Grief is a universal human experience—no one escapes it. However, there is a form of grief that begins before the actual loss takes place: anticipatory grief.This week, Barb and Michelle talk about navigating loss before it happens. Anticipatory grief is when someone is expecting or preparing for an impending loss, such as the death of a loved one, the decline of health, or significant life changes. During their conversation, they share their personal experiences, challenges, and the insights they’ve learned navigating their own grief. They also discuss how to manage the feelings of guilt, fear, anger, sadness, helplessness, and the other difficult emotions that arise from this form of grief.In this episode, they talk about:Grief is a natural, yet challenging, part of life.Release yourself from any timeline: stay present, take things one step at a time, and remember it’s okay not to have everything figured out.Acceptance is key to grieving—it allows us to acknowledge that life has changed and embrace the uncertainty that comes with it.Even in grief, there can be moments of joy, especially when being fully present with a loved one in their final moments.As Mary Oliver’s poem The Uses of Sorrow reminds us, even the darkest times can eventually reveal themselves as gifts. Grief isn’t linear, and healing takes time, but with patience, we can discover strength and beauty in our most difficult seasons.Books on grief:It’s Ok That You’re Not Ok by Megan DevineI’m Not a Mourning Person: Braving Loss, Grief, and the Big Messy Emotions That Happen When Life Falls Apart by Kris Carr Follow us @MichelleMaros and @Peaceful_Barb and share your experiences with us @BarbKnowsBestPod or at Michellemaros.com/podcast. You can also find us on Substack at Love Notes by Michelle Maros and Peaceful Mind Peaceful Life.Click here for Barb’s book, The Practice. Don’t miss a thing, sign up for our newsletter, here!This episode is sponsored by Armoire, BetterHelp, ByHeart, and Sunbasket.Armoire makes getting dressed easy. With a clothing rental membership from Armoire, build the perfect wardrobe with brands that are high quality, unique, and recommended just for you. Go to armoire.style/barbknowsbest to get up to 50% off your first month. BetterHelp is the world’s largest online therapy service—providing professional, afforable, and personalized therapy in a convenient online format. Go to betterhelp.com/barbknowsbest to get 10% off your first month. ByHeart is an infant nutrition company built from the ground up to deliver real innovation on behalf of babies and parents. Their mission is simple: make the best formula in the world. Redeem your welcome offer at ByHeart.com/Podcast with code BARBKNOWSBEST for a limited time. Additional terms and conditions apply.Sunbasket offers wholesome, nutritious, and delicious meal kits, delivered to your door. Each week, you can choose from a brand new selection of quick and easy meal kit recipes, with a wide variety of dietary options, plus dozens of snacks, salads, breakfast items, and more. Go to sunbasket.com/barbknowsbest to save $120 across your first 4 deliveries.Our Sponsors:* Check out Factor: https://factormeals.com/barbknowsbest50off* Check out Happy Mammoth and use my code BARBKNOWSBEST for a great deal: https://happymammoth.com* Check out Medik8 and use my code BARB20 for a great deal: https://us.medik8.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy
Gratitude is so important
Great topic! I have witnessed very rude behavior at retail stores. Unfortunately, there are small moments of kind gestures. I try to consider that these people have underlying issues to behave poorly.
So helpful and encouraging. Thank you.
i learned a lot, I'm so thankful. thanks for this amazing episode.
Thx! That was helpful!!
Such great ideas!! Can’t wait to use these! I feel more empowered now! Thx and love you both!! — Tonya
New here. Love you both! Thx for this!
We have three adult girls. I always told them that they should not complain about anything unless they are either willing to do something to change the situation, or to extricate themselves from the situation. They have grown up to be three. absolutely wonderful women.
I recently discovered your podcast and I have to tell you how important this podcast is to those who have grown up with body image being reinforced by parents and relatives. Our dinner table always, without me realizing it, had discussions about how one person had gained weight, or another person had lost weight. I did not realize it until my husband pointed out to me that he had never heard discussions like this when he was growing up. It was hit home by a conversation that I had with my sister. I mentioned to her that I had been visiting with a niece, and my sister's response was" Oh, is she still heavy"? Even now, at 69, I'm still fighting the inner background noise and the voice that constantly says things like this to me and has me judging myself and others. It is very difficult, but I think I'm making progress. Again, thank you so much for this podcast. You are appreciated.
Here are hugs to both of you for being so open with your struggles. Your willingness to bare your souls so that you can help others is awe-inspiring.
I absolutely love the social media posts by peaceful barb and to see there is now a podcast is just heavenly for me. I have been going through a profound spiritual awakening over the past few years and at times when I have felt completely lost. Teachings from Eckhart Tolle, Michael Singer and Oprah Winfrey have helped me navigate through the events that life has thrown at me. I live in a small, predominantly catholic town in the north of England and to even utter the word ‘spiritual’ would have eyes rolling. I would put this podcast up there amongst the best if you feel you are going through ‘something’ but you can’t explain what it is, and are looking for help in getting through that ‘something’. I have found that the best teachings are other people’s experiences and not being told to what to do, because we are all different. A story a person tells you about their experience will resonate with something inside you and helps you understand what you need to do to come out the other side
looking forward to hearing all about your experience!
Love the content, wish the key takeaways were written so I could see them.