84 episodes

About Show
Grief is a Sneaky Bitch creator and host Lisa Keefauver brings her deep curiosity, love of conversation, and knowledge of how language and culture shapes our experiences of ourselves and our world (including our grief) to each unscripted conversation. From thought leaders, CEO's and social workers to authors, educators, researchers, filmmakers and stay-at-home moms, her guests open up about the complexity, confusion, and even confidence they have gained by navigating a grief journey of their own.
And in case you’re new to the show, yes this is a podcast all about grief. She and her guests explore the expansiveness and pervasiveness of grief in our lives, because let’s face it, 100% of us experience grief, multiple times in our lives. Lisa witnessed it time and time again in her career as a social worker and in her personal life too with the most significant loss being her husband in 2011. And yet, individually, and collectively, we’re so grief-illiterate and that is causing us all harm. So, she's on a mission to reimagine grief, one conversation at a time. So glad you’re joining us.

About Host
WATCH her TEDx talk, Why Knowing More About Grief Can Make it Suck Less
PRE-ORDER her book, Grief is a Sneaky Bitch: An Uncensored Guide to Navigating Loss
WATCH her Media Maker Profile to learn about her WHY
Learn more about working with Lisa Keefauver by visiting www.lisakeefauver.com and follow on social media @lisakeefauvermsw
 
If you like this series, please make sure to leave a rating and write a review TODAY on Apple Podcasts.
If you've found the show helpful, consider becoming a GSB Podcast Supporter here
 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Grief is a Sneaky Bitch Lisa Keefauver, MSW

    • Health & Fitness
    • 4.7 • 255 Ratings

About Show
Grief is a Sneaky Bitch creator and host Lisa Keefauver brings her deep curiosity, love of conversation, and knowledge of how language and culture shapes our experiences of ourselves and our world (including our grief) to each unscripted conversation. From thought leaders, CEO's and social workers to authors, educators, researchers, filmmakers and stay-at-home moms, her guests open up about the complexity, confusion, and even confidence they have gained by navigating a grief journey of their own.
And in case you’re new to the show, yes this is a podcast all about grief. She and her guests explore the expansiveness and pervasiveness of grief in our lives, because let’s face it, 100% of us experience grief, multiple times in our lives. Lisa witnessed it time and time again in her career as a social worker and in her personal life too with the most significant loss being her husband in 2011. And yet, individually, and collectively, we’re so grief-illiterate and that is causing us all harm. So, she's on a mission to reimagine grief, one conversation at a time. So glad you’re joining us.

About Host
WATCH her TEDx talk, Why Knowing More About Grief Can Make it Suck Less
PRE-ORDER her book, Grief is a Sneaky Bitch: An Uncensored Guide to Navigating Loss
WATCH her Media Maker Profile to learn about her WHY
Learn more about working with Lisa Keefauver by visiting www.lisakeefauver.com and follow on social media @lisakeefauvermsw
 
If you like this series, please make sure to leave a rating and write a review TODAY on Apple Podcasts.
If you've found the show helpful, consider becoming a GSB Podcast Supporter here
 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Claire Bidwell Smith | Invitation to Conscious Grieving

    Claire Bidwell Smith | Invitation to Conscious Grieving

    In this episode, I bring you my conversation with the wise and warm grief therapist and author, Claire Bidwell Smith.
    There are some common themes most grievers experience, regardless of the source of their loss. These include things like a loss of self-identity, heightened feelings of guilt, time spent ruminating on the what ifs, and increased anxiety and fear. What makes these typical experiences even more challenging is that they are so rarely named by others, or shown in media, and so we often feel even further isolated from the world and uncertain how to get ourselves unstuck.
     
    That’s why I’m so grateful for Claire’s words and wisdom. In her recent book Conscious Grieving, and in our conversation, Claire opens up about her personal experiences with these themes in the wake of the death of both of her parents in her 20’s. Over the course of her career as a grief therapist both in private practice and hospice, she has gained such deep insight on how we move through various phases in grief, or orientations as she calls them. She helps us unpack what we might face in each and the roadblocks that can get in our way. From the insights she shares to her soft and warm voice, you are going to feel guided with care through today’s conversation.
     
    Resources
    Check out Claire’s body of work, including Conscious Grieving (her 5th book), hitting bookstores March 12th. If you’re listening before then, you don’t have to wait, you can pre-order it today on your favorite online bookseller. Also, Claire offers a wide array of workshops, retreats, and more, so head over to clairebidwellsmith.com to learn more.
     
    Host Lisa Keefauver’s forthcoming book Grief is a Sneaky Bitch: An Uncensored Guide to Navigating Loss IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble or Bookshop.org. Drop her a DM on Instagram @lisakeefauvermsw to let her know you did and she’ll send you a party invite to her Book Launch Celebration
     
    Visit www.lisakeefauver.com to learn more about Lisa, sign up for her Not-So-Regular Newsletter, register for an upcoming online grief workshop or watch her TEDx talk, Why Knowing More About Grief Can Make it Suck Less.
     
    Oh, and this season, if you want to WATCH the show, you can now watch it on YouTube @lisakeefauvermsw
     
    Recorded December 1, 2023

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 1 hr 13 min
    Devin Moss | You Are Loved. You Are Not Alone

    Devin Moss | You Are Loved. You Are Not Alone

    My conversation with guest Devin Moss was so rich and expansive, from our shared passion for the big existential questions to his rich and complex podcast series, Momento Mori (that dives deep into mortality), to his unexpected journey to becoming a Humanist Chaplain. He shares one of the most unique experiences of a bedside death I’ve ever heard. Soon after becoming certified Devin said yes to a request from an inmate on death row to have a non-theist chaplain accompany him in his final months on earth.
     
    Devin Sean Moss is a Humanist (nontheist) Chaplain unwavering in his pursuit to relate stories that connect us to our humanity. A natural explorer, he uses playful inquisition to examine the complexity of the human condition and the intrinsic meaning of life. Moss maintains an interdisciplinary practice of storytelling, street philosophy, and practical altruism. 
    In 2015, Moss created The Adventures of Memento Mori podcast.. The consequence of this deep meditation on impermanence was life-changing. Uncertain of what happens after we die, Moss has dedicated his life to the positive changes that can happen while we’re still alive.
     Resources
    You can learn more about Devin’s podcast, Momento Mori, and his work by visiting dsmoss.com or following him on Instagram at ds_moss
     
    Host Lisa Keefauver’s forthcoming book Grief is a Sneaky Bitch: An Uncensored Guide to Navigating Loss IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble or Bookshop.org. Drop her a DM on Instagram @lisakeefauvermsw to let her know you did and she’ll send you a party invite to her Book Launch Celebration
     
    Visit www.lisakeefauver.com to learn more about Lisa, sign up for her Not-So-Regular Newsletter, register for an upcoming online grief workshop or watch her TEDx talk, Why Knowing More About Grief Can Make it Suck Less.
     
    Oh, and this season, if you want to WATCH the show, you can now watch it on YouTube @lisakeefauvermsw
     
    Recorded January 26,2024

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 1 hr 35 min
    Darnell Lamont Walker | Toward Healing & Happiness

    Darnell Lamont Walker | Toward Healing & Happiness

    Darnell Lamont Walker joined me for an expansive conversation in this episode - from the questions you might want to ask yourself and others in life instead of waiting until death’s door, to the complex and layered experiences of grief and loss in the Black community, to the power of creativity and play as a tool of healing.
     
    Darnell is an Emmy-Nominated children's television writer who understands the power of representation and joy, creating content in hopes that all children get the opportunity to not only see themselves, but see how incredible they are and can be. Darnell has written for outstanding shows, including PBS Kids’ Work It Out Wombats!, Netflix’s Karma’s World, and Nickelodeon’s Blue’s Clues & You.
     
    He’s a death doula, helping individuals and communities move through grief and toward healing and happiness. Darnell’s goal with his is to continue to support children, adults, and whole communities around the world through the building of safe and happy spaces.
     
    ResourcesYou can learn more about the work Darnell offers from his courses at the Esalen Insitute, to writing projects, his work as a Death Doula and so much more by visiting www.darnellwalker.com or following him on Instagram at hello.darnell
     
    Host Lisa Keefauver’s forthcoming book Grief is a Sneaky Bitch: An Uncensored Guide to Navigating Loss IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble or Bookshop.org. Drop her a DM on Instagram @lisakeefauvermsw to let her know you did and she’ll send you a party invite to her Book Launch Celebration
     
    Visit www.lisakeefauver.com to learn more about Lisa, sign up for her Not-So-Regular Newsletter, register for an upcoming online grief workshop or watch her TEDx talk, Why Knowing More About Grief Can Make it Suck Less.
     
    Oh, and this season, if you want to WATCH the show, you can now watch it on YouTube @lisakeefauvermsw
     
    Recorded January 26,2024
     

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 1 hr 5 min
    Asa Merritt | Six Sermons

    Asa Merritt | Six Sermons

    As my guest, Asa Merritt knows, it's important that we see, hear, experience a wider expanse of grief stories that show the messy, beautiful, dynamic experience of a wide variety of losses.
    That’s why I’m thrilled to share my recent conversation with him. In his most recent project, Six Sermons, a new Audible Original series starring Stephanie Hsu from Everything Everywhere All At Once, Asa spent a month embedded with a team of pastors at a Lutheran church in Cincinnati, OH. Six Sermons is dedicated to the actor and musician Caz Liske, who died by suicide in Moscow in 2017. He weaves his own personal process of grappling with anger, frustration, sorrow, and confusion he experienced after the death of his friend into a powerful narrative that models for all of us the messy, vulnerable, and important conversations we need to have to move forward in our grief, particularly in the wake of a loss by suicide.
     
    Asa is a former international reporter for NPR, VICE Sports, The Guardian and ESPN’s 30 for 30 podcast. Asa brings a compassionate documentary eye to ambitious fictional projects.
     
    Resources 
    You can download Six Sermon’s, an audible original by visiting www.audible.com.
     
    If you’d like to learn more about the principles and practices of exploring your story in a healing way, I encourage you to check out my conversation with Dr. Annie Brewster entitled The Healing Power of Storytelling in Season 3 – 2022. I also HIGHLY recommend her book of the same title. You can find a link to her book and all those featured on this podcast at my Grief is a Sneaky Bitch podcast at lisakeefauver.com
     
    Host Lisa Keefauver’s forthcoming book Grief is a Sneaky Bitch: An Uncensored Guide to Navigating Loss IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble or Bookshop.org. Drop her a DM on Instagram @lisakeefauvermsw to let her know you did and she’ll send you a party invite to her Book Launch Celebration
     
    Visit www.lisakeefauver.com to learn more about Lisa, sign up for her Not-So-Regular Newsletter, register for an upcoming online grief workshop or watch her TEDx talk, Why Knowing More About Grief Can Make it Suck Less.
     
    Oh, and this season, if you want to WATCH the show, you can now watch it on YouTube @lisakeefauvermsw
     
    Recorded January 19, 2024
     

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 1 hr 9 min
    Honoring Your Not All Better Yet Days | Bonus Interactive Episode

    Honoring Your Not All Better Yet Days | Bonus Interactive Episode

    In this interactive bonus episode, host Lisa Keefauver invites listeners to reflect on the importance of honoring or creating ritual for the anniversaries of the day their lives changed - even when they're “not all better yet.” This episode emerged after the overwhelming feedback she received from an essay she recently shared called “Honoring the ‘Not All Better Yet’ Anniversaries” about the one-year anniversary of her Breast Cancer Diagnosis. In this episode, listeners are:Guided through a compassion meditation,Invited to hold space for Lisa’s story of honoring the anniversary of her Breast Cancer diagnosis,Given a series of questions that will help them create their own ritual for honoring their "not all better yet" anniversaries,Read a short excerpt on the topic of starting close in from her forthcoming book, Grief is a Sneaky Bitch: An Uncensored Guide to Navigating Loss. 
     “But what struck me last month is the lack of acknowledgment or ritual for those before/after days where we’re not in the “after” yet. How do we honor the time that’s passed since our lives shifted when we’re still in the middle of that change? When there is still a force in motion, and we haven’t arrived at the other side. For me, that day was last month on the one-year anniversary of the day I got my Breast Cancer diagnosis. One year later and I’m not all better yet, I’m not on the other side.” - Lisa Keefauver 
    Resources: 
    You can find all the books featured on the show by visiting the Grief is a Sneaky Bitch Wishlist on Bookshop.org
     
    Host Lisa Keefauver’s forthcoming book Grief is a Sneaky Bitch: An Uncensored Guide to Navigating Loss IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble or Bookshop.org. Drop her a DM on Instagram @lisakeefauvermsw to let her know you did, and she’ll send you a party invite to her Book Launch Celebration
     
    Visit www.lisakeefauver.com to learn more about Lisa, sign up for her Not-So-Regular Newsletter, register for an upcoming online grief workshop or watch her TEDx talk, Why Knowing More About Grief Can Make it Suck Less.
     
    Recorded February 6, 2024

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 39 min
    J.J. Duncan | Stories Create Openings

    J.J. Duncan | Stories Create Openings

    My guest, J.J. Duncan, knows firsthand both professionally and personally how powerful storytelling is and the openings they create. She is an award-winning television producer, writer, advocate, and co-founder of the nonprofit, “Not Today Cancer,” which raises funds for childhood cancer research. J.J. is widely known in the entertainment industry as an Executive Producer and Showrunner of such hits as Project Runway, and The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning, among others.
     
    After losing her eleven-year-old son Mason to leukemia, J.J. also became known as a childhood cancer advocate, using her influence as a top television producer to open up the very real human discussions of grief, mental health, and end-of-life care through storytelling. J.J. was a speaker at the EndWell conference in November of 2023, where she spoke about healing through personal storytelling. On multiple visits to Capitol Hill, J.J. has told her story to Congress in order to advocate for childhood cancer laws, and she has multiple projects in the works to continue the conversation for anyone looking to explore their own stories of loss.
     
    With all her focus on loss, it may be surprising to learn that J.J. risks delight at every turn, always looking for the funny and striving to take the story to an unexpected place of joy. You can learn about J.J. Duncan by checking out her Endwell interview here.
     
     
    Resources and Support:In honor of our conversation about childhood cancer, I want to share links to 2 non-profits who are working to find the cure for childhood cancer while also supporting children and families enduring it now.
     
    Learn more and consider supporting, Not Today Cancer at www.nottodaycancer.care
    Learn more about and support the Phoenix Stone Foundation at https://phoenixstonefoundation.org
     
    You can find all the books featured on the show by visiting the Grief is a Sneaky Bitch Wishlist on Bookshop.org
     
    Host Lisa Keefauver’s forthcoming book Grief is a Sneaky Bitch: An Uncensored Guide to Navigating Loss IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble or Bookshop.org. Drop her a DM on Instagram @lisakeefauvermsw to let her know you did and she’ll send you a party invite to her Book Launch Celebration
     
    Visit www.lisakeefauver.com to learn more about Lisa, sign up for her Not-So-Regular Newsletter, register for an upcoming online grief workshop or watch her TEDx talk, Why Knowing More About Grief Can Make it Suck Less.
     
    Oh, and this season, if you want to WATCH the show, you can now watch it on YouTube @lisakeefauvermsw
     
    Recorded January 5, 2023
     
     

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 1 hr 24 min

Customer Reviews

4.7 out of 5
255 Ratings

255 Ratings

Ali Moncrieff ,

Support in a wickedly challenging moment

I began by cherrypicking from these amazing podcast episodes—ones that seemed to fit with what I needed as I navigated traveling to see my gravely ill brother on the heels of losing our Dad and our family home. Then I just ended up listening to whichever one came next because they’re all so good. There are so many profound pearls of reality and wisdom in these conversations, and I am so grateful to have found Lisa’s podcast. As I travel this path, I honestly have a ton of fear. And I am in awe of the energy that has allowed me to be just where I am with my brother. Lisa‘s particular grace and communication around grief have really helped support me in this wickedly challenging moment. Thank you, thank you so much. 🙏🏼

Chelsea London Lloyd ,

What a great podcast!

So glad to have found Lisa’s content. My mom has been battling breast cancer so listening to this show has helped me learn more about the pov of someone with cancer who has also experienced loss, thanks Lisa for what you’re doing!

Iluvbug1 ,

Beautiful

I have so far lost my little sister to a drug in 2011, my dad to suicide in 2017, and my mom to dementia last month… I am no stranger to grief. This podcast helps me feel less alone. It’s just full of gorgeous conversations with amazing people…I’m in awe of these stories and with the host,
Lisa, as well, who walks the guests in a beautiful way through their stories… thank you Lisa!!

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