Unlocking Joy After Grief | Christian Grief Support, Life After Child Loss, Bereavement, Hope and Healing for Grieving Moms

Unlocking Joy After Grief | Christian Grief Support, Life After Child Loss, Bereavement, Hope and Healing for Grieving Moms

Does the thought of having to live in a world without your child cripple you? Do you lay awake at night with the ”what if’s” and the ”why’s” constantly playing in your mind, wondering if you’ll ever feel peace again? Does everything seem hard, even the little things? Do you just want someone to understand how you feel? I see you friend. In this podcast you will find the hope you’re looking for, the healing you’re longing for, and the key to living again after losing your child, all through the only way it’s possible - Jesus. Hi, I’m Courtney. Wife and mama to 6 kiddos, 1 in heaven waiting for us - and that’s why I’m here. I lost my precious 4 year old son, Sam, in 2017 and the pain and grief that instantly took over was crippling. Everything I went through after that horrific night threatened to consume me. But here I am. Years have passed. And the ONLY.WAY. I made it through was Jesus. His strength and his love carried me through a time that I could NOT have carried myself. His goodness and faithfulness were my life preservers that kept me from drowning. The hope and healing I was searching for was found in him. And it’s my joy to share with you everything this journey has taught me so far. Get ready for encouragement for your faith, tactical tips in dealing with your grief, finding hope and healing for your shattered heart, and learning how to live again. If you are screaming YES to not having to walk this road alone and letting Jesus carry you through, then I’m ready to lace up my shoes and begin walking this road with you. Learn >> www.unlockingjoy.com Connect >> courtney@unlockingjoy.com Facebook >> @unlockingjoy Instagram >> @unlockingjoy Get to know God’s Character with this Free 30 day Scripture Calendar >> www.unlockingjoy.com/godscharacter

Episodes

August 21, 2025 18 mins

Can AI actually help in your grief journey? 

 

In today’s episode, I’m sharing 3 ways you can use AI tools like ChatGPT to support your healing. Whether that’s writing letters to your child, finding comforting scripture, or even processing the emotions that feel too heavy to carry alone. This isn’t about replacing your faith or community, it’s about having a gentle tool available whenever you need it.

 

If you’re curious how techno...

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Have you ever tried doing something you once loved, only to find it doesn't feel the same after losing your child?

 

In this episode, we talk about the part of grief that no one talks about. I’ll share my own experience and walk you through why this happens, what it means, and how we can get through it. If you feel like you don’t even know who you are anymore - this one’s for you.

 

🔗Links Mentioned in Episode:

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Summer doesn’t have to be busy to be beautiful. In this episode, I’m sharing simple and practical ways to create a peaceful, joyful summer - even if life feels overwhelming.

Let’s talk about how to slow down, be present in the little things, and choose joy in this season. You don’t have to do it all. 

Let’s make space for what really matters.

🔗Links Mentioned in Episode: The Power of Distractions in Your Grief Journey What are You...

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Do you ever have those days where everything feels heavy and you're just trying to make it through the day? I see you friend.

In this episode, I’m want to share some encouragement for you on these days that come in our grief. And give you some simple tips to help you keep going when you feel like giving up.

If you're grieving, overwhelmed, or just tired, I want you to know - you’re not alone, and it’s okay to not be okay.

Let’s wal...

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Grief can feel overwhelming when you’re just starting your journey, and you may be wondering where to begin. Are you feeling lost or unsure of how to take your first steps toward healing? 

In this episode, I’m sharing 6 essential tools and resources that can help guide you through this difficult time and provide support along the way. Stay tuned to discover what could make a difference in your grief journey.

🔗Links Mentioned in Ep...

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The holiday season is so hard when you’re walking through the grief that comes with losing your child. 

Just getting through this season seems hard enough. Thinking about feeling joy too? I know it seems impossible. 

But that’s why I wanted to bring you this episode. To not only tell you it is possible to feel joy during this season, but also to give you 4 ways you can experience that joy this season. 

✨Free Resources:

Find all of ...

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This time of year brings about all sorts of emotions, especially as grieving parents. This year, it’s causing me to really think about what’s important in my life. What are my priorities? Am I spending enough time in my life doing what matters most to me? 

How can you answer that? Is your life so busy that at the end of the day, you look back and think “I didn’t do anything that really mattered to me”. 

If so, friends, this episode...

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Have you ever felt like you’re just barely keeping your head above water in your grief? Like no matter what you do, you’re sinking deeper and deeper? Maybe you’re wondering if you’ll ever catch a break or breathe a little easier again. 

I so understand you friend.

In this episode, I want to share three ways to help you rise above the waves, take a breath, and start moving forward - even in those moments when it feels impossible. 

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Prayer is something we know we need to do daily. Connecting our hearts with God, praying protection over ourselves and our family. 

We know that it's crucial to our relationship with Jesus, to talk with him daily. But sometimes it can seem hard to "fit it in" with the busyness of life. 

In this episode I wanted to bring you 3 creative ways that you can infuse prayer not just in your mornings, but throughout your entire day. 

🔗Link...

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Are you facing something new in your life? A new job? Moving to a new house? Or simply just making new memories?

Experiencing new things in your life without your child can be so hard. It can be difficult to wade through all the emotions that come with it. 

Here are 3 things you can do to help you face whatever “new” you’re getting ready to experience in your life. 

✨Free Resources:

31 Days of God’s Character Scripture Calendar Fin...

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Grief can be so heavy and overwhelming. It can be hard to see our way through it, especially in the early days. And grief also takes a toll on us mentally to where we just can’t do or think about doing anything complicated. 

So how do we make it through an emotion that’s so heavy with a mental capacity to not doing anything complicated? 

No worries friend. In this episode I give you 3 simple, easy things you can do to lessen the ov...

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Have you been struggling with the state of the world right now? Have you been wrestling with the uncertainty of the future? How is it all going to work out when it seems impossible right now?

Well friends, this episode is for you! God has shown me something that I’m so excited to share with you. Something that I believe will give you peace even in the midst of an unknown future. 

Plus I share with you some scriptures that I’m speak...

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A few years back I had a fresh revelation of a very familiar story in the Bible. This story reminds us how Jesus meets us in the hardest moments and offers us something incredible in return. 

He doesn’t leave us alone in this messy life, but is so close to us. 

If you're looking for hope and a reminder of Jesus' constant presence in your life, this episode is for you.

🔗Links Mentioned in Episode: How Close is God in Your Grief? 4 ...

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There’s a verse that has been such a big part of my grief journey. I have felt the promise that this verse gives us over and over again. 

 

However, recently I heard a different take on this verse that blew me away. I couldn’t wait to share it with you. 

 

In this episode, we dive into the closeness of the Father in our grief, and I bring you 4 ways you can know that he’s near.

 

✨Free Resources:

31 Days of God’s Character Scriptur...

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Feeling peace in the middle of your grief can seem impossible. However, when we look in the Bible it’s full of promises of peace that we can claim over our grief and pain and sadness. 

 

I’ve experienced this peace in my own grief journey, the peace that doesn’t make sense.  

 

In today’s episode, I share a time that I felt this peace. And then we’ll go into what peace is and how you can claim it in your own grief journey.

 

🔗Link...

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The journey of rediscovering who you are after losing your child is such a process. And it can seem overwhelming. 

 

In today’s episode, I break down how to start this journey into two phases with steps that you can start taking today in the process of rediscovering the new you after child loss. 

 

This is such a process, friend. It won’t happen overnight, but I know you can begin the journey of discovering who you are again, the n...

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We all know how powerful God’s word is, especially in helping us make it through our grief journey. But why? Why is it so powerful? 

 

In this episode, I go into 4 reasons why God’s word has so much power and how you can use it to help you make it through hard situations that come up in your life and in your grief journey.

 

🔗Links Mentioned in Episode:

Find Your Lifesaver Verse

 

✨Free Resources:

31 Days of God’s Character Script...

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Grief affects us in so many different ways - emotionally, mentally, physically, spiritually. Our entire being is affected. 

 

I believe there are certain things we need to prioritize in our healing journey. Today I’m bringing you 4 things to prioritize. While these aren’t the only 4 things, I wanted to bring these to you today as I think they are some important ones. 

 

These things can help bring healing to your heart and your bod...

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Our child’s heaven anniversary is the hardest day of the year. The day our babies left this earth and went to heaven is a no good, awful day. So how are you supposed to make it through? 

 

I recently went through my Sam’s heaven anniversary and I made it through the day. So I wanted to make this episode to share with you what I did to give you some ideas on how to make it through your child’s next heaven anniversary. 

 

I pray that...

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Fear is one of the emotions I have really struggled with after losing Sam. If you struggle with fear as well, you know how crippling it can be. 

But God has not left us to deal with this emotion on our own! He’s equipped us with things we can do, weapons we can use, against our fears. 

In this episode, I go into what causes our fear (and no, it’s not the situation that causes the fear), how we can overcome that fear, and some truth...

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