On this episode I had the chance to sit down for a much needed chat about grief and grieving with by a few amazing guests.

Ms. Cindy Burns, Facilitator of the Widows and Widowers: Finding Purpose support group on Facebook and the  Widows and Widowers: Finding Purpose Facebook page.

Ms. Hope Reager, Founder of Grief 2 Hope, a virtual peer grief support group. Hope says "grief changes your entire world, it can also inspire you to change the world". 

Ms. Choyce Simmons, Certified Grief Support specialist, Grief facilitator, Author, and Founder of Beautiful Minds, LLC 

Mr. Paul David Madsen, Author of "Men Grieve Too: Tools to Help Men Deal."

Key Takeaways:

• "I think my take on grief is, it's something that we have in our hearts forever. It's something that stays with us and cannot be healed with time. We can actually move forward." ~Hope Reager
• "There is no expiration date on grieving. ~Cindy Burns
• "I'm a firm believer that you grieve because you loved, and so the amount of love that you have for that thing that you have lost, or that person that you have lost will determine how long you're going to grieve that person." ~Choyce Simmons
• "We grieve all the time. I mean, it never goes away. We just get used to it." ~Paul David Madsen
• Grief is an individual journey. ~Paul David Madsen
• "Feel your feelings. Give them a name, you know, disappointment, fear, guilt, all those kind of different things that aren't talked about in the stages of grief. Let them come, you let them visit you. Don't invite them to stay." ~Cindy Burns

• "Honor those that you've lost by living with inspiration, hope, and commitment, and to never waste a moment, because those days pass quickly as you know now that you're grieving. So invest in yourself and by honoring them each and every day." ~Hope Reager

• "Your grief journey is yours. Grievers, don't worry about what you're supposed to do. You do what you do. " ~Paul David Madsen

• "Take one day, one minute, one hour at a time. Your grief is your own. There is no timeframe on it. It may look differently because it is uniquely yours." ~Choyce Simmons

If you know someone who's grieving and don't know what to say or do, just "show up and shut up." Do what needs to be done, cooking, cleaning, childcare, walking the dog or just sitting with them and holding space but most importantly, be empathetic and compassionate even if you don't understand what their feeling!

Guest Contact Info:

Choyce Simmons:

https://facebook.com/choyce.simmons

Cindy Burns:

https://www.cindyjburns.com

https://www.facebook.com/widowersandwidowsfindingpurpose

https://www.instagram.com/cindy.j.burns/

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOBYJSHXfKvixWUtX8xba6w

Hope Reager:

http://www.grief2hopesuppoer.com

https://www.facebook.com/Grief2Hope2020

https://www.instagram.com/grief2hope2020/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B7K12G4V

Paul David Madsen:

https://growmedia.com

https://facebook.com/growmedia.com

https://youtube.com/growmedia.com

https://amazon.com/Men-Grieve-Too-Tools-Rebuild

Intro Music:

"Welcome To The Kandid Shop" by Anthony Nelson aka BUSS (All Rights Reserved)

Outro Music:

"Grief" by Dee Yan-Key (All Rights Reserved)