Shapes Of Grief

In this episode Mary discusses the multifaceted aspects of menopause, the losses associated with menopause, ambiguous loss as well as the release of her new book; Seven Steps to Birth a Crone. She explores the physical and emotional changes, the challenges and triumphs and the unique ways she’s embraced this transition . This episode focuses on the impact of menopause on self-esteem, relationships, and self-identity.

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In this episode, Tasha opens up about her experience of pregnancy loss and then loosing another child to adoption, and how that impacted her life as a young teenager.

Tasha discusses her experience of the #DisenfranchisedGrief she suffered for years, without realizing that's what she was experiencing, until the deaths of two sist...

June 20th is World Refugee Day

I am so lucky and privileged to live in a country that is not threatened by war. My children are safe, have access to good education and have their human rights supported and protected. Not everyone is so lucky. Many people in the world live under the daily threat of war, violence or poverty. When home is no longer safe, many people make the impossible decision to risk their family's lives by seek...

No twenty three year old, starting out on married life, expects to be widowed so young, but that is what happened Lucy. After her husband died, not only did she lose him, but also the family and friends that surrounded her - she was from the 'wrong' tribe. Lucy generously shares her experience of her life after loss, navigating domestic violence and ultimately fleeing with her three young children to the safety of Ireland. ...

This is such an important perspective that hasn't yet been explicitly been explored by the podcast. In this episode, Mandy Gosling shares her experience of being a bereaved child after her mother died when she was aged 9. We explore how this early loss can impact a person's life, affecting their relationships and sense of self in the world. Grief has not always been supported well, and certainly, for several generations of ...

The pain of losing a child can trigger immensely distressing emotions. In the aftermath of a child's death, it is common for bereaved parents to feel that life no longer has purpose or meaning. In this conversation, Tony generously shares the story of his son Jake's sudden death, how Tony's past and environment shaped his experience of grief, how his anger nearly killed him and how a moment of grace would save his life ...

Often called 'The forgotten grievers', there is no name for someone who has lost a sibling. They regularly hear 'how is your mum?' or 'how is your dad?', but rarely 'how are you?'. For a sibling, the loss can be enormous. Not only have they been bereaved of someone they have known probably for most or all of their lives, but they have also lost a version of their parents or family that existed before...

Jackie Furlong describes the immense psychological and emotional challenges of coping with the profound impact of her daughter's death, without the benefit of emotional literacy. It would be years after her loss that Jackie would learn how to grieve. Jackie's thesis was an autobiography - Giving Voice to Grief. The question she researched - Is there a path through the grieving process where we can find a deeper understanding of wha...

Liz and Kathy talk about Kathy's experience of multiple miscarriages and how devastating it was to not have a much-wanted third child. Kathy talks about how harmful the process became for her and how she found her sanity again, in the wilds of Donegal. Buy Kathy's newly published book 'Finding my Wild' from Easons here.

‘Life had brought me to the edge of myself and here I was feeling like I was on the edge of the world.’

After mov...

I have been following the research of Dr Mary-Frances O’Connor for almost a decade now, so I was absolutely delighted when she published her book ‘The Grieving Brain’ last year. I am always hungry to learn about grief and specifically, what can the science tell us about how to make sure we are supporting the bereaved in the most compassionate and effective way possible. This book affirmed a lot of what I experience in clinical prac...

Phoenix talks about their grief following family estrangement because of their LGBTQ identity. This is a kind of disenfranchised grief that many LGBTQ+ people experience with little to no recognition or support from society. Life can change in an instant, yet the loss remains ambiguous because nobody has died. #ambiguousloss #disenfranchisedgrief

"I am white-anglo, living on unceded Turrbal and Jaggera lands in a place called Meanj...

Sacha and Liz discuss childhood cancer, anticipatory grief and the misunderstandings that often surround incurable disease. They talk about the different meanings between incurable, terminal, palliative care and end-of-life. Sacha describes what is was like going through anticipatory grief and how her son wanted to speak about his death in ways that would surprise her.  #childhoodcancerawarenessmonth #childhoodcancer #anticipa...

A conversation about some of the needs of bereaved people and why Grief.Coach texting service could be a wonderful balm for people during their most vulnerable months and years. 

About Shapes of Grief:

Shapes of Grief is an internationally recognized organization dedicated to enhancing competency around loss, grief and bereavement literacy. Curated by Psychotherapist and grief specialist Liz Gleeson, Shapes of Grief equips ind...

Order your copy of ‘Poems for when you can’t find the words’ here

In this episode, I speak to Mary Shine Thompson about the power of poetry at end-of-life and during times of grief. We also talk about her personal experiences of loss; how the death of her brother as young adults reshaped her life, and how the death of her mother at age 93, brought with it a profound grief. It’s another beautiful conversation that looks at yet more ...

Sometimes I wish the world were a little smaller, so I could meet my guests in person. Adriana is one of those people who I’d love to spend time with. This, for me, was a beautiful, insightful, honest and tender conversation about humanity, addiction, love, capacity to show up in the face off death, or not, and finding our feet again, literally, after profound loss. #cancer #addictionandloss #death #grief #movement #dancinggrief

Bi...

This interview really hit me in the guts. It is sometimes a roll of the dice how our lives can unfold. Damien’s story is an incredible story of resilience and determination in the face of loss and hopelessness. Following a significant childhood trauma, at the age of 14, Damien found himself sole carer for his younger brother in a new country without any supports. What followed were years of addiction, criminality & an overdose ...

Rosie Mankes’s mother has had dementia for ten years. She had to be transitioned into assisted living, and then into memory care. And little by little, Rosie has had to watch her mother go. She recently wrote an article (https://thriveglobal.com/stories/what-i-wish-i-knew-when-i-transitioned-my-mom-into-an-assisted-living-facility/) about this deeply troubling experience that more and more of us are going to have to go through. It ...

Mary brings a whole other perspective to the podcast with this very tender and beautiful episode. Two ‘giants’ in her life, Fr John and Brendan were more than Uncles to Mary. They were constant forces of good, founts of wisdom and a huge part of her life. When Fr John developed vascular dementia, Mary found herself in the role of carer. Shortly after his death, Brendan too was diagnosed with a different form of dementia and once ag...