Podcasts by Shapes Of Grief

Ep. 111 Vicky Linnane on Sibling Loss and Anticipatory Grief from 2023-11-06T16:25:19

In this episode, Vicky Linnane discusses the profound and often overlooked experience of sibling loss and the impact of sibling loss on her identity, relationships and sense of self. 

Vic...

Ep. 110 Mary Kennelly on the Losses of Menopause from 2023-10-16T06:00

In this episode Mary discusses the multifaceted aspects of menopause, the losses associated with menopause, ambiguous loss as well as the release of her new book; Seven Steps to Birth a Crone. S...

Ep.109 Tasha Smith - Can you just sit with me from 2023-10-06T11:00

We are back with a new episode of our podcast! Listen in via any major podcast streaming platform!

In this episode, Tasha opens up about her experience of pregnancy loss and then loosing ...

Ep. 108 Collective Grief: Mourning Sinead O'Connor from 2023-08-08T20:53:13

Sinead O'Connor was many things to many people. On 8th August, her funeral procession brought her back to her former hometown Bray, Co. Wicklow, where her community could pay their condolenc...

Ep. 107 Caoimhe Butterly on Supporting Refugees & Humanitarian Work from 2023-06-19T05:48:50

June 20th is World Refugee Day

I am so lucky and privileged to live in a country that is not threatened by war. My children are safe, have access to good education and have their human ri...

Ep. 106 Lucy on being widowed young & the cultural impacts on her grief from 2023-06-01T10:55:56

No twenty three year old, starting out on married life, expects to be widowed so young, but that is what happened Lucy. After her husband died, not only did she lose him, but also the family and...

Ep. 105 Mandy Gosling on Adults Bereaved as Children from 2023-05-02T19:02:58

This is such an important perspective that hasn't yet been explicitly been explored by the podcast. In this episode, Mandy Gosling shares her experience of being a bereaved child after her m...

Ep. 104 Tony Lynch on anger & finding purpose following the death of his son from 2023-04-17T06:00:36

The pain of losing a child can trigger immensely distressing emotions. In the aftermath of a child's death, it is common for bereaved parents to feel that life no longer has purpose or meani...

Ep. 103 Kate on her little sister Hanna's illness and death from 2023-04-02T21:47:36

Often called 'The forgotten grievers', there is no name for someone who has lost a sibling. They regularly hear 'how is your mum?' or 'how is your dad?', but rarely '...

Ep. 102 Jackie Furlong on Delayed Grief following the death of her daughter from 2023-03-20T08:00:52

Jackie Furlong describes the immense psychological and emotional challenges of coping with the profound impact of her daughter's death, without the benefit of emotional literacy. It would be yea...

Ep 101 Kathy Donaghy on Multiple Miscarriage & Finding Healing in Nature from 2023-03-07T23:32:35

Liz and Kathy talk about Kathy's experience of multiple miscarriages and how devastating it was to not have a much-wanted third child. Kathy talks about how harmful the process became for her an...

Ep. 100 Dr Mary-Frances O’Connor on Grieving as a Learning Process, The Grieving Brain from 2022-12-03T00:10:35

I have been following the research of Dr Mary-Frances O’Connor for almost a decade now, so I was absolutely delighted when she published her book ‘The Grieving Brain’ last year. I am always hung...

Ep. 99 Phoenix on managing the Grief of LGBTQ+ Estrangement with ADHD & AUTISM from 2022-11-29T22:22:35

Phoenix talks about their grief following family estrangement because of their LGBTQ identity. This is a kind of disenfranchised grief that many LGBTQ+ people experience with little to no recogn...

Ep. 98 Sacha Langton-Gilks on Childhood Cancer & Anticipatory Grief from 2022-09-12T20:18:13

Sacha and Liz discuss childhood cancer, anticipatory grief and the misunderstandings that often surround incurable disease. They talk about the different meanings between incurable, terminal, pa...

Ep. 97 Melissa & Emma talk about Grief.Coach, a texting service for bereaved people from 2022-09-07T23:00:40

A conversation about some of the needs of bereaved people and why Grief.Coach texting service could be a wonderful balm for people during their most vulnerable months and years. 

Listen

Ep. 96 Mary Shine Thompson, Poems for when you can't find the words from 2022-08-30T23:00

Order your copy of ‘Poems for when you can’t find the words’ here

In this episode, I...

Ep. 95 Adriana Marchione on Addiction, Cancer, Dance & Grief from 2022-08-26T19:29:36

Sometimes I wish the world were a little smaller, so I could meet my guests in person. Adriana is one of those people who I’d love to spend time with. This, for me, was a beautiful, insightful, ...

Ep. 94 Damien Quinn on Addiction, Prison & Rebuilding Life after loss from 2022-08-15T18:13:55

This interview really hit me in the guts. It is sometimes a roll of the dice how our lives can unfold. Damien’s story is an incredible story of resilience and determination in the face of loss a...

Ep. 93 Rosie Mankes on losing her Mom to Dementia from 2022-08-01T15:31:54

Rosie Mankes’s mother has had dementia for ten years. She had to be transitioned into assisted living, and then into memory care. And little by little, Rosie has had to watch her mother go. She ...

Ep. 92 Mary Kennelly on Grief & Dementia, Caring & Anticipatory Grief from 2022-06-14T22:32:30

Mary brings a whole other perspective to the podcast with this very tender and beautiful episode. Two ‘giants’ in her life, Fr John and Brendan were more than Uncles to Mary. They were constant ...

Ep. 91 Alan Creedon on the impact of disenfranchised childhood grief from 2022-05-23T18:43:20

When Alan Creedon was a young boy, his sister Aoife was quietly removed from their home and placed in a home for children with disabilities, as was the 'done thing' in rural Ireland. This ambigu...

Ep 90 Dorothy Holinger on The Anatomy of Grief from 2022-05-03T21:14:58

Psychologist Dorothy Holinger, author of 'The Anatomy of Grief', talks to Liz about her early experience of loss and how it shaped her life as a psychologist. They discuss Prolonged Grief Disord...

Ep. 89 Addison Brasil on Compound Grief & an LGBTQ perspective on loss from 2022-04-25T21:17:29

I absolutely loved this conversation with Addison Brasil. It is so full of wisdom and possibilities in the face of profound, multiple losses. It will not be for everyone, but if you’re someone w...

Ep 88 Sandra Adams on the aftermath of loss, part 2 from 2022-04-13T17:53:43

This is part 2 of the conversation I had with Sandy Adams, about how she navigated grief when her fiancé John died suddenly. We talk about choice in grief, expectations of others, good support a...

Ep. 87 Sandra Adams on the sudden death of her partner John & how grief manifested from 2022-04-04T18:15:54

I really enjoyed this conversation with Sandy Adams about how she navigated her grief following her partner's sudden and unexpected death. In fact, it was so interesting, I asked her to do a par...

Ep. 86 Recording of the Shapes Of Grief Launch event at the Whale Theatre, 31st March 2022 from 2022-04-04T16:05:55

The official launch of Shapes Of Grief was a truly powerful evening, last Thursday, March 31st 2022. 

Branwen Kavanagh opened and closed the event with her beautiful music. 

Ep. 85 Andy Gilats and Liz discuss Prolonged Grief Disorder from 2022-03-26T13:46:59

We know that grief never really goes away, we learn to live with it and accommodate it in our lives. For some people, about 5-10%,  their grief can remain very intense and cause major disru...

Ep. 84 Linda Allen talks about her son dying by suicide & the grief that followed from 2022-03-13T10:11:32

A very insightful conversation with Linda Allen about her grief following her son’s death by suicide. We explore the physicality of grief, the importance of connection in grief, as well as momen...

Ep. 83 Deena Goldstein on her father’s dying & death from 2022-03-09T18:42:50

Deena Goldstein talks about her father's dying process, death and how writing about her grief helped her through.

#dying #death #bereavement #hospice #deathprocess #whatisdying #oklittleb...

Ep 82 Tahseen Rizvi on the impact of early loss, bereavement overload & shattered religious beliefs from 2022-02-25T19:27:50

By the age of 15, Tahseen Rizvi had lost both her parents and was sent to live with relatives in another country, another continent, another culture. What followed was another series of signific...

Ep. 81 Clemmie Clough, childhood bereavement & life after the tsunami from 2022-02-02T22:12:38

I often hear grieving people describe their experience of grief 'like a tsunami' that just washes over them. This week's guest, Clemmie Clough, experienced the devastation first-hand of the 2004...

Ep. 80 D Anaya on the death of her daughter and grieving as a black woman in a white community from 2022-01-11T12:00:21

A tender episode from D Anaya about the sudden death of her little daughter Phoebe and how difficult it was for her to find grief support as a black woman in a predominantly white community. We ...

Ep. 79 Caitriona McMahon on anxiety/depression, the pain of Christmas and surviving suicidal planning from 2021-12-22T15:04:44

There's often nothing more helpful to those who are suffering than an open and frank conversation from someone who has survived the abyss of depression, addiction or grief. I loved talking to Ca...

Ep. 78 Dr Francis McGivern on 'Life after a partner's suicide attempt' from 2021-12-06T07:00

In this episode, we speak with Dr Francis McGivern about his recently published book 'Life after a Partners Suicide Attempt'.   #suicideattempt #survivingasuicideattempt Life After a Partner's Suic...

Bundle of Grief Books Giveaway for Grief Awareness Week from 2021-12-03T19:29:56

Be in with a chance to win this bundle of ten books, signed by the authors!

All you have to do is sign-up to the Shapes of Grief Education Programme during December 2021 to be in with a c...

Ep. 77 Pat Dollard on Ambiguous loss following his partners' disappearance & lgbtq+ grief from 2021-11-29T15:38:05

The experience of grief within the lgbtq+ community can be profoundly painful as a result of past losses connected to sexuality. This can be experienced as bereavement (the AIDS crisis), stigmat...

Ep 76 Rach Underhill on grief following her wife's illness & death (lgbtq+ grief) from 2021-11-21T01:41:42

I'm so grateful to Rach Underhill for this really tender and beautiful episode. It's coming up to two years since Rach's beloved wife Kris died from terminal cancer. Rach takes us through the lo...

Ep 75 Dr Vanessa Lacey on the grief experience of older transgender women and their families. from 2021-11-15T21:00:32

Dr Vanessa Lacey recently finished her PhD studies on the grief experienced by older transgender women and their families. In this episode, Vanessa talks about her personal experience of loss, w...

Ep. 74 Stephen Teap on being a young, bereaved father from 2021-11-08T19:46:18

Stephen Teap became a young widower when his wife Irene died of cervical cancer, leaving him to parent two young boys age 2 and 4 alone. In this conversation, Stephen talks about the hope, the d...

Ep 73 Dr Nyasha Grayman, when one twin dies from 2021-10-30T18:31:17

Dr Nyasha Grayman speaks to Liz about the premature birth of her sons, navigating a white healthcare system and the death of one of her twins. We talk about why 'nice' therapists need more grief...

Ep. 72 Andrew McGinley speaks about finding new purpose following the tragic deaths of his three beloved children from 2021-10-17T20:37:21

In January 2020, Andrew McGinley's three children Carla, Darragh and Conor died suddenly and tragically in their home. Following trial, their mother was found not guilty of murder for reason of ...

Ep 71 Kristine Carlson on the sudden death of her husband & finding meaning after tragic loss from 2021-09-13T11:33:11

Kristine Carlson and her husband Richard Carlson, author of 'Don't Sweat the Small Stuff', which was No 1 on the New York Times Best Seller list for 100 consecutive weeks, were enjoying their su...

Ep. 70 Caoimhe Butterly on navigating grief in advocacy work from 2021-09-03T19:27:55

A rich, rich conversation with the wonderful Caoimhe Butterly about how she has navigated grief through many years of activism and advocacy work and how, as both humans and psychotherapists, we ...

Ep. 69 Meghann Scully on losing her brother & father as a teenager from 2021-08-29T09:13:02

Ep. 69 Meghann Scully talks to Liz about her brother's death when they were teenagers, followed by her father's death a year later. Meghann shares how her grief affected her and how unexpressed ...

Ep. 68 Clair speaks about living with a terminal illness from 2021-07-16T00:22:14

Have you ever wondered how you would respond to receiving a terminal diagnosis? In this conversation with Clair, we talk about dying, living, available choices when living with a terminal illnes...

Ep. 67 Liz Introduces the Shapes Of Grief Education Programme for Mental Health Practitioners from 2021-06-16T20:59:29

Hi Everyone, I took a little break from the podcast to accompany my lovely Dad on his final weeks on planet earth. After he died, I launched myself into completing a project that I've been curat...

Ep. 66 Sarah Corbett-Lynch, age 14, on children’s grief from 2021-02-19T20:46:16

Sarah’s first major loss happened when she was just twelve weeks old and her adoring mother Mags died as a result of an asthma attack. Sarah’s Dad raised her and her brother until he died tragic...

Ep. 65 Lord Mayor Hazel Chu on Racism, Discrimination and Grief from 2021-02-16T22:02:37

A conversation with Lord Mayor of Dublin Hazel Chu on Racism, Discrimination and Grief. 

#grief #racism #discrimination 

Ep. 64 Adrienne Freeland on how horses supported her grief after her brother's suicide from 2021-02-10T11:30:14

An outdoor horse girl, the bereavement group in a dingy basement just didn't work for Adrienne Freeland after her brother died by suicide. Seeing a problem that needed fixing, Adrienne contacted...

Ep. 63 Carrie Thompson on Climbing 48 Mountains following her son's death by suicide from 2021-02-04T23:41:09

In 2019, Carrie Thompson's worst nightmare came true when her beautiful son Ben died by suicide. In December 2020, Carrie had an article published in the New York Times that documented her journ...

Ep. 62 Jill Campbell, Filmmaker, talks of Zoom Funerals, Lost Rituals, Parental Loss and her documentary Seat20D from 2021-01-24T20:19:55

Filmmaker Jill Campbell talks to Liz about the making of the documentary Seat 20D, which tells the story of Suse Lowenstein, a bereaved mother whose son Alexi was one of 270 people killed in the...

Ep. 61 Gill Mann, Mother, Author & Psychotherapist, talks of living with her son's mental illness & subsequent death from 2021-01-17T19:05:48

Psychotherapist, Mother and author Gill Mann speaks to Liz about living with her son's mental illness, how it impacted her and the family and the grief that followed his sudden and untimely deat...

Ep. 60 Trauma Therapist Meghan Riordan-Jarvis on Trauma & Grief from 2021-01-10T23:37:42

A really interesting discussion on Grief and Trauma from Trauma Therapist Meghan Riordan-Jarvis, who also experienced ptsd herself following the sudden and unexpected death of her beloved mother...

Ep. 59 Dr Esther Ramsey Jones on caring for her mother after a terminal diagnosis and the grief following her death. from 2021-01-03T19:04:50

Dr Esther Ramsey Jones is a Palliative Psychotherapist with years of experience supporting people towards the end of their lives. In her latest book "The Silly Thing: Shaping the Story of Life a...

Ep. 58 Lindsey Whissel-Fenton on making the Documentary ‘Speaking Grief’ from 2020-12-21T20:50:22

A wonderful conversation with Lindsey Whissel Fenton about many facets of grief, in particular, Disenfranchised Grief.

Lindsey Whissel Fenton is a senior producer at WPSU, the PBS/NPR aff...

Ep 57 A brief talk about coping with Grief during the holidays from Liz for @mentalhealthireland from 2020-12-21T19:49:50

Sharing a few words about meeting our grief during the holidays, a time when grief can often be exacerbated.

I hope this is helpful to you.

Liz 

#grief #bereavement #gr...

Ep. 56 on Kate Shannon speaks of her baby son's death from medical termination from 2020-12-09T21:06:43

Kate and her partner made the heartbreaking decision to terminate their third pregnancy for medical reasons. Legislation in Ireland meant that they had to travel to the UK to give birth to baby ...

Ep. 55 Dana Lawson on living with Cancer from 2020-11-09T15:50:36

Sometimes I as I write these descriptions, I know that my words simply do not do justice to the story being shared; this episode is one of those times. Dana Lawson takes us through her experienc...

Ep. 54 Norah Casey on Grief in Ireland today & her personal story of loss from 2020-10-29T21:14:42

In this episode, Norah reflects on the many shapes of grief that are manifesting in Ireland today, from the recent tragedies in Dublin and Cork, to the Mother & Babies Homes scandal that has...

Ep. 53 Greg Wise, Actor, on being a carer & the grief following his sister's death from 2020-10-20T15:44:48

Greg Wise and his sister Clare were as close as siblings come. They shared a bond from childhood to adulthood, so when Clare received a difficult cancer diagnosis, life for both of them changed....

Ep. 52 Autumn Toelle Jackson on Compound Grief, Bereavement Overload & Organ Donation from 2020-10-13T21:56:44

An extraordinary story of navigating multiple losses in a short space of time and how Autumn consciously chose to allow herself to experience joy again, in the face of bereavement overload, trau...

Ep. 51 Juliet Rosenfeld, Psychotherapist, on grief & denial when facing death from 2020-10-02T15:56:28

Juliet Rosenfeld had been married to Andrew just 7 months when her beloved husband died of cancer. Five years on, Juliet has published a poignant memoir of their journey together with a cancer d...

Ep. 50 Niamh Fitzpatrick on 'Tell Me The Truth about Loss' from 2020-09-30T20:46:59

Three years after her world stopped turning when her family were hit by a sudden and traumatic loss, Niamh Fitzpatrick has written a raw and tender memoir of her experience of grief, following t...

Ep. 49 Dr Mags Crean on bereavement overload, delayed grief and the economics of death from 2020-06-17T21:30:13

Local Greystones Councellor, Dr. Mags Crean, speaks to Liz about the death of her parents, just a few weeks apart and how the birth of her first child in the middle of these losses contributed t...

Ep. 48 Dr Mekel Harris on the death of her mother & the collective grief following George Floyd's death from 2020-06-04T17:46:40

Dr Mekel Harris, Clinical Psychologist, speaks about her tremendous grief following the death of her mother who was also her best friend. Liz and Mekel draw comparisons between our individual lo...

Ep. 47 Dr. Kathryn Mannix on Dying & Death from Covid19, how healthcare staff can ease the fear, what we're doing right & what we can learn from 2020-05-05T16:07:57

So privileged to be joined again, for the third time, by Dr. Kathryn Mannix, Palliative Doctor and author of the bestselling book 'With the End in Mind".  Kathryn talks about how dying and ...

Ep 46 Grief Therapists & End-of-life doulas Katrina Taee & Wendelien McNicoll speak to Liz about 'Surviving the Tsunami of Grief' from 2020-04-25T21:02:09

What a rich conversation this was, speaking to Katrina Taee and Wendelien McNicoll about their personal experiences of loss, their work with the dying and the bereaved, through to the recent lau...

Ep. 45 Ger Murphy, Psychotherapist & Poet, with Liz on Grief and Meaning Making during physical isolation from 2020-04-18T20:40:43

Ger and Liz talk about how it is to be living in such unprecedented times and how being with the unknown can bring us to places that we usually don’t stop to face when in the usual busyness of l...

Ep. 44 Liz speaks about managing our grief and anxiety during Covid 19 from 2020-03-23T16:22:53

When we are grieving, it is often as if the whole world has turned upside down and we need to navigate our new reality on very shaky ground. The pandemic Covid 19 that we are now living through ...

Ep. 43 Nicola Crean on the Grief of Separation & when you're bereaved by suicide from 2020-03-15T21:00

Having coffee with a friend today, we commented on how we all have our stories, we all have our 'stuff'. This isn't always apparent when we look at each other. For those watching Nicola Crean co...

Ep. 42 Jimmy Edmonds, Bereaved Dad & Filmmaker on how creativity helps him through grief from 2020-02-23T20:45:06

This was a really interesting talk with Jimmy Edmonds, award-winning filmmaker and bereaved father, on what his grief is like for him and how being creative helped him to find expression for his...

Ep. 41 Kathleen Keyes, when three of your children die; the full story behind the viral Irish Times Letter from 2020-02-16T22:00:09

In December 2019, a letter was published in the Irish Times from a grieving mother outlining how Christmas no longer held any meaning for her now that all of her three children had died. Beautifull...

Ep. 40 Kate Gunn, Author, on the grief of separation/divorce from 2020-02-10T16:48:28

In this episode, Liz talks to Kate Gunn, author of 'Untying the Knot - how to consciously uncouple in the real world', about the grief of separation and divorce. 

Purchase Kate's boo...

Ep. 39 Live Screening of 'A Love that Never Dies' with Directors Q & A (documentary features parental bereavement) from 2020-02-03T00:00

This episode of Shapes Of Grief features the introduction by Liz of Shapes Of Grief and follows with Directors Q & A with Liz, Jane Harris & Jimmy Edmonds during a live screening of ‘A L...

Ep. 38 Dr. Chris Germer on how Mindful Self-Compassion can help at times of Grief from 2019-12-31T18:42:41

A lovely episode with psychologist Chris Germer on how Self-Compassion can be a really useful practice at times of Grief.  Understanding the biology of self-compassion can assist us in unde...

Ep. 37 Julia Samuel, Grief Therapist, Speaker & Author, on the Paradox of Grief from 2019-12-16T21:28:49

Julia Samuel’s book Grief Works contains a wealth of information and wisdom on the process of grief, grounded in years of experience as a Grief Therapist and with deep awareness of how grief can...

Ep. 36 Sheila Boland Part 1, When your Child Dies - Mindfulness & Spirituality as a Resource from 2019-12-03T22:31:16

On September 30th 2014, Sheila and Barry Boland learned that their beloved 3 year-old son Oisín had an incurable brain tumour and had only weeks to live. Treatment could buy them some more time,...

Ep. 35 Helen Bohan on her beloved brother Ger who died in the sinking of the Honeydew II from 2019-11-27T21:41:59

On January 10th 2007, just 24 hours after five men lost their lives in an Irish vessel called the Pere Charles, just a few miles down the coast, another boat was to run into difficulty resulting...

Ep. 34 Shapes Of Grief meets Grief Encounters - Venetia & Liz Share thoughts on Grief and Loss from 2019-11-19T12:02:07

Back in the Winter of 2018, when I was planning the launch of the Shapes Of Grief podcast, two other women in Ireland were doing the same.  Venetia Quick and Sasha Hamrogue launched the Gri...

Ep. 33 Helen Culhane on Supporting Children at Times of Grief from 2019-11-18T22:01:44

When Helen was 5, her baby brother Martin died in a cot death. She remembers his little white coffin being put into the neighbours car, her other brother, who was four at the time, remembers tha...

Ep. 32 Dr Merran Cooper on widowhood, becoming a Doctor at 56 and changing how we die from 2019-11-11T21:34:53

At just 23 years of age, Australian Palliative care doctor Merran Cooper became a widow when Mark, her childhood sweetheart and husband, died of leukaemia. Forced to move out of her home while s...

Ep. 31 Roy Remer of Zen Caregiving Project on dying & death in the Zen Tradition from 2019-11-04T14:45:57

It was wonderful to speak to Roy Remer, Executive Director of the Zen Caregiving Project (formerly Zen Hospice Project), talk about what brought him to be drawn to work with people at the end of...

Ep. 30 Dr. Kathryn Mannix and Liz on 'Dying is Everybody's Business', Compassion & Self-Care for Caring Professionals from 2019-10-26T17:05:59

I was delighted to be joined by Dr. Kathryn Mannix for another episode of Shapes Of Grief. In this episode, we discuss the #ihfforum 2019 'Dying is Everybody's Business', at which Kathryn was ke...

Ep. 29 Ger Murphy, Psychotherapist & Poet, on Grief & Death and Climate Grief from 2019-10-20T19:52:48

When Ger was 9 years old, he found his father dead at home. Unable to process his grief, it would be shut inside for many years until Ger found his way, as a young adult, into a caring professio...

Ep. 28 Gretta Manners on recovering from Acquired Brain Injury from 2019-10-14T22:07:33

Eight years ago, Gretta Manners had a full time career in teaching and was a busy (and exhausted) mother of three young children; Hazel, 4, Maria, 2 and Tadhg, 6 months. She began to feel unwell...

Ep. 27 Declan Hammond on Parental Loss, a father's perspective from 2019-10-06T23:00

Thirteen years ago, Declan Hammond received a phonecall that is every parent's worst nightmare; his son had been involved in a mining accident abroad and was killed instantly.  Declan was s...

Ep. 26 Annemarie Brophy, Psychotherapist, on the disenfranchised grief of parenting a critically ill child from 2019-09-29T20:56:15

For many of us, we take it for granted that our text will read something like “a beautiful baby girl was born at 5.55am, 8.2lbs, mother and baby doing great”, but for Annemarie McCarthy and her ...

Ep. 25 Aisling Fitzgibbon and her search for meaning and purpose in her own life and in her mother's death from 2019-09-21T18:41:08

Aisling Fitzgibbon and her mother Martha were inseparable. As well as mother and daughter, they were best friends and soul mates. Following a few years of depression in her early twenties, Aisli...

Ep. 24 Siobhan Overson on being orphaned at 2yrs old and a life-long grief for the parents & brother she doesn't remember from 2019-09-02T08:00

When Siobhan was two years old, both her parents, her older brother who was seven and her aunt all died in a drowning tragedy on Carlingford Lough. Siobhan, her  eleven month-old brother Te...

Ep. 23 Siobhan Daffy on bereavement overload; when it seems like everyone is dying from 2019-08-24T20:28:05

In 2000, a bus carrying 7 young tourists in Bolivia crashed into a ravine killing all of the 9 passengers on board; the driver had fallen asleep. Among them were two young Irish sisters. In this...

Ep. 22 Bebhinn Ramsey on her search for a 'cure' for grief and how a spiritual path helped her to navigate her loss from 2019-08-07T21:05:44

Author of "Love's last gift" Bebhinn Ramsey recounts the sudden death of her husband Alistair while on holidays in San Francisco, leaving her widowed at 31 with a baby and a toddler. At the age ...

Ep. 21 Helen Lambe on accompanying her husband through cancer and untimely widowhood from 2019-07-29T19:01:31

Helen Lamb, owner and founder of the Dublin Wellness Centre, takes us on an intimate journey through her experience of grief following the death of her beloved husband when their baby boy was ju...

Ep. 20 Cath Monaghan on sibling bereavement from 2019-07-09T13:14:54

Catherine Monaghan talks to Liz about life after the sudden death of her brother, what the grief of losing a sibling was like for her and how Tony’s death affected every part of her life. To rea...

Ep. 19 Beatrice Caffrey on multiple miscarriage and the death of her baby son Joshua from 2019-07-02T22:12:31

For those of you who listened to last week's episode with Justin Caffrey, this is your opportunity to now listen to Beatrice Caffrey's perspective on the life and death of their beloved baby son...

Ep. 18 Justin Caffrey on how the death of his baby son forced him to reconstruct himself to survive his grief from 2019-06-25T23:22:03

From high-flying banker to kangaroo parenting, Justin Caffrey takes us through a searingly honest account of his experience when his second son Joshua was born fifteen weeks early and life as th...

Ep. 17 Dr. Ciara Kelly on the deaths of her parents & her journey with grief from 2019-06-19T22:50:19

From twenty years in general practice to a full-blown transition to journalist and broadcaster, Dr. Ciara Kelly takes us through her experience of grief following the very sudden death of her fa...

Ep. 16 Treacy O'Connor, Interfaith Minister, on continuous bonds and how grief is woven throughout our lives in every change we make from 2019-06-03T08:51:01

More like a conversation between friends, Liz and Interfaith minister Treacy O’Connor talk about a variety of topics related to loss, personal growth, separation, as well as the dance between sp...

Ep. 15 Kevin Toolis on 'My Father's Wake' - what we can learn from the Irish about Love, Life and Death from 2019-05-27T08:14:37

Kevin Toolis is a BAFTA winning film maker and writer of the acclaimed death guide My Father’s Wake: How the Irish Teach Us to Live, Love and Die.  Toolis has reported on famines, wars and ...

Ep. 14 Donna Schuurman of the Dougy Centre on Children's Grief, a professional perspective from 2019-05-20T16:58:26

Donna tells us about the work of the Dougy centre in Portland Oregon and gives us some insight into what support children may need to help them through times of grief. The Dougy centre have some...

Ep. 13 Edy Nathan, Psychotherapist & Author, on cumulative grief, overcoming agoraphobia & sexual abuse from 2019-05-13T15:44:40

Psychotherapist and author Edy Nathan joins me on Shapes Of Grief this week to talk about the grief she endured through sexual abuse and bullying at a young age, which lead to the debilitating c...

Ep. 12 Dr Kathryn Mannix demystifying the dying process & how to prepare for a good death from 2019-05-08T10:54:41

This week I speak to Dr Kathryn Mannix, palliative care pioneer, about the dying process. Like birth, there are certain stages of death which Kathryn hopes to demystify in her book ‘With the End...

Ep. 11 Hayley Manning, Advocate, on Miscarriage, Turner's Syndrome & living with Loss & Hope from 2019-05-06T13:00:59

In this conversation with Liz, Hayley speaks about the multiple miscarriages that she experienced, the devastating decision that herself and husband Charlie had to make when they found out that ...

Ep. 10 Dr Helen Greally on grief following diagnosis & grief theories from 2019-04-29T09:57:44

Dr Helen Greally is a psycho-oncologist with Cancer Care West. Helen has over forty years experience working with people through grief and loss, following diagnosis. Her PhD focused on spousal b...

Ep. 9 Jane Harris, psychotherapist, on parental bereavement & the powerful documentary A Love That Never Dies from 2019-04-09T13:19:40

In 2011, Jane Harris and Jimmy Edmonds got the knock at the door that no parent ever wants; their 22 year old son Joshua had been killed in a road accident while travelling in Vietnam. From that...

Ep. 8 Gary Andrews on Love, Widowhood & The Doodle Diaries from 2019-03-29T22:28:43

When Gary’s wife Joy died suddenly in 2017 from sepsis, he turned to his daily practice of doodling to express his grief and help him to process the reality of widowhood and parenting two young,...

Ep. 7 Dr. Robert Neimeyer on Meaning Making after loss from 2019-03-20T22:49:54

Robert A. Neimeyer, Ph.D., is a Professor of Psychology, at the University of Memphis, where he also maintains an active clinical practice. Bob is an international speaker on gr...

Ep. 6 Madeleine Grant, Nurse & therapist, on bereavement overload, prolonged grief & how grief can make you sick from 2019-03-11T08:41:19

In this episode, Madeleine talks to Liz about three successive family bereavements and how her inability to grieve resulted in significant illness and a near-death experience. Madeleine went on ...

Ep. 5 Dr Susan Delaney on the essence of grief, prolonged Grief, resilience and hope from 2019-03-04T21:58:48

Shapes of Grief had a lovely conversation with Dr. Susan Delaney of the Irish Hospice Foundation. Susan is the bereavement services manager there and has been instrumental in bringing awareness ...

Ep. 4 Ruth Fitzmaurice, author of 'I Found My Tribe', on living with ongoing loss from 2019-02-26T12:13:52

Ruth Fitzmaurice's life changed when her husband Simon was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease. In this candid conversation, Ruth shares how, as a mother of five, she coped with Simon's long il...

Ep. 3 Deirdre Ahern, Mindfulness teacher, on pet loss from 2019-02-11T11:12:24

Deirdre takes us through a beautiful story of how her little dog Charlie came into her life, the connection they made and how his presence enhanced her life. Deirdre tells an important message o...

Ep. 2 Emily McCullough, Art Therapist, on prolonged, disenfranchised grief from 2019-01-31T12:07:35

Art therapist Emily McCullough talks about the sudden, ambiguous death of her brother when she was sixteen, followed by her father's death a few years later. The suppressed grief, both personal ...

Ep. 1 Jack Gleeson talks about grief following the suicide of his best friend from 2019-01-20T18:13:56

Friends for over four decades, when Jack Gleeson's best friend died by suicide, the loss for Jack was huge. In this interview, Jack talks about friendship, love and loss. 

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