In this powerful episode of the Wake the F** Up* podcast, our host Alix Long sits down with best-selling author and TEDx speaker, Widow, and Grief Advocate Marie Alessi to explore her transformative journey through unimaginable loss. After the sudden death of her husband Rob from a brain aneurysm, Marie was faced with the impossible—and yet, she chose joy. Marie’s story also dives deep into the mysterious realm of intuition, sharing how her body and soul sensed the moment something shifted. It wasn’t just grief—it was a message, a knowing, a call to action.Marie opens up about her journey from Austria to Australia, where she met Rob just ten months after arriving. They built a beautiful life together, until everything changed in an instant when Rob died unexpectedly of a brain aneurysm while away on a business trip.Marie recounts the haunting premonition she had the night before his death—an intuitive knowing that something was terribly wrong. In the hours after receiving the devastating news, she heard Rob’s voice in her head saying, “Take the boys and create the happiest life possible.” That sentence became her North Star in the chaos of grief.Later in the interview, Marie reflects on the years leading up to Rob’s death, including a poignant “what if” conversation they had after hearing about another young father’s passing. That conversation unexpectedly prepared her to see grief differently—not as a final blow, but as something she could meet with love and strength.Here on the the Wake the F** Up* podcast, we like to challenge the typical perceptions of grief, and Alix and Mari’s conversation is a prime example of that. To Marie, grief doesn’t have to be a permanent identity focused on terms like “suffering,” “loss,” and “forever broken.” As Marie explains, grief can be a visitor, not a roommate. She emphasizes the importance of reshaping our words to reshape our experiences. By shifting the narrative, she’s been able to help others feel less isolated in their pain and more empowered in their healing.Connect with Marie on her website here - https://www.mariealessi.com/Check our Marie’s books - https://www.mariealessi.com/booksFollow Marie on Instagram - @marie.alessi.speakerFollow Wake on Instagram: @thewakewellnessFollow Alix Long on Instagram: @alixlongwindedDownload the WAKE app on the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.

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