Grief Episodes
Exploring the multifaceted experience of grief, this category shares personal stories that highlight how individuals navigate loss and find a new sense of normal.
287
Sept. 30, 2026
Grief: The Year I Edited My Dear Friend Back to Life
A filmmaker loses his best friend in a plane crash weeks after they finish shooting, and spends a year in the edit learning how to grieve.
Guest: Jan Becker
284
Sept. 20, 2026
Belonging: Finding Family Among Strangers
Robin lost her mom at eight and entered foster care at eleven. A story of abandonment, resilience, and building a life overflowing with love.
Guest: Robin Rosenbluth
282
Sept. 13, 2026
Showing Up: The Day I Stopped Trying to Fix It
Brad Wolfe grew up terrified of death. When someone he loved got sick, he showed up with his guitar. A story about grief, presence, and learning to stay.
Guest: Brad Wolfe
266
July 19, 2026
Illness: When the Hard Thing Sets You Free
Actor Carly Otte opens up about facing cancer twice, losing her sense of self at thirty, and finding a gentler definition of success.
Guest: Carly Otte
265
July 15, 2026
Identity: More Than the Thing You're Known For
A world class cellist felt relief, not grief, the night her career quietly ended. Kate Kayaian on identity, permission, and starting over at midlife.
Guest: Kate Kayaian
250
May 24, 2026
What Survives: A Story About Loss, Resilience, and Inner Friendship
Matin Miryeganeh lost her mother at 13, her family's support, and the permission to grieve. This episode is about what happens when you survive alone and slowly find your way back to yourself.
Guest: Matin Miryeganeh
249
May 20, 2026
Grief and Fatherhood: The Song That Changed Everything
Matt Fogelson lost his father before they ever really knew each other, and when he became a dad himself, a single unplanned song in the middle of the night started him on a years-long journey back to himself.
Guest: Matt Fogelson
247
May 13, 2026
Grief, Ancestors & Cuba: Finding Your Mother Again
When Rebe Huntman finally stopped moving forward and took a pilgrimage to Cuba, she discovered that her mother had been waiting there all along.
Guest: Rebe Huntman
245
May 6, 2026
Part of Me Died That Day: Learning to Live After the Worst Day of Your Life
Stephen Panus lost his 16-year-old son Jake in a sudden accident. This conversation explores grief, forgiveness, guilt, and what it means to keep walking when part of you didn’t survive.
Guest: Stephen Panus
237
March 10, 2026
Existing vs. Living: A Mother's Journey Back to the World
After losing her son at 23, adventurer and author Dianette Wells had to find her way back to a world that had lost its sparkle, and she did it one step, one trail, and one yes at a time.
Guest: Dianette Wells
235
Feb. 24, 2026
Grief: Learning to Stay Open When Everything Hurts
A tender conversation about loving fully, grieving honestly, and staying open to life even after profound loss.
Guest: Kathleen A. Quinn
234
Feb. 17, 2026
Grief: Making Something Beautiful From What Broke
A quiet conversation about learning to stay open and find meaning when life moves you through loss and change.
Guest: Day Schildkret
233
Feb. 10, 2026
Grief: Learning to Carry Joy and Loss Together
A conversation about love, loss, and the quiet courage it takes to stay open when life refuses to follow the plan.
Guest: Sharon Spano
Feb. 1, 2026
How We Slowly Rebuild After Loss | Bonus
This episode is part of The Things We Carry, a solo series shaped by the themes that stay with me after the conversations on The Life Shift. Today I am talking about the quiet ways people rebuild after loss. Not the dramatic versions we often hear about, but the slow work that happens in ordinary moments. The rebuilding that takes shape in private. The kind no one sees. In this reflection, I talk about how grief reshapes us, how healing does not mean going back to who we were, and how rebuildin...
Jan. 18, 2026
Grief Does Not Look the Same for Everyone | Bonus
This episode is part of The Things We Carry, a solo series shaped by the themes that stay with me long after the conversations on The Life Shift. Today, I am talking about the way grief shows up differently for each of us. Grief is not a single feeling. It is not one path or one expression. It shifts. It breaks open. It softens. It surprises you. And sometimes it says the opposite of what you think it should. In this reflection, I talk about the pressure many of us feel to grieve a certain way,...
226
Dec. 23, 2025
Grief Can Be a Love Story Too
Therapist Brianna Laricchia shares how the loss of her dog Molly transformed her understanding of grief, love, and healing.
Guest: Brianna Laricchia
Dec. 7, 2025
Learning to Live With Grief | Bonus
A reminder that grief shifts and changes, and you are allowed to move with it.
219
Nov. 18, 2025
He Lost the Job. He Found His Life.
After losing his job right before the pandemic, Clay Garrett discovered that slowing down was the key to finding purpose, presence, and peace.
Guest: Clay Garrett
211
Oct. 21, 2025
Why Marty Ross-Dolen Believes It’s Never Too Late to Change Your Mind
Author and retired psychiatrist Marty Ross-Dolen shares how 9/11, motherhood, and multi-generational grief reshaped her life and inspired her memoir Always There, Always Gone.
Guest: Marty Ross-Dolen
208
Oct. 7, 2025
How Dan Boettcher Rebuilt His Life After a Mental Health Crisis
Dan Boettcher shares how a mental health crisis unraveled his carefully planned future and led him to rediscover meaning through jewelry and storytelling.
Guest: Dan Boettcher
204
Sept. 16, 2025
Healing Through Grief with Britt Michaelian
After the loss of her mother and sister, Britt Michaelian shares how her journey with grief led her to rediscover healing through intuition, art, and energy work.
Guest: Britt Michaelian
202
Sept. 2, 2025
Marie Alessi on Choosing Joy After Her Husband’s Sudden Death
After losing her husband unexpectedly, Marie Alessi made a promise to choose happiness – and built a life of healing, light, and legacy.
Guest: Marie Alessi
Sept. 1, 2025
A Letter to My 8-Year-Old Self: Living 36 Years Without My Mom
A personal letter to my 8-year-old self, 36 years after losing my mom, on grief, love, and healing.
197
Aug. 12, 2025
The Wildfire Didn’t Burn Her House – But It Changed Everything with Katie Svoboda-Rini
After surviving grief, burnout, and a wildfire that changed everything, Katie Svoboda-Rini shares how she finally stopped waiting for the perfect time and chose to begin again.
Guest: Katie Svoboda-Rini