Today I chat with Rebecca Feinglos, grief expert and founder of Grieve Leave. Rebecca is a certified grief support specialist, startup founder, and former state and local policy advisor. Rebecca founded Grieve Leave in 2021 as a way to document her experience on a year-long grief sabbatical, and process her own grief and loss— she lost her mother in her teens, her father suddenly in 2020, and her marriage in a drawn-out divorce. Grieve Leave has grown into a global community of 30,000 with online reach well into the millions that provides tangible takeaways, resources, and a healthy dose of humor, creating an entire movement around taking intentional time to grieve.
Rebecca and I chat about:
- How friend-loss is a disenfranchised grief, and how that affects our grieving process
- Rebecca’s dear friend Courtney, who died 3 weeks before recording this episode – the complexity of the grief, Courtney’s celebration of life, and more
- The state of bereavement leave in workplaces (spoiler alert: it’s not great), and how it could be better
- If you’re unsure whether or not you should attend the funeral – attend the funeral!
- Grief is not logical
- The limit to grief (and love) do not exist!
- How grief can coexist with joy
- And more!
Resources:
To get in touch with Rebecca or learn more about her, check out her website, podcast, and socials!
Website: Grieveleave.com
Podcast: Grief'd Up The Podcast
Socials: @grieveleave
Rebecca’s book recommendation:
Grief is Love by Marisa Renee Lee
Some of my fave quotes from this episode:
“Grief will suffocate you if you don't make room for it.”
“We need more grief-informed workplaces.”
“Grief and love are totally intertwined.”
“Always go to the funeral.”
“Grief isn't logical.”
“Your grief is valid, no matter the relationship.”
“The limit to grief does not exist.” (catch the Mean Girls reference here?)
“A life well lived is full of grief.”
“You have built close relationships with people if you are grieving.”
“The grief that we feel is totally parallel to the amount of joy we’ve experienced in our lives.”
Get in touch:
Thank you for listening to Friends Missing Friends. If you enjoyed it, please follow/subscribe, leave stars and a review—it’s so appreciated, and it helps the podcast reach more listeners!
If you’re interested in being a part of a friend-grief group, fill out the interest form at friendsmissingfriends.com/griefgroup
Email: friendsmissingfriends@gmail.com
Instagram: @friendsmissingfriends
Website: friendsmissingfriends.com
Spotify for Podcasts page: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/friendsmissingfriends
Leave a VM at FMF’s google voice number: 312-291-1781
Feel free to reach out, by email or VM. I will respond! (And if you want me to share it on the podcast, be sure to explicitly give me permission to do so. Thanks y’all! Sending you love!).
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Ruthie's Table 4
For more than 30 years The River Cafe in London, has been the home-from-home of artists, architects, designers, actors, collectors, writers, activists, and politicians. Michael Caine, Glenn Close, JJ Abrams, Steve McQueen, Victoria and David Beckham, and Lily Allen, are just some of the people who love to call The River Cafe home. On River Cafe Table 4, Rogers sits down with her customers—who have become friends—to talk about food memories. Table 4 explores how food impacts every aspect of our lives. “Foods is politics, food is cultural, food is how you express love, food is about your heritage, it defines who you and who you want to be,” says Rogers. Each week, Rogers invites her guest to reminisce about family suppers and first dates, what they cook, how they eat when performing, the restaurants they choose, and what food they seek when they need comfort. And to punctuate each episode of Table 4, guests such as Ralph Fiennes, Emily Blunt, and Alfonso Cuarón, read their favourite recipe from one of the best-selling River Cafe cookbooks. Table 4 itself, is situated near The River Cafe’s open kitchen, close to the bright pink wood-fired oven and next to the glossy yellow pass, where Ruthie oversees the restaurant. You are invited to take a seat at this intimate table and join the conversation. For more information, recipes, and ingredients, go to https://shoptherivercafe.co.uk/ Web: https://rivercafe.co.uk/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/therivercafelondon/ Facebook: https://en-gb.facebook.com/therivercafelondon/ For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iheartradio app, apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.