Tag: grief literacy

EOLPodcast

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

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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

Watch on YouTube

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. 556 Zen Caregiving: A Mindful Approach to Caring for Others with Roy Remer

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Learn about mindfulness and compassion-based tools to nurture and empower caregivers as they serve the needs of others.

About the guest:

Roy Remer is the executive director of the Zen Caregiving Project in San Francisco and the lead creator of the Mindful Caregiving Education curriculum. He is an educator and end-of-life caregiver since 1997 and a dedicated practitioner in the Soto Zen tradition. Roy is also the author of Zen Caregiving: How to Care for Yourself While Caring for Others. Learn more at the website:

ZenCaregiving.org

Get the book here

Watch on YouTube

Listen here:

In this episode:

  • Being a caregiver is part of the human experience and will affect most of us
  • Caregiving can be a pathway for growth but certain illnesses (especially dementia) can exact a huge toll on caregivers
  • The value of learning genuine presence
  • How this book can help everyone be better prepared in the future to become a caregiver
  • How serving others differs from helping, which is outcome focused
  • Our compassion is incomplete if we don’t also care for ourselves
  • Caregivers do not receive adequate preparation or support physically, emotionally, or spiritually for the task of caring for others
  • Why grief and guilt are common experiences of caregivers
  • Simple rituals for processing grief while providing care

Links mentioned in this episode:

Resources:

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Transcript:

Roy Remer InterviewDownload
EOLPodcast

Ep. 540 Helpful Things to Say to Someone Grieving with Shelby Forsythia

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Learn how to support a grieving person by choosing the best words to say that will actually make a difference.

My guest Shelby Forsythia is a grief coach, author, podcast host, and the founder of Life After Loss Academy, an online course and community for grievers. She is the author of Your Grief Your Way, Permission to Grieve, and her latest book Of Course I’m Here Right Now: Three Actually Helpful Things to Say to Someone Grieving. Her work has been featured in Huffington Post, Bustle, and The Oprah Magazine. Learn more at her website:

shelbyforsythia.com

Get the book here

Watch on YouTube

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • How Shelby became a “student of grief” who views loss as a perpetual teacher
  • Three common internal narratives that grieving people face
  • Three simple but transformative phrases to use when supporting someone
  • Why words are the most accessible tool for support of someone grieving
  • The need for grief literacy to prevent the secondary loss of friendships during times of grief
  • The “three Ds“ of grief
  • What is the “second wave of grief”
  • The lack of grief literacy on social media

Links mentioned in this episode:

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 thanks to everyone who has bought me a coffee or made a donation on Paypal! Your contributions make all the difference and ensure this podcast stays ad-free.

EOLPodcast

Ep. 481 Help Texts: Text-Based Grief Support with Emma Payne

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Learn about effective, personalized grief support that arrives via text message and how this innovation is a game changer for caregivers, healthcare workers, and the bereaved.

My guest Emma Payne is the founder and CEO of Help Texts, which provides private grief, caregiver, or mental health support via personalized text messages. On this episode, Emma’s second guest appearance, she will discuss what’s new on the Help Texts platform and the data they’ve been gathering about the efficacy of grief-informed texting. You need to know about this tool if you work anywhere in the end of life as a means of offering support to people who are grieving, caregivers and healthcare workers. This is a game-changer! Learn more at the website:

helptexts.com

Get a discount with this link

YouTube Channel

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This episode includes:

  • What inspired Emma to create Help Texts
  • Why text messaging is an ideal delivery method for grief support, as validated by neuroscience
  • How Help Texts messages are customized and personalized to each person who signs up by many different experts in this space
  • Why the cost of Help Texts is less than one hour of therapy
  • Research shows remarkable efficacy of these messages
  • Why people supporting grievers are also included in receiving helpful messages and reminders by text
  • The ripple effect of helping people become “grief literate” one text message at a time
  • How hospices and other organizations are signing up to gift Help Texts to the families they work with
  • Help Texts for healthcare workers and caregivers
  • Support is also now available for pregnancy loss, pet loss, and mental health issues

Links mentioned in this episode:

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 Molly Byock for making a donation through Paypal! Your contributions make all the difference and ensure this podcast stays ad-free.

EOLPodcast

Ep. 406 Living with Life-Limiting Illness with Novelette Munroe

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Learn about the challenges of coping with loss, grief and uncertainty that accompany a life-limiting illness.

My guest Novelette Munroe is a poet, artist and hospice volunteer who was born with a rare and life-limiting genetic skin condition called Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB.) Despite dealing with ongoing and constant medical issues Novelette manages to volunteer her time in hospice and peer bereavement in her local community. She discusses the challenges of her life journey and how she has managed to cope with multiple losses caused by her illness and the deaths of several friends who also had EB. Learn more about Camp Discovery for kids with skin diseases:

www.aad.org/public/public-health/camp-discovery

Watch on YouTube

Listen here:

This episode includes:

  • What life has been like dealing with EB
  • The importance of connecting with others who are experiencing a similar illness and how summer camp changed everything for Novelette
  • Why Novelette decided to become a hospice volunteer
  • How Novelette developed “grief literacy” with the help of teachers
  • Practices that have helped her cope with ongoing illness, uncertainty and grief
  • The benefits of mindful self-compassion for grief and illness
  • What Novelette wishes medical professionals understood about helping patients with life-limiting illness

Links mentioned in this episode:

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, especially my newest donor Marian Head! Your contributions make all the difference.