are asked, and if you dread it, you’re most definitely not alone.

Hear why widows loathe being asked how we’re doing, and some different options for answering this question the next time you’re asked.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://www.coachingwithkrista.com/258

Mentioned in this episode:

A Widow’s Guide to a Happier Holiday Season

Navigating the holidays after losing your loved one doesn't have to mean just gritting your teeth and surviving. Join Happier Holidays, a free 3-day online event for widows from November 10th through 12th, to learn practical tools for managing difficult emotions, releasing guilt, and taking control of your holiday season.

Happier Holidays 2026

Do you believe that there’s some sort of false binary where you’re either grieving or done with grief? This is just one of the myths so many people have bought into about grief, but we know that grief never ends.

Learn why you never have to worry about being done with grief, and how it’s possible to love your life and create post-traumatic growth, even if you grieve your loss forever.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://www.coachingwithkrista.com/257

Mentioned in this episode:

A Widow’s Guide to a Happier Holiday Season

Navigating the holidays after losing your loved one doesn't have to mean just gritting your teeth and surviving. Join Happier Holidays, a free 3-day online event for widows from November 10th through 12th, to learn practical tools for managing difficult emotions, releasing guilt, and taking control of your holiday season.

Happier Holidays 2026