Good Grief with Nikki the Death Doula

What is Día de los Muertos, and what can it teach us about grief? In this short bonus episode, I’m going to tell a little about history of the holiday, the meaning behind the ofrenda (the altar for loved ones who have died), and simple ways to honor someone you miss. You will also learn why remembering the dead can be a healthy part of grieving, with a little humor along the way.Support me on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/nikkithedeathdoula⁠Get merch and find any other info you need on the podcast here: www.nikkithedeathdoula.com/podcast

When Cheri Fletcher lost her eldest daughter, Annie Lauren, to undiagnosed colorectal cancer, her world fell apart. In this honest, tender conversation, Cheri joins me to talk about child loss, the grief that followed, and how she turned her pain into a mission to help others.Cheri Fletcher is the creator of Beyond “I Don’t Know What to Say” Grief Communication Cards, designed to spark meaningful conversations that keep precious memories alive. After the loss of her daughter in 2023, Cheri now helps others navigate life’s transitions with faith, reminding them that while roles may change, our purpose is eternal.You can find Cheri here: cherifletcher.comInstagram: @cherifletcherFacebook: CheriLFletcherAnd her amazing grief cards here: https://cherifletcher.com/product/grief-cards/Support me on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/nikkithedeathdoula⁠Get merch and find any other info you need on the podcast here: www.nikkithedeathdoula.com/podcast#ChildLoss #LossOfAChild #GriefAfterLoss #ColorectalCancerAwareness #ColonCancer #GriefAndFaith #GriefCards #CheriFletcher#GoodGriefPodcast #NikkiTheDeathDoula #GriefPodcast #DeathDoula #GriefSupport

Dr. Laura Berman spent three decades as one of the world's best-known love and relationship experts. Then, in February 2021, her 16-year-old son Sammy died after taking a counterfeit pill laced with fentanyl. In this episode of Good Grief, I sT down with Dr. Berman for an honest conversation about what happened next.About Dr. Laura Berman:Dr. Berman is a relationship therapist, author, and former TV and radio host. After Sammy's death, she became a grief advocate and founded an online grief community. She hosts the Crying Out Loud podcast and leads the Love Mama Grief Retreat. Her new book, Crying Out Loud: A Path Through Grief Into a Life Reimagined, comes out this month.You can find Dr Laura Berman here: https://drlauraberman.com/And her podcast “Crying out Loud” here:https://drlauraberman.com/cryingoutloudpod/Support me on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/nikkithedeathdoula⁠Get merch and find any other info you need on the podcast here: www.nikkithedeathdoula.com/podcast

This week I got to have a delightful conversation with another death doula; Jill from End of Life Clarity. We talked about caregiving, being doulas, how amazing funerals can me and so much more!!Jill McClennen is a Certified Death Doula and InSight Certified Funeral Celebrant serving Southern New Jersey and the Philadelphia area, with virtual support worldwide. Her work covers end-of-life planning, doula support (including Medical Aid in Dying in NJ and VSED, voluntarily stopping eating and drinking), and personalized funeral ceremonies. She also hosts her own podcast, Seeing Death Clearly.You can find Jill here: https://www.endoflifeclarity.com/And check out her podcast! https://www.endoflifeclarity.com/seeing-death-clearly-podcastSupport me on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/nikkithedeathdoula⁠Get merch and find any other info you need on the podcast here: www.nikkithedeathdoula.com/podcast

Content note: this episode discusses miscarriage, stillbirth, and infant loss. Listener discretion advised.In honor of Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month this October, we're revisiting our 2023 conversation with Kami from Let the Light In (LTLI), a Central Ohio nonprofit providing free companion support, grief coaching, and community to families navigating miscarriage and pregnancy loss.In this conversation, Kami shares the story behind Let the Light In / her own experience with loss / how the organization's companion support program works and talks about why community and compassionate care matter so deeply in the wake of pregnancy loss.Let the Light In is a 501(c)(3) offering free companion support (including perinatal mood and anxiety disorder screening and grief coaching), resources, and community events.Let the Light In: ltli.orgOriginally recorded in 2023. If you or someone you love has experienced pregnancy or infant loss, you don't have to go through it alone.Support me on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/nikkithedeathdoula⁠Get merch and find any other info you need on the podcast here: www.nikkithedeathdoula.com/podcast

Content note: This episode discusses pregnancy loss, infant diagnosis, and termination for medical reasons (TFMR). Please take care while listening.October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month, and this episode centers a grief that is too often left out of that conversation entirely: termination for medical reasons.In this episode, I sit down with Sabrina Fletcher, founder of The TFMR Doula, who became a bereavement doula after her own TFMR in 2018 with her planned and wanted second baby, Clara. We talk about what it actually means to end a wanted pregnancy after a devastating prenatal diagnosis and why the medical system's language so rarely matches the lived experience of grieving parents.Sabrina now supports TFMR parents through 1-on-1 bereavement care, decision support calls for those newly facing a diagnosis, and a private community of over 1,000 parents who've walked this path.Connect with Sabrina / The TFMR Doula:website: thetfmrdoula.comInstagram: @thetfmrdoulaFacebook: @thetfmrdoulaJoin the Facebook Group: www.thetfmrdoula.com/facebookgroupFree Guide: Real self-care for TFMRparentsDecision Support: Schedule hereIf this episode resonated with you, or if you're currently walking this path yourself, please know you're not alone, and your loss is valid.Our TFMR Stories podcast (and on YouTube) https://open.spotify.com/show/5mSactEFVmIg2OBz195FXs https://www.youtube.com/@sabri224#TFMR #TFMRisbabyloss #TFMRmamas #endingawantedpregnancy #terminationformedicalreasonsSupport me on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/nikkithedeathdoula⁠Get merch and find any other info you need on the podcast here: www.nikkithedeathdoula.com/podcast

A quick note: this episode touches on suicide loss. If it brings up anything difficult for you, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (call or text 988) is available anytimeIn this episode, I sit down with Dr. Megan Whittemore a LOOONG time friend/sister from another mister and licensed psychologist and founder of Kinnect Psychology in Ballwin, Missouri,  for an honest conversation about one of the hardest things a mental health professional can face: losing a client to suicide.Dr. Whittemore shares her personal experience of this loss and speaks candidly about the grief that follows. A grief that is often complicated by guilt, self-doubt, and professional isolation. We talk about why this kind of loss is so rarely discussed openly in the field, why clinicians often feel they have to grieve in silence, and what real support (or the lack of it) looks like within the mental health profession.About Dr. Megan Whittemore:Dr. Megan Whittemore is a licensed psychologist and the founder of Kinnect Psychology, where she provides individual, couples, and group therapy as well as parent coaching. She is a member of the American Psychological Association and the Missouri Psychological Association, and currently serves as Secretary of the Saint Louis Psychological Association.Learn more about her work at kinnectpsychology.com.The Coalition for Clinician-Survivors: https://www.cliniciansurvivor.org/Support me on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/nikkithedeathdoula⁠Get merch and find any other info you need on the podcast here: www.nikkithedeathdoula.com/podcastMusic: "Cheery Monday"Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

This episode discusses suicide, grief, and loss. No graphic details or methods are described. If you're struggling, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is available by call or text (US), and the Crisis Text Line is available by texting HOME to 741741.Last week, we talked about prevention. This episode goes somewhere prevention often skips; the language we use around suicide, the people left behind after a loss, and the conversation most of us are too afraid to have. We break down why "died by suicide" has replaced "committed suicide," what postvention means and why survivors of loss are so often left without support, and most importantly, how to actually ask someone if they're okay, in a way that might genuinely help.If someone came to mind while you were listening: that's probably not a coincidence. Reach out to them this week.Support me on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/nikkithedeathdoula⁠Get merch and find any other info you need on the podcast here: www.nikkithedeathdoula.com/podcastMusic: "Cheery Monday"Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

We're revisiting this conversation for Suicide Prevention Awareness Month because this episode still matters!!A note before you listen: this episode discusses suicide and mental health struggles openly. If you're in a rough place right now, please see the resources at the bottom of these notes before or after listening.If you or someone you know is struggling:-988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline — Call or text 988 (US), available 24/7-Crisis Text Line — Text HOME to 741741 (US)-International Association for Suicide Prevention — findahelpline.com for resources outside the USYou don't have to be in crisis to reach out. These lines are also there if you just need to talk something through.Support me on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/nikkithedeathdoula⁠Get merch and find any other info you need on the podcast here: www.nikkithedeathdoula.com/podcastMusic: "Cheery Monday"Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

If you have thoughts about suicide or harming yourself please call or text 988. I promise someone is there who cares.Trigger Warning: This episode discusses suicide, mental illness, and grief in detail.For Suicide Awareness Month, I sat down with Jackie M. Baker, a pediatric nurse practitioner, author, and mother, who lost her son Sebastian to suicide after his years-long battle with bipolar disorder and suicidal thoughts. Jackie shares what it was like to walk through the hardest kind of grief,  and why she now devotes her time to supporting other mothers who've lost children to suicide.Jackie is the author of the upcoming book Messy Mourning: Hope for Mothers Grieving the Loss of a Child by Suicide, and writes regularly about grief, faith, and healing at her Substack, Jackie's Substack.You can find Jackie at:Website: jackiembaker.comSubstack: jackiembaker.substack.comSupport me on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/nikkithedeathdoula⁠Get merch and find any other info you need on the podcast here: www.nikkithedeathdoula.com/podcastMusic:"Cheery Monday"Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/