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Living With Grief In A Culture That Doesn't Like To Talk About It

Photo taken by PepBear at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
/
Creative Commons
The grief of a fisherman's widow on the day before his burial, in "The Day Before Parting," Jozef Israels,1862

We don't do grief very well in this country. We don't talk about it, we get uncomfortable around it, and in some mind-twisting way, we hope grief will leave us alone if we pretend it doesn't exist. But that's not how grief works.

Even professionals trained in grief tend to pathologize it when those living in grief don't 'get over it' or 'recover ' from it fast enough. 

Today, a hard look at grief, including how to survive it and how we can all better support those who are living in it.

GUESTS:

  • Nelba Marquez-Greene is the Director for Community Advancement at Central CT State University, a licensed marriage and family therapist, and the founder of the Ana Grace Project. (@Nelba_MG)
  • Megan Devine is a psychotherapist, writer, and grief advocate. She’s the founder of Refuge in Griefand the author of It’s OK That You’re Not Okay: Meeting Grief and Loss in a Culture That Doesn’t Understand and most recently, How To Carry What Can’t Be Fixed @refugeingrief

Join the conversation on Facebookand Twitter.

Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.

Betsy started as an intern at WNPR in 2011 after earning a Master's Degree in American and Museum Studies from Trinity College. She served as the Senior Producer for 'The Colin McEnroe Show' for several years before stepping down in 2021 and returning to her previous career as a registered nurse. She still produces shows with Colin and the team when her schedule allows.

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