Grief Out Loud

Ep. 153: Big Emotions In Grief - Jenny Delacruz, LPC

17 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Jenny Delacruz is a family therapist and author who specializes in working with children and families. Her newest book, "Momma, Can I Sleep With You T...

Ep. 153: Big Emotions In Grief - Jenny Delacruz, LPC

17 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Jenny Delacruz is a family therapist and author who specializes in working with children and families. Her newest book, "Momma, Can I Sleep With You T...

Ep. 152: Teenage Grief Sucks - Natalie Adams

11 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

When Natalie's dad died suddenly at the start of her freshman year of high school, she searched, but couldn't find what she most needed: a resource wr...

Ep. 151: Resources To Support Grieving Children & Families - An Update From The New York Life Foundation

05 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Maria Collins, Vice President of the New York Life Foundation, joins Grief Out Loud to discuss three new initiatives to support grieving children and...

Ep. 150: Love, Anger, & Grief - Supporting Children After A Murder

29 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

How would you tell your children that their father murdered their grandparents? This is the heartbreaking question Jenn, whose children were 6 and 10 ...

Ep. 149: Integrating Grief - Mari Gonzalez

22 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What does it mean to integrate grief into your life? To respond to it as something that doesn't need to be fixed or eradicated? Mari Gonzalez is the c...

Ep. 148: Wrongful Death - A Grieving Mother's Story (Paula Becker)

14 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Paula Becker is an author and mother of three. Her memoir, A House on Stilts, Mothering in the Age of Opiod Addiction, chronicles how she and her fami...

Ep. 147: Grief & Mother's Day - A Teen's Take

05 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In Ep. 143 we talked with Paige about step-parenting grieving children and in this one, we talk with one of her children, 17-year-old Chloe. Chloe was...

Ep. 146: Reflection - A Mini-Episode

04 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

This mini-episode shares two emails from listeners and how to participate in The Dougy Center's annual Reflection Benefit & Auction. This year, Reflec...

Ep. 145: Speaking Grief - Lindsey Whissel Fenton

30 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

How would the world be different if grief was universally understood as a natural reaction to loss and not something that needs to be fixed or taken ...

Ep. 144: A Grieving Father Turned To Words - Jayson Greene

24 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In May of 2015, Jayson Greene's first child, Greta, had just turned two and was spending the day with her grandmother, Susan. While she and Susan were...

Ep. 143: A Full-Time Other Mother - Step-Parenting Grieving Children

17 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Being a step-parent is complicated under the best of circumstances, but what happens when your children's other parent dies? Paige Smith was just sett...

Ep. 142: Suffocated Grief & Supporting Black Youth - Dr. Tashel Bordere

10 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Tashel Bordere has spent years researching the grief experience of black youth affected by homicide and gun violence. While many grieving people c...

Ep. 141: You Can't Give From Empty - Grief Professionals & COVID-19 With Megan Devine

02 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What happens when a crisis affects everyone, including those who support others? Who is left to show up and care for those who need it the most? Grief...

Ep. 140: Supporting Widowed Dads - Dr. Justin Yopp

25 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In 2010 Dr. Justin Yopp and his colleague, Don Rosenstein, piloted a support group for widowed dads that grew into being part of the Widowed Parent Pr...

Ep. 139: Grief & Coronavirus/COVID-19 - Leslie Barber

20 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The COVID-19 global health crisis is an unprecedented time of uncertainty, change, and concern - three things that often accompany grief. For those wh...

Encore Ep. 106: Grief & Anxiety - Claire Bidwell Smith, LCPC

11 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

This is an encore episode that originally aired on February 25th, 2019.  When grief enters our world, many of us expect to cry and feel frustrated, b...

Ep. 138: Running Home - Katie Arnold

05 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Katie Arnold is a writer, mother, grieving daughter, and ultra-marathoner. After her father died of cancer, Katie developed intense anxiety about her ...

Ep. 137: Grief & The Foster Care System - A Personal Story

28 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Kevin is a previous participant in the L.Y.G.H.T. Program - Listening & Led by Youth in the Foster Care System: Grief, Hope, and Transitions. We discu...

Ep. 136: L.Y.G.H.T. - Supporting Grieving Youth In The Foster Care System

21 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

While we usually talk about the grief associated with a diagnosis or a death, this episode focuses on meeting the needs of youth in the foster care sy...

Ep. 135: The Worst News - An Update

11 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

This episode first aired in July of 2018. Since that time, Eidan's brain tumor began growing again in early 2019. On October, 26, 2019, just a few wee...

Ep. 134: Breath, Movement, Sound - Grief Yoga With Paul Denniston

31 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Paul Denniston grew up with rigid cultural, religious, and gender expectations for what was appropriate when it came to expressing grief and emotions....

Ep. 133: Widowed Parenting - Jenny Lisk

23 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Just over four years ago, Jenny Lisk's husband Dennis died of glioblastoma - brain cancer. This loss propelled her into a new world of solo-parenting ...

Ep. 132: Finding Meaning - David Kessler

17 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

David Kessler is a renowned author, speaker, and retreat leader. He co-authored two books, On Grief and Grieving and Life Lessons, with another grief ...

Ep. 131: Permission To Grieve - Shelby Forsythia

10 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In 2013, Shelby Forsythia was barely into her twenties when her mom died of cancer. This loss propelled her into a search for information, understandi...

Encore Ep. 11: Who Am I Now?

30 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

It's a New Year's Eve encore episode and we're bringing back Ep. 11: Who Am I Now? Brendon and Jana delve into the many layers of loss that we grapple...

Ep. 130: Grief & PTSD - Megan Hillukka

19 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

"How many children do you have?" This simple question turns treacherous for grieving parents. Megan Hillukka's daughter, Aria, died of Sudden Unexplai...

Ep. 98: Under Pressure - Grief & December Holidays

09 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This episode first aired in December, 2018. Nothing says end of the calendar year holiday stress like grief. Dougy Center staff member Rebecca Hobbs-L...

Ep. 129: After The Dam Breaks - Pushing Grief Aside

27 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Naomi and Chad had a whirlwind start to their relationship. They were both in their 20's and got engaged less than a year after they met. Then, a few ...

Ep. 128: When The Thought Doesn't Count

17 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Leslie Barber is the founder of Grief Warrior, a series of gift boxes designed for those in grief. The items in the boxes are informed and inspired by...

Ep. 127: What God Is Honored Here? Shannon Gibney & Kao Kalia Yang

24 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Kao Kalia Yang and Shannon Gibney are writers, friends, and grieving mothers. Shannon's daughter, Sianneh, died at forty-one and a half weeks. Kalia's...

Ep. 126: When A Child Dies Of Suicide - Anne Moss Rogers

17 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Grief is intensely personal and sometimes it's intensely private. When Anne Moss Roger's son Charles died of suicide, she decided to go public with he...

Ep. 125: Mini-Episode - Traci, Amira, & Alina

08 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In 2018, The Dougy Center was selected as one of a handful of children's bereavement programs to partner with StoryCorps and the New York Life Foundat...

Ep. 124: A Weed In The Garden Of My Brain - Caroline Wright

27 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In 2017,  Caroline Wright was working on her third cookbook and raising two kids with her husband. Life was busy and full in only the way it can be w...

Ep. 123: Mini-Episode - Ruby & Jana

20 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In 2018, The Dougy Center was selected as one of a handful of children's bereavement programs to partner with StoryCorps and the New York Life Foundat...

Ep. 122: Meeting The Needs Of Grieving Children - New York Life Foundation

06 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Maria Collins, Vice President at the New York Life Foundation, and Brennan Wood, The Dougy Center's Executive Director join us to talk about the busin...

Ep. 121: The Goodbye Diaries - Marisa Bardach Ramel

15 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Marisa Bardach Ramel was 17 when her mother Sally, received a stage 4 pancreatic cancer diagnosis and given two months to live. While they were always...

Ep. 120: Mini-Episode - Megan, Michael, & Mason

08 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In 2018, The Dougy Center was selected as one of a handful of children's bereavement programs to partner with StoryCorps and the New York Life Foundat...

Ep. 119: Grief & Parenting - Infancy & Toddlers

21 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This is the second in our series on Grief & Parenting. In 2017, Brittany and Jonas were raising two young children and pregnant with their third. Then...

Ep. 118: Grief & Parenting - Age 5

09 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This episode kicks off a new series exploring the realm of parenting and grief. We'll be talking to parents about what grief looks like at different a...

Ep. 117: Mini-Episode - Josh & Sylvia

01 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In 2018, The Dougy Center was selected as one of a handful of children's bereavement programs to partner with StoryCorps and the New York Life Foundat...

Ep. 116: Who Died? Episode 6 - A Guest Podcast Hosted by Grief Out Loud

24 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Who Died? was created by Aimee Craig to give voice to the memories of those we carry with us. Each episode is about one person's life and death as tol...

Ep. 115: Comedy & Grief - Harry Jensen

13 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

What is it about dark humor and why are we drawn to it when wrestling with painful life events? Laughter, especially the kind that wells up from a sha...

Ep. 114: What Does Better Mean? Neil Davis

10 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In 2017, pop singer-songwriter Neil Davis, was about to release his second album when his father died suddenly of cardiac arrest. In that moment, ever...

Ep. 113: Young Children & Grief: Mary Plouffe, Ph.D.

30 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

What do you remember about being 3 1/2? If you're anything like most of us, your memories are hazy. Maybe you have an image of the room you slept in o...

Ep. 112: A Cinematic Love Story - John & Melissa

20 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In Episode 111 we talked with Marie, whose husband Jonathan died suddenly and very unexpectedly from a drug overdose. In this episode we're talking wi...

Ep. 111: When The Love Of Your Life Dies Of An Overdose - Marie & Jonathan

01 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In the summer of 2016, Marie and Jonathan were newly married and living in Brooklyn, NYC. One day in August, Marie flew back from a trip, expecting to...

Ep. 110: Mindful Photography & Grief - Dr. Jessica Thomas, PhD, LMFT

17 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

There's nothing like grief to take us completely out of the moment. We get pulled into the past where we try to remember everything we can while also ...

Ep. 109: Motherless Daughters, 25 Years Later - Hope Edelman & Brennan Wood

03 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Back before you could ask Google anything from, "What's the best way to clean shower grout?" to "How do I grieve my parent?" when it came to answering...

Ep: 108: What Does Forgiveness Feel Like? Judith Finneren

27 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Judith Finneren's husband Ralph, or Ralphie as she liked to call him, was hit and killed while riding his bike in the summer of 2011. Even when grief ...

Ep. 107: Remembrance Wardrobe - Nicole Leslie

22 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Sweaters, shoes, a favorite coffee mug, the pen always angled a certain way - items, big and small, form the landscape left behind when someone dies. ...

Ep. 106: Grief & Anxiety - Claire Bidwell Smith. LCPC

25 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

When grief enters our world, many of us expect to cry and feel frustrated, but we aren't as prepared for the intense fear and worry that can also be p...

Ep. 105: Appetizers, Grief, Dessert - The Dinner Party

16 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

When someone dies, many of the people left behind seek out formal sources of help like a therapist or traditional support group. What happens though w...

Ep. 104: Grief & Work - Alica Forneret

06 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

The list of things that are hard to do when you're grieving is long - eating, sleeping, focusing, surface-level chit-chat, remembering where you left ...

Ep. 103: Staying Connected In Grief - Allison Gilbert

24 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

We hear about how powerful and important it can be to keep memories and connection alive with the people we are grieving, but how do we actually do th...

Ep. 102: The Power Of Storytelling

17 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In grief, having the opportunity to tell your story can be vital. Grieving children and adults want the chance to talk about the people they are griev...

Ep. 101: Grief, Seven Decades Later

10 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

What is it like to grieve for a father you know only from stories and photos? In August of 2018, Joy Wallace traveled to Tinian Island to see the plac...

Ep. 100: It's A Grief Party!

27 Dec 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Okay, so it's not really a grief party, but it is Grief Out Loud's 100th episode. When we started this show four years ago in January of 2015, we were...

Ep. 99: It's So Much More Than What We Can See - Doreen Wiggins, MD

14 Dec 2018

Contributed by Lukas

In 2000 Doreen Wiggins, MD began having vivid dreams that her husband was going to die. These dreams, combined with a session with an intuitive healer...

Ep. 98: Under Pressure - Holidays & Grief

06 Dec 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Nothing says end of the year holiday stress like grief. Dougy Center staff member Rebecca Hobbs-Lawrence is back with more great tips on planning for ...

Ep. 97: An Unexpected Devastation

28 Nov 2018

Contributed by Lukas

For Camila, death came barreling into her world with zero warning. When she was 21 her world shifted on its axis on an average morning in September. S...

Ep. 96: Dear Me, A Mini-Episode

20 Nov 2018

Contributed by Lukas

November is National Children's Grief Awareness Month and as part of the effort to raise awareness about children's grief, the National Alliance for G...

Ep. 95: Witnessing A Stranger's Death

30 Oct 2018

Contributed by Lukas

On a random Monday morning in the Bay Area of California, Beth Duckles realized too late that she was in the wrong lane of the highway. A lane that wo...

Ep. 94: Conflicted Grief - Jan Canty, PhD

22 Oct 2018

Contributed by Lukas

When someone dies, we often discover things about them we didn't know before. Those discoveries can range from mundane preferences like realizing your...

Ep. 93: Grief & Transformation - Phelica Glass, LSCSW

16 Oct 2018

Contributed by Lukas

What does transformation mean and how does it connect (or not) to grief? How can people make their way into everything that comes with this kind of lo...

Ep. 92: Grief At School

01 Oct 2018

Contributed by Lukas

As much as schools are places of learning, students don't leave their lives at the door when they enter the building. They bring their whole selves to...

Ep. 91: What's Changed For Grieving Children? The 1950's

20 Sep 2018

Contributed by Lukas

In 1955 Jack was ten and living with his mother, who was raising him alone. She and Jack's father adopted him when he was a tiny infant, which meant s...

Ep. 90: What I Needed - Tips From A Grieving Teen

07 Sep 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Halfway through her junior year of high school, Lily's father died suddenly of a heart attack. In shock and angry about everything that would be diffe...

Ep. 89: When Someone You Love Has An Illness - A Sibling's Story

28 Aug 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Ryan's favorite person in the world is his older sister. Seven years ago he got one of those phone calls - the kind that changes your life forever. In...

Ep. 88: What's Changed For Grieving Children? the 1960's

16 Aug 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Jana's dad's dad, Antonio DeCristofaro, died in 1963. She talks with her dad, Tony, about how his dad's death when he was 14 drastically changed the c...

Ep. 87: What's Changed For Grieving Children? The 1970's

10 Aug 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This episode is part of a series looking at how the approach to supporting grieving children has or hasn't changed over time. We'll be talking to peop...

Ep. 86: What's Changed For Grieving Children? The 1940's

26 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This is the first in a series on how the approach to supporting grieving children has or hasn't changed over time. We'll be talking to people who had ...

Ep. 85: Parenting & Grief

20 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Is it grief or typical child or teen behavior? Most parents and caregivers will have this questions at some point in their grieving child's life. Dr. ...

Ep. 84: The Worst News - Living With Cancer As A Young Adult

10 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

In December of 2014, Eidan was a young professional moving up in her career as an engineer. In the last year and a half she'd gotten married, started ...

Ep. 83: Emotional Hot Spots - Grief & Significant Days

25 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

When we are grieving there can be emotional hot spot days throughout the year. Some of these might be known quantities like a birthday or the annivers...

Ep. 82: The Before & After Worlds - Grieving A Sudden Death

08 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Five years ago Sarah was 23, doing what a lot of 23-year-olds do - working, hanging out with friends, starting life as a "real" adult, and living at h...

Ep. 81: Grief In Your 20's - Cynthia Whipple

17 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Over the course of 6 weeks when she was just 24, both of Cynthia Whipple's parents died, leaving her reeling and without a sense of home or family. We...

Ep. 80: We Can't Know Everything - Staying Curious In Grief (Kara Jones)

15 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Kara Jones is a practitioner working with grieving people and professionals supporting those in grief. She is also a heART maker, exploring creativity...

Ep. 79: Grief, 18 Years Later

27 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Heat Smith's mother, Jan, died of cancer almost 18 years ago. Heat, who was 25 at the time, became her mother's full-time caregiver. We talk about the...

Ep. 78: The Big And - Licity Collins

25 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

How do we hold intense joy and deep sorrow at the same time? This was the question facing singer-songwriter Licity Collins as she celebrated finalizin...

Ep. 77: Grief & Attachment - Pearl Waldorf

22 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

How do our early experiences with attachment and primary attachment figures inform and influence our grief? With her signature combination of humor an...

Ep. 76: Who Died? Episode 5 - A Podcast Hosted By Grief Out Loud

12 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Who Died? was created by Aimee Craig to give voice to the memories of those we carry with us. Each episode is about one person's life and death as tol...

Ep. 75: Fully Embodied Grief - Suzanne Anderson

14 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Just as she was on the verge of publishing her first book, Suzanne Anderson's husband died of suicide, tossing her into a very dark and difficult abys...

Ep. 74: Grieving A Miscarriage - Leslie Browning

22 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Leslie Browning is a poet, publisher, novelist, and soon to be memoirist with the publication of her newest book, To Lose the Madness - Field Notes on...

Ep. 73: Who Died? Episode 4 - A Podcast Hosted By Grief Out Loud

08 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

In Episode 4 of Who Died? host Aimee Craig talks with Brandi Maxell about her mother.  Music written and performed by Lida Husik.

Ep. 72: Inviting Grief Out Of The Whisper Corner - Megan Devine

01 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Megan Devine, writer, speaker, and grief advocate discusses her work to bring grief out of the whisper corner. We talk about how to talk about grief...

Ep. 71: How Schools Can Help When Someone Dies Of Suicide - Donna Schuurman

24 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

What do schools need to consider when someone in their community dies of suicide? There are many decisions to make that require compassion and care. ...

Ep. 70: Peer Support vs. Therapy - How Do I Choose Which Is Right For Me?

19 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

When it comes to finding the right avenue of support in grief, it can be hard to sort through the options. How do you decide between a peer support gr...

Ep. 69: Who Died? Episode 3 - A Guest Podcast Hosted By Grief Out Loud

05 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Who Died? was created by Aimee Craig to give voice to the memories of those we carry with us. Each episode is about one person's life and death as tol...

Ep. 68: Grief & Art In Public Spaces - Max Collins

21 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Some people are private in their grief, some are more public, and some put their grief onto large public murals. Artist Max Collins joins us to talk a...

Ep. 67: Creating Legacies In The Face Of A Terminal Illness

30 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Rebecca Hobbs-Lawrence, Pathways Program Coordinator at The Dougy Center, joins us to talk about creating legacies when someone is dying. What is a ...

Ep. 66: Who Died? Episode 2 - A Guest Podcast Hosted By Grief Out Loud

23 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Who Died? was created by Aimee Craig to give voice to the memories of those we carry with us. Each episode is about one person's life and death as tol...

Ep. 65: A Mother's Story - Sue Klebold

20 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Sue Klebold is the mother of Dylan Klebold, one of the two shooters at Columbine High School who, in 1999, killed twelve students and a teacher, and w...

Ep. 64: The Pull Of DNA - Grieving A Father You Never Met

11 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Kimberly Warner's father died in a car accident just before she graduated from high school. Two decades later, a DNA test revealed he wasn't her biolo...

Ep. 63: Losing Someone Twice

24 Oct 2017

Contributed by Lukas

One aspect of grief that rarely gets mentioned is losing someone twice- once in a life-altering circumstance and again when they die. This feeling can...

Ep. 62: Who Died? Episode 1 - A Guest Podcast Hosted By Grief Out Loud

20 Oct 2017

Contributed by Lukas

After someone dies, we rarely get the chance to talk about how they lived because any conversation about them tends to focus on how they died or on ho...

Ep. 61: Is It Grief Or Anger? Does It Matter?

06 Oct 2017

Contributed by Lukas

What do big behaviors look like when a child is grieving? How do we best support them in these big behaviors and the corresponding big feelings? Heath...

Ep. 60: Online Grief Support For Teens - Asher Liu Of SLAP'D (Surviving Life After a Parent Dies)

23 Aug 2017

Contributed by Lukas

When it comes to grief support for teens, SLAP'D (Surviving Life After a Parent Dies) is a unique online community where teens get support and ideas. ...

Ep. 59: When Grief Gets Awkward

21 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Interacting with others while grieving can be wildly confusing and tricky. You've probably been there. You run into someone you haven't seen in a long...

Ep. 58: Culturally Aware Grief Support in the Latino Community

22 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

What does it mean to provide culturally aware grief support for families in the Latino community? We explore this question with Cristina Flores, Bilin...