Tag: grief education

EOLPodcast

Ep. 557 The Grieving Body: Loss as a Healing Opportunity with Mary-Frances O’Connor PhD

kwyattmd

Learn about the impact of grief on the physical body and how the stress of grief and loss can lead to healing.

About the guest:

My special guest Dr. Mary-Frances O’Connor is a professor of psychology at the University of Arizona, where she directs the Grief, Loss and Social Stress (GLASS) Lab, investigating the effects of grief on the brain and the body. Her book The Grieving Brain was included on Oprah’s list of Best Books to Comfort a Grieving Friend and was the subject of a previous interview on this podcast. Today she discusses her latest book The Grieving Body: How the Stress of Loss Can Be an Opportunity for Healing, which is being released in paperback format on August 1, 2026. Learn more at her website:

maryfrancesoconnor.org

Get the book here

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Listen here:

In this episode:

  • How Mary-Frances was inspired to do research on grief
  • As a society we tend to ignore the body and grief can push us further in that direction
  • Why we need to pay attention to the messages from our bodies, particularly when we are grieving
  • The importances of social connectedness during grief and all of life
  • Sitting with someone who is calm can help us co-regulate when we are stressed in our grief
  • Why bereavement should be a public health issue
  • How we gradually build capacity to carry our grief
  • Why every experience of grief is different for us – and that’s natural and normal
  • How there is a lack of studies on crying in bereavement even though it has multiple functions
  • Emotional tears contain different hormones than irritant tears
  • Cardiovascular events related to acute grief
  • Strategies for managing grief holistically and growing through the process

Links mentioned in this episode:

Resources

Related episodes

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Transcript

Mary-Frances O’Connor InterviewDownload
EOLPodcast

Ep. 373 Speaking Grief: On Divorce, Pet Death, and Other Losses with Lindsey Whissel Fenton

kwyattmd

Learn about some educational webinars to help unique groups of people learn about grief and also why we need to pay attention to grief after all types of loss.

My guest Lindsey Whissel Fenton is a senior producer and director at WPSU, the PBS/NPR affiliate station in Central Pennsylvania. She produced, directed, and wrote the documentary Speaking Grief, which we discussed in our previous interview. Today Lindsey shares how Speaking Grief continues to educate about grief in new sectors and also talks personally about her own recent losses. Learn more at these websites:

www.lindseywhisselfenton.com

www.speakinggrief.org

Watch on YouTube

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • How Speaking Grief continues to help people “get better at grief”
  • New webinars created by Speaking Grief initiative to reach service professionals, young grieving adults, neurodivergent grieving people, and underserved communities
  • Why it’s important to educate people about grief in all walks of life and all occupations
  • How to access the webinars at no charge
  • Lindsey’s personal journey with grief
  • Why grief over loss other than death is still grief
  • What to say to a friend after divorce
  • How pet death is often overlooked in our society though the grief it causes is significant
  • How grief-aware people do a much better job of supporting others in their grief
  • A new app to remind friends to check in with the grieving person they are supporting

Links mentioned in this episode:

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If you enjoy this content please share it with others and consider leaving a review on iTunes. Thanks again to all supporters on my page at Patreon.com/eolu, and to Don Sambol for making a donation through Paypal! Your contributions make all the difference.