Life With Grief Podcast | Grief Support Podcast

Tara Accardo
  • 4.4 (57)
  • Mental Health
  • Updated Weekly

Welcome to the Life With Grief Podcast! I'm your host and Grief & Soul Purpose Coach, Tara Accardo. I created Life With Grief and this community to normalize the complexities of grief, navigate life after loss, feel inspired along the way, and so much more.Consider this your safe space where you feel seen, validated, and supported. I'm in this with you as a fellow griever who lost both parents to cancer before I turned 30 (six months apart, no less), lost my fur baby less than a year later, and experienced a traumatic birth. I'm here to walk this path with you as we we work together and dig into how to live a fulfilling, vibrant life with grief in tow. I warmly invite you to tap into the world of healing with me and some truly incredible guests as you take in guidance, support, tangible coping tools, and uplifting conversations to help you cultivate a more meaningful, intentional existence.Be sure you're subscribed for laughs, life lessons, and everything in between... even beyond the grief, life is so much more than what we've lost, too. Leave me a voice message, too! https://www.speakpipe.com/LifeWithGrief

  1. 3d ago ·  Video

    233. What Men's Grief Really Looks Like: Roger Nairn on Father Loss, Guilt, and Letting Go of the Mask

    Drop me a message or voice note! Losing a parent changes you, but losing a parent as a man when you've been taught your whole life to keep it together? That's a different kind of grief. In this episode, I sit down with Roger Nairn, co-host of the Dead Dads Podcast, to talk about his father's death from cancer, his choice to pursue Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) in Canada, and what it's really like to grieve as a son when you weren't given the tools to feel your feelings. Roger opens up about the guilt he felt when he didn't cry the way he expected to, how his counselor helped him understand that his grief had been "front-loaded" during his dad's illness, and why dark humor—including one unforgettable story about the funeral home—became his pressure-release valve. ✨ Why Roger felt "flat" and neutral when his dad died, and what his counselor taught him about anticipatory grief ✨ The MAID (Medical Assistance in Dying) process in Canada and what it's like to know the exact day and time ✨ The funeral home story that became the spark for the Dead Dads Podcast ✨ How toxic masculinity shapes the way men experience and express grief ✨ Why so many men have never had a real conversation with a friend about death ✨ The power of journaling as a grief ritual ✨ How to find the right grief counselor (and why it's okay to "break up" with one that isn't a fit) ✨ Navigating parenthood after losing a parent ✨ The complicated feelings around using AI to "bring back" a deceased loved one's photo or voice ✨ Why laughing about death and grief doesn't mean you've moved on Learn more about Roger and his work at https://www.deaddadspodcast.com/ Learn more about Letters of Light 💌✨ https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters Support the show NEW! Letters of Light 💌✨ https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters Support the podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/lifewithgriefpodcast 📖 Life Beyond Grief Substack: https://taraaccardo.substack.com/ Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lossesbecomegains/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lifewithgriefpodcast/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/losses.become.gainsWebsite: https://lossesbecomegains.com/Work with me one-on-one: https://lossesbecomegains.com/work-with-taraShop the LBG Daily Journal: https://lossesbecomegains.com/journal By accessing this Podcast, I acknowledge that the entire contents are the property of Tara Accardo, or used by Tara Accardo with permission. Except as otherwise provided herein, users of this Podcast may save and use information contained in the Podcast only for personal or other non-commercial, educational ...

  2. Jul 23 ·  Video

    232. Navigating Trauma, Burnout, and the Nervous System of Grief with Korie Leigh, PhD

    Drop me a message or voice note! I first connected with Korie Leigh at GriefTastic and I knew I had to get her on the podcast, because we don't talk nearly enough about what it actually looks like to build grief-informed spaces, especially in the workplace. Korie's background is truly incredible. She started as a child life specialist in pediatric hospitals before going on to get her master's in thanatology and her PhD in transpersonal psychology. In this conversation, she opens up about how she learned to manage vicarious trauma and burnout through reflective practices, supervision, rituals, and understanding her own stress capacity—lessons that apply just as much to grievers as they do to the helpers supporting them. This episode is packed with practical guidance, too. How to actually show up for someone who's grieving (hint: stop asking "let me know if you need anything" and just help), why saying the deceased's name matters more than you think, and why you don't need to expect a response every time you reach out. What we covered: ✨ How Korie's path from pediatric child life specialist to thanatologist shaped her understanding of grief ✨ Managing vicarious trauma and burnout as a grief professional (and what that teaches the rest of us) ✨ Why compartmentalizing helps in a crisis, and hurts when it becomes permanent ✨ Cultivating nervous system safety and regulation after loss ✨ The archaic bereavement policies most workplaces still operate under ✨ The inequities around pregnancy loss that don't get talked about enough ✨ How grief-informed leadership starts with understanding grief's cognitive and physical impact ✨ What actually helps a griever ✨ Korie's book, "When Everything Changes: Parenting Through Loss and Grief", as a practical resource for families Connect with Korie: https://www.korieleighphd.com/https://www.korieleighphd.com/bookshttps://www.instagram.com/drkorieleighLearn more about Letters of Light 💌✨ https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters Support the show NEW! Letters of Light 💌✨ https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters Support the podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/lifewithgriefpodcast 📖 Life Beyond Grief Substack: https://taraaccardo.substack.com/ Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lossesbecomegains/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lifewithgriefpodcast/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/losses.become.gainsWebsite: https://lossesbecomegains.com/Work with me one-on-one: https://lossesbecomegains.com/work-with-taraShop the LBG Daily Journal: https://lossesbecomegains.com/journal By accessing this Podcast, I acknowledge that the entire contents are the property of Tara Accardo, or used by Tara Accardo with permission. Except as otherwise provided herein, users of this Podcast may save and use information contained in the Podcast only for personal or other non-commercial, educational ...

  3. Jul 20 ·  Video

    231. How to Navigate Waiting for the Other Shoe to Drop After Loss

    Drop me a message or voice note! Why does happiness feel scary after you've lost someone? If you've ever caught yourself waiting for the other shoe to drop right in the middle of a genuinely good moment, this episode is for you. I'm unpacking why joy can feel unsafe after loss—especially after compounding or back-to-back losses—and what to actually do about it. I lost my mom and dad within six months of each other, both to cancer, and less than a year later I lost my 19-year-old dog, Princess. After that kind of loss, your nervous system doesn't just grieve the person or thing you lost, it changes how safe the whole world feels. That's what today's conversation is all about: naming the hypervigilance, understanding why your brain does this, and learning how to let good things in again without needing a guarantee they'll stay. ✨ What "bracing for joy" actually is, and why it's a form of hypervigilance, not negativity or ingratitude ✨ Why compounding or back-to-back losses make this fear so much louder ✨ The difference between "something bad is about to happen" and "I'm having a thought that something bad is about to happen" ✨ Why pattern-matching your past losses isn't a prediction of your future ✨ 5 mindset shifts to help you start trusting joy again If this resonated, I'd love to hear about it! Send me your own "waiting for the other shoe to drop" moment on Instagram or in the reviews. And if you know someone who's been white-knuckling their way through good moments since their loss, this one's for them, too. Learn more about Letters of Light 💌✨ https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters Support the show NEW! Letters of Light 💌✨ https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters Support the podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/lifewithgriefpodcast 📖 Life Beyond Grief Substack: https://taraaccardo.substack.com/ Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lossesbecomegains/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lifewithgriefpodcast/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/losses.become.gainsWebsite: https://lossesbecomegains.com/Work with me one-on-one: https://lossesbecomegains.com/work-with-taraShop the LBG Daily Journal: https://lossesbecomegains.com/journal By accessing this Podcast, I acknowledge that the entire contents are the property of Tara Accardo, or used by Tara Accardo with permission. Except as otherwise provided herein, users of this Podcast may save and use information contained in the Podcast only for personal or other non-commercial, educational ...

    231. How to Navigate Waiting for the Other Shoe to Drop After Loss

  4. Jul 16 ·  Video

    230. Life After Diagnosis: Amanda Lentz on Grief, Identity, and Rebuilding After Cancer

    Drop me a message or voice note! In this episode I sit down with Amanda Lentz, host of Who We Become: Life Beyond Change, to talk about something we don't say out loud enough: that surviving a life-threatening illness comes with its own kind of grief. Amanda found out she was BRCA-positive at 28. She felt a lump in 2020, and at 34 (in the middle of COVID), she was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer. In this conversation, she takes us through six months of chemo, a double mastectomy, six weeks of daily radiation, and a later hysterectomy to lower her risk. And, the layers of loss underneath all of it: facing her own mortality, grieving her body, going through menopause at 35, and missing years of her kids' childhood while she waited for her recurrence risk to drop. Amanda is five years in remission now, and she's honest with me about what's still there. The intrusive thoughts, the therapy, the community that held her, and how movement and intentional living have become part of how she heals. If you've ever felt like grief isn't just about death—if you're grieving a body, a version of yourself, a timeline you thought you'd have—this episode is for you. In this episode, we cover: ✨ Amanda's BRCA-positive diagnosis at 28  ✨ Being diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer at 34, during COVID ✨ What treatment really looked like ✨ The layered grief of mortality, early menopause, and body changes ✨ Grieving missed time with her kids while living in "wait and see" ✨ Life five years into remission—intrusive thoughts, therapy, and community ✨ How movement and intentional living became part of her healing ✨ How to support someone going through cancer treatment (patient or caregiver) Amanda's podcast, Who We Become: Life Beyond Change, digs into exactly this — who we become on the other side of change we didn't choose. Go find her show after you listen here. Connect with Amanda: https://www.amandalentz.com/https://www.instagram.com/lifebeyondchangehttps://www.youtube.com/@lifebeyondchangeLearn more about Letters of Light 💌✨ https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters Support the show NEW! Letters of Light 💌✨ https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters Support the podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/lifewithgriefpodcast 📖 Life Beyond Grief Substack: https://taraaccardo.substack.com/ Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lossesbecomegains/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lifewithgriefpodcast/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/losses.become.gainsWebsite: https://lossesbecomegains.com/Work with me one-on-one: https://lossesbecomegains.com/work-with-taraShop the LBG Daily Journal: https://lossesbecomegains.com/journal By accessing this Podcast, I acknowledge that the entire contents are the property of Tara Accardo, or used by Tara Accardo with permission. Except as otherwise provided herein, users of this Podcast may save and use information contained in the Podcast only for personal or other non-commercial, educational ...

  5. Jul 13 ·  Bonus Video

    BONUS! Introducing Letters of Light: Monthly Grief Support Born From Loss, Nostalgia & My Dad's Letters

    Drop me a message or voice note! Surprise! I'm popping in with a bonus episode, and I am SO excited about it! 🥹 Today I'm officially introducing you to something I've been quietly working on for months and cannot wait to get into your mailbox. It's called Letters of Light, and it's a monthly letter set created specifically for grievers. And in this quick bonus episode, I'm walking you through everything. The story behind it, the why, and exactly what you'll find inside every single envelope. This idea was born from so many places. From years of coaching grievers and noticing how much we all crave to truly feel seen. From finding old letters my dad wrote to my grandparents when he was in the Army in his early 20s. From being a millennial who grew up watching the internet come to life and now finds herself deeply craving something slower, more intentional, and more human. And, from becoming a mom and realizing how desperately I want to slow down time. In a world that is noisier and more digital than ever—and where AI seems to be everywhere—I wanted to create something that was the complete opposite of all of that. Something real, tangible, and that shows up for you every single month in your actual mailbox, from an actual human who has genuinely been there. ✨ The personal story behind Letters of Light ✨ Why I believe the grief space has been missing something really important (and why Letters of Light fills that) ✨ A full walkthrough of everything inside your Letters of Light envelope ✨ The letter: written entirely by me, handwritten first, then printed on beautiful linen cardstock, and signed personally by me with a note just for you ✨ The reflection card: a gentle monthly prompt to sit with, centered around that month's theme ✨ The affirmation card: printed on linen cardstock with a seasonal photo on one side, and a detailed affirmation on the other ✨ Why every single detail was chosen with complete intention ✨ How my background as a grief and soul purpose coach is woven into every piece Visit https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters for more information and to join us 💌✨  Support the show NEW! Letters of Light 💌✨ https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters Support the podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/lifewithgriefpodcast 📖 Life Beyond Grief Substack: https://taraaccardo.substack.com/ Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lossesbecomegains/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lifewithgriefpodcast/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/losses.become.gainsWebsite: https://lossesbecomegains.com/Work with me one-on-one: https://lossesbecomegains.com/work-with-taraShop the LBG Daily Journal: https://lossesbecomegains.com/journal By accessing this Podcast, I acknowledge that the entire contents are the property of Tara Accardo, or used by Tara Accardo with permission. Except as otherwise provided herein, users of this Podcast may save and use information contained in the Podcast only for personal or other non-commercial, educational ...

  6. Jul 9 ·  Video

    229. From Sudden Mom Loss to Good Mourning: Sally Douglas on Grieving and Building a Life After Loss

    Drop me a message or voice note! Sally's mum Rose died suddenly in November 2019 from a prolonged seizure. No warning, no goodbye, just a 6am phone call that flipped her world upside down. She and her now co-host, Imogen, met at a support group for motherless daughters and turned their shared grief into Good Mourning, a podcast built on honesty, humor, and refusing to make grief feel taboo. In this episode, we get into: ✨ Sally's story of sudden loss and how she and Imogen built Good Mourning from the ground up ✨ Grieving styles—the difference between "instrumental" (doing) grievers and "intuitive" (feeling) grievers, and why neither is wrong ✨ The physical side of grief nobody warns you about: exhaustion, brain fog, immune changes, and more ✨ How COVID complicated (and in some ways deepened) both of our grief journeys ✨ The special kind of hell that is "deadmin"—settling an estate while your heart is in pieces (plus a story involving a cake tin that will make you laugh out loud) ✨ The mind-body connection, breathwork, and one simple technique you can use anywhere to calm your nervous system ✨ Why the second (or third!) year of grief can hit harder than the first, and why that doesn't mean you're going backwards ✨ Sally's best advice for anyone in the thick of it right now Sally is proof that you can build a full, joyful life alongside your grief, not after it. I know this one's going to make you feel so seen. Connect with Sally: https://www.instagram.com/sallydouglasgrief/Learn more about Letters of Light 💌✨ https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters Support the show NEW! Letters of Light 💌✨ https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters Support the podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/lifewithgriefpodcast 📖 Life Beyond Grief Substack: https://taraaccardo.substack.com/ Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lossesbecomegains/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lifewithgriefpodcast/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/losses.become.gainsWebsite: https://lossesbecomegains.com/Work with me one-on-one: https://lossesbecomegains.com/work-with-taraShop the LBG Daily Journal: https://lossesbecomegains.com/journal By accessing this Podcast, I acknowledge that the entire contents are the property of Tara Accardo, or used by Tara Accardo with permission. Except as otherwise provided herein, users of this Podcast may save and use information contained in the Podcast only for personal or other non-commercial, educational ...

  7. Jul 6 ·  Video

    228. Why Grief Hurts: How Loss Shows Up in Your Body

    Drop me a message or voice note! Have you ever been deep in grief and wondered: why does my chest actually hurt? Why can't I sleep no matter how exhausted I am? Why do I feel like I'm getting sick all the time? If that's you, this episode is for you. In this episode, I'm breaking down how grief shows up physically in the body and, more importantly, why it happens. Drawing from Dr. Mary-Frances O'Connor's book The Grieving Body: How the Stress of Loss Can Be an Opportunity for Healing, I walk you through some of the most common physical symptoms grievers experience, the science behind them, and a few gentle ways to take care of yourself while your body is doing some of the hardest work of your life. Here's what we cover: ✨ Why grief is not just an emotional experience ✨ The role of attachment theory and how our loved ones were actually regulating our nervous systems while they were alive ✨ The difference between heartache and heartbreak ✨ How cortisol and stress hormones stay elevated long after a loss ✨ Why sleep becomes such a difficulty during grief ✨ How grief suppresses your immune system ✨ The gut-brain connection and how grief shows up at the dinner table ✨ Crying, including why it happens, what it does for our brains, and why I am a huge proponent of letting it out ✨ Five gentle, doable ways to support your body while it's grieving Whether you're in the thick of early grief, years out from a loss and still noticing physical effects, or supporting someone who is grieving, this episode is for you. 📖 The Grieving Body by Dr. Mary-Frances O'Connor → https://www.amazon.com/dp/0063338904 📖 The Grieving Brain by Dr. Mary-Frances O'Connor → https://www.amazon.com/Grieving-Brain-Surprising-Science-Learn-ebook/dp/B093ZZ7HZY 🎙️ Episode 213: Grief Brain / Brain Fog → https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/213-grief-brain-why-youre-so-forgetful-and-foggy-after-loss/id1688812587?i=1000763788105 Learn more about Letters of Light 💌✨ https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters Support the show NEW! Letters of Light 💌✨ https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters Support the podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/lifewithgriefpodcast 📖 Life Beyond Grief Substack: https://taraaccardo.substack.com/ Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lossesbecomegains/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lifewithgriefpodcast/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/losses.become.gainsWebsite: https://lossesbecomegains.com/Work with me one-on-one: https://lossesbecomegains.com/work-with-taraShop the LBG Daily Journal: https://lossesbecomegains.com/journal By accessing this Podcast, I acknowledge that the entire contents are the property of Tara Accardo, or used by Tara Accardo with permission. Except as otherwise provided herein, users of this Podcast may save and use information contained in the Podcast only for personal or other non-commercial, educational ...

    228. Why Grief Hurts: How Loss Shows Up in Your Body

  8. Jul 2 ·  Video

    227. Life Beyond Grief: A Reimagine Panel Conversation on Grief, Post-Traumatic Growth, and Reclaiming Joy

    Drop me a message or voice note! What happens after the heaviest part of grief begins to lift and how do you actually start to feel alive again without feeling guilty about it? In this special episode, I had the honor of joining four incredible women for a Reimagine roundtable panel on life beyond deep grief. Together, we explored what it really looks like to move from surviving loss to slowly, imperfectly re-engaging with life—not by "moving on," but by holding both the sorrow and the joy at the same time. In this episode, you'll hear from: ✨ Nina Rodriguez, who lost her brother in 2019 and now integrates his legacy through her grief work with Grief and Light ✨ Kera Sanchez, who lost her mom in 2022 and recently lost her father-in-law, and channels grief alongside gratitude through Get Griefy Magazine ✨ Imogen ("Im"), co-founder of Good Mourning, who lost her mother to suicide in 2020 and is a powerful voice for somatic healing in grief ✨ Blair Kaplan, our host who brings her Navigating Grief Framework, the Global Resilience Project, and her own experience with multiple losses including separation ✨ And me, Tara Accardo, Grief and Soul Purpose Coach, founder of Losses Become Gains, and someone who has lost both of my parents and my beloved fur baby We dive deep into: ✨ The "both/and" of grief—holding sadness and joy without toxic positivity or pressure to "move on" ✨ What post-traumatic growth actually looks and feels like (including the friendships you lose along the way and the boundaries you find) ✨ Continued bonds with our loved ones—signs, mediums, and the ways they stay present ✨ Non-death losses and why they deserve just as much space (yes, including divorce and separation) ✨ The role of time, community, and nervous system regulation in grief healing ✨ Meaning-making and how we begin to find purpose after loss We also opened it up to the audience for real-time takeaways. If you've ever wondered whether it's okay to feel joy again, whether you're "healing right," or whether life can still hold beauty after devastating loss, this episode is for you. 🔗 https://letsreimagine.org/ 🔗 https://www.instagram.com/getgriefymagazine/ 🔗 https://www.instagram.com/griefandlight/ 🔗 https://www.instagram.com/blairfromblairland/ 🔗 https://www.instagram.com/healwithim/ Learn more about Letters of Light 💌✨ https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters Support the show NEW! Letters of Light 💌✨ https://lossesbecomegains.com/letters Support the podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/lifewithgriefpodcast 📖 Life Beyond Grief Substack: https://taraaccardo.substack.com/ Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lossesbecomegains/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lifewithgriefpodcast/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/losses.become.gainsWebsite: https://lossesbecomegains.com/Work with me one-on-one: https://lossesbecomegains.com/work-with-taraShop the LBG Daily Journal: https://lossesbecomegains.com/journal By accessing this Podcast, I acknowledge that the entire contents are the property of Tara Accardo, or used by Tara Accardo with permission. Except as otherwise provided herein, users of this Podcast may save and use information contained in the Podcast only for personal or other non-commercial, educational ...

See All (237)

Trailer

4.4
out of 5
57 Ratings

About

Welcome to the Life With Grief Podcast! I'm your host and Grief & Soul Purpose Coach, Tara Accardo. I created Life With Grief and this community to normalize the complexities of grief, navigate life after loss, feel inspired along the way, and so much more.Consider this your safe space where you feel seen, validated, and supported. I'm in this with you as a fellow griever who lost both parents to cancer before I turned 30 (six months apart, no less), lost my fur baby less than a year later, and experienced a traumatic birth. I'm here to walk this path with you as we we work together and dig into how to live a fulfilling, vibrant life with grief in tow. I warmly invite you to tap into the world of healing with me and some truly incredible guests as you take in guidance, support, tangible coping tools, and uplifting conversations to help you cultivate a more meaningful, intentional existence.Be sure you're subscribed for laughs, life lessons, and everything in between... even beyond the grief, life is so much more than what we've lost, too. Leave me a voice message, too! https://www.speakpipe.com/LifeWithGrief

Information

You Might Also Like