isolation | The Road Home to You

This is a special episode this week!

I’m featuring the podcast, Motherhood Unmasked, hosted by Vanessa Harris. Vanessa is also an author and a speaker. She is passionate about equipping women to take off the masks they wear and embrace their true identity. She is compassionate and resonates with wisdom.

In this episode, Vanessa addresses the very real concern that many women are facing during this pandemic and it isn’t the virus, it’s the abuser they live with. With grace and kindness, Vanessa brings encouragement and hope to the woman who may find herself feeling more isolated than ever.

If you or someone you know is in this situation and needs help, please contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233

To find Vanessa and her books, blog, and podcast:
vinelifefaith.com

You can also subscribe to Motherhood Unmasked on Spotify or Apple Podcasts

“>Play episode here

In the wake of my grandma’s recent and sudden passing, I wanted to take some time to talk about grief. It’s one of those experiences that we’re all going to face at some point in our lives, whether it’s due to losing a loved one or losing a pet, a dream or a career. Loss is simply a fact of life and with it comes a process of grief.

In this episode, you’ll learn the 5 stages of grief according to the DSM-5 (the 5th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders). More than “stages” these are 5 ways your grief may be experienced. They don’t always follow any kind of order and logic and will often come again even after you’ve moved to general acceptance.

The 5 Stages of Grief:

Denial and Isolation
Anger
Bargaining
Depression
Acceptance

Listen to discover how each of these stages may present in your own experience, as well as how to help someone else who is going through the grief process.

*Note: We are not medical experts and this is not meant to be a substitute for medical advice. If you are experiencing debilitating grief or thoughts of self-harm or suicide, please seek immediate medical attention.

For the National Suicide Prevention Hotline:
1-800-273-8255 (TALK)

A few things to note about grief:

*Grief hits us all differently.
*There is no RIGHT way to grieve.
*Whatever you’re feeling…it’s probably normal.
*Allow yourself (or others) to grieve.
*Grief is a process that takes time. For some of us, that time isn’t very long. For others, it lasts a lifetime.
*You are not weak for grieving.
*You are not weak for seeking help as you grieve.

As well as a discussion on grief, this episode is also a tribute to my grandma, Lila Lee Barr. She died at the age of 92 on November 6, 2019. A lover of words and rhyme, Grandma was an avid writer, even starting up her own newspaper, The Town and Country, in Maupin, Oregon in the late ’60s. She was a prolific poet and I am honored to share a few short pieces that she wrote at the close of today’s show.