The Caring Death Doula

Rest Is Part Of Grieving

In this episode,  we discuss how your  body can only carry grief for so long before it starts sending louder signals.  We talk honestly about what it feels like when you’ve been pushing through loss for weeks, months, or years, and the exhaustion is deeper than being overwhelmed. It’s the kind of tired that lives in your bones and your nervous system, and it’s telling you to stop. Again we widen the lens on what counts as grief: the death of a loved one, the loss of a pet, estrangement from family, the end of a role you held for decades, a career that didn’t work out, or the life you expected to have.  No matter what form it takes, grief asks for time, space, and gentleness.  Rest is not a luxury here. It’s a health decision. Together, we walk through a practical idea: a real 48-hour break. That might mean calling in sick, taking vacation days, or protecting a weekend. We get specific about unplugging beyond social media, setting boundaries, delegating, and finding options even if you have kids, limited help, or a demanding boss.  This episodes also explores simple self-care that can calm your body: a long shower or bath, low light, soothing scents, music, journaling, or doing absolutely nothing. If this resonates, listen and  don’t hesitate to share if someone comes to mind. You never know what it could mean to them. Please consider leaving a review so more grieving people can find the support they need.  Holding space, Frances The Caring Death Doula Click here to send me a text. I would love to hear from you your thoughts on this episode. [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2530196/fan_mail/new] Sign up for my newsletter, ask questions, and get responses via Email: thecaringdeathdoula@gmail.com Follow on FB The Caring Death Doula https://www.facebook.com/share/1CUfH9Kek6/?mibextid=wwXIfr [https://www.facebook.com/share/1CUfH9Kek6/?mibextid=wwXIfr] Join the private FB group for “behind the podcast” and advance notification The Caring Death Doula Podcast. A safe place to ask questions and to learn more.  IG The_Caring_Death_Doula https://www.instagram.com/the_caring_death_doula?igsh=MXdjOTF3MWo2a3RpYw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr [https://www.instagram.com/the_caring_death_doula?igsh=MXdjOTF3MWo2a3RpYw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr]

Holding Space For Mother’s Day Grief

Mother’s Day lands differently when your mom is gone or when motherhood has been shaped by loss.  This episode follows Morher’s Day weekend here in the U.S. and I wanted to honor the place a mother has in our lives. And, to let the women often overlooked by society who long to be mothers know they are seen.  We talk about grief as evidence of love, why it helps to speak plainly about death, and how we can support each other without comparison.  • Mother’s Day grief and the ache of absence  • Grief as tangible evidence of love we carry  • Getting more comfortable talking about death and living present  • Holding space for infertility, miscarriage, and stillbirth  • Validating motherhood after pregnancy loss  • Rejecting the urge to rank grief and loss  If you need to feel seen this week after making it through the weekend of missing your mother, this episode is for you. If you know others missing their mom or women who long to be a mom and hold their babies, then please pass this episode on.  Share with those who miss their moms. Any day or event celebrating moms can be so hard for many of us.  Be there for someone or take a deep breath for yourself knowing I hold space for you.  Click here to send me a text. I would love to hear from you your thoughts on this episode. [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2530196/fan_mail/new] Sign up for my newsletter, ask questions, and get responses via Email: thecaringdeathdoula@gmail.com Follow on FB The Caring Death Doula https://www.facebook.com/share/1CUfH9Kek6/?mibextid=wwXIfr [https://www.facebook.com/share/1CUfH9Kek6/?mibextid=wwXIfr] Join the private FB group for “behind the podcast” and advance notification The Caring Death Doula Podcast. A safe place to ask questions and to learn more.  IG The_Caring_Death_Doula https://www.instagram.com/the_caring_death_doula?igsh=MXdjOTF3MWo2a3RpYw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr [https://www.instagram.com/the_caring_death_doula?igsh=MXdjOTF3MWo2a3RpYw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr]

Grieving More Than a Death

This episode comes from the thick  envelope from a lawyer that lands in my mailbox and flips my whole day upside down. Inside is news I never expected to learn this way: my aunt has died, and I don’t even know when it happened.  Shock hits first, then my mind does what it has learned to do for a lifetime it reaches for connection. I want to call my dad. Then I remember I can’t, because he died too. That split second says so much about how grief lives in the body, not just in our thoughts. I talk honestly about layered bereavement, the kind that shows up when a family member dies and it reopens old family pain. There’s the death itself, and then there’s the silence- why wasn’t I called?- and then there’s ache of realizing you were not included.  When family estrangement, messy dynamics, or a controlling religious group has shaped who stays in touch, grief can carry bitterness and resentment right alongside love. If you’ve ever felt confused by your own reaction to a relative’s death, there is nothing wrong with you. You are not broken. You are human. We also discuss what I do in the moment to steady myself: getting out of the house, taking a long walk, and trying to calm my nervous system when anger starts to surge.  As The Caring Death Doula, I’m not here to polish grief into something pretty. I’m here to tell the truth and to hold space for yours too. If this resonates, subscribe, share the episode with someone who needs gentle support, and leave a review so more grieving people can find this podcast.   Click here to send me a text. I would love to hear from you your thoughts on this episode. [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2530196/fan_mail/new] Sign up for my newsletter, ask questions, and get responses via Email: thecaringdeathdoula@gmail.com Follow on FB The Caring Death Doula https://www.facebook.com/share/1CUfH9Kek6/?mibextid=wwXIfr [https://www.facebook.com/share/1CUfH9Kek6/?mibextid=wwXIfr] Join the private FB group for “behind the podcast” and advance notification The Caring Death Doula Podcast. A safe place to ask questions and to learn more.  IG The_Caring_Death_Doula https://www.instagram.com/the_caring_death_doula?igsh=MXdjOTF3MWo2a3RpYw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr [https://www.instagram.com/the_caring_death_doula?igsh=MXdjOTF3MWo2a3RpYw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr]

Normalizing Death Helps Children

In today’s episode we talk again about children and grief. We discuss how important it is for children to see death as a natural part of life. They need to be part of conversations and hear adults talking.  If talking about death around children makes your chest tighten, you’re not alone and that discomfort is exactly why the conversation matters.  We dig into how children learn what grief “means” by watching the adults around them, and how silence can quietly teach them that death is scary, or off-limits. When children don’t feel safe asking questions, they often carry unresolved grief into adulthood, expecting time and adulthood  to fix what never got named.  We explore what it looks like to normalize death as a natural part of life, not a topic reserved for whispers in the hallway. That includes being honest about how hard grief is, letting children be included as much as they feel able to, and recognizing how moments like missing a funeral or a hospital visit can become lifelong pain points. The goal isn’t to force big conversations on demand, but to make your home and your relationships a place where death can be mentioned without everyone shutting down.  You’ll also hear practical community-based ideas that make these talks easier: informal Death Cafe style meetups and Death and Cheesecake gatherings where people can listen, share fears, and speak plainly with no agenda. We highlight children’s grief centers too, including how they may process loss through peer conversation, arts and crafts, reenactment play, or movement when words don’t come.  If you want better tools for supporting grieving children, it starts with growing your own comfort and modeling that it’s safe to feel.  Subscribe for more conversations like this, share this with someone raising kids, and leave a review with one thing you wish adults had said to you about death. I’d love to hear from you! Click here to send me a text. I would love to hear from you your thoughts on this episode. [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2530196/fan_mail/new] Sign up for my newsletter, ask questions, and get responses via Email: thecaringdeathdoula@gmail.com Follow on FB The Caring Death Doula https://www.facebook.com/share/1CUfH9Kek6/?mibextid=wwXIfr [https://www.facebook.com/share/1CUfH9Kek6/?mibextid=wwXIfr] Join the private FB group for “behind the podcast” and advance notification The Caring Death Doula Podcast. A safe place to ask questions and to learn more.  IG The_Caring_Death_Doula https://www.instagram.com/the_caring_death_doula?igsh=MXdjOTF3MWo2a3RpYw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr [https://www.instagram.com/the_caring_death_doula?igsh=MXdjOTF3MWo2a3RpYw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr]

Children And Grief

I’m sitting in a park in my hometown, gently swinging while we talk about something most families stumble through: children and grief. When a divorce hits, a loved one dies, a pet dies, or life changes in the way it can, children are often the easiest to miss not because we don’t love them, but because the adults are barely functioning. If you’ve ever felt guilty for not having the energy to deal with or check in with your children, you are not alone. We discuss how so many of us were never taught how to talk about death and grief, and how that silence gets passed down. We also unpack a few common choices that seem protective but can create confusion, like keeping kids away from funerals or using soft phrases such as “Grandpa went to sleep.” For some children that lands fine, but for others it can spark real fear, including anxiety around going to sleep.  This really reinforces the need for us as adults to get comfortable talking about death, loss, change, and grief. It hits us all and our children need a safe place. They need us to be comfortable talking amongst ourselves and to them. They need to see us accepting it as a natural part of life so they can.  You’ll also hear a practical way to help that doesn’t require a plan: show up and listen. If you know a family walking through loss, your calm presence can give children a safe place to speak, even if all you do is let them talk with you nearby.  If this resonates, subscribe for more honest conversations about grief support, share this with someone caring for children,  and leave a review so more families can find it when they need it most. Click here to send me a text. I would love to hear from you your thoughts on this episode. [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2530196/fan_mail/new] Sign up for my newsletter, ask questions, and get responses via Email: thecaringdeathdoula@gmail.com Follow on FB The Caring Death Doula https://www.facebook.com/share/1CUfH9Kek6/?mibextid=wwXIfr [https://www.facebook.com/share/1CUfH9Kek6/?mibextid=wwXIfr] Join the private FB group for “behind the podcast” and advance notification The Caring Death Doula Podcast. A safe place to ask questions and to learn more.  IG The_Caring_Death_Doula https://www.instagram.com/the_caring_death_doula?igsh=MXdjOTF3MWo2a3RpYw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr [https://www.instagram.com/the_caring_death_doula?igsh=MXdjOTF3MWo2a3RpYw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr]