We've been very naive about how complicated grief is in general and how long grief lasts in general

So to put these stamps and labels on grief is sometimes helpful and then sometimes it's you know We're just finally catching up in some ways to what grief really just is.

What we need to do is make a little more space for different versions of grief, different time periods for grief, different formulas for grief.

There really isn't a quick fix for it or a one size fits all.

So have you ever lost someone so close to you that it felt like a piece of your soul was ripped away like the pain would never end or maybe it wasn't a person but rather a pet or a chosen family level friend or even a job or a community grief it turns out is not just

about death it's about loss and we all experience it no one gets out

without it when we experience profound loss experience it can

can turn our world completely upside down.

Many of us would give anything to avoid living through such anguish,

but my guest today, Claire Bidwell Smith, argues that hidden within grief is an incredible opportunity for growth and meaning.

And she also dives into why no one in the early part of that journey can or should even be thinking

that way, but over time it can become something very different, transformative even.

Claire is a licensed therapist and author of the new book Conscious Griefing, a transformative

approach to healing from loss.

Recognized as one of today's foremost experts on grief, she strives to provide support for all kinds of people,

experiencing all kinds of loss, fueled by her own experience, losing both parents at a very

young age. In our conversation Claire shares how fully

engaging with your grief and leaning into pain rather than avoiding it can lead

to deep personal transformation. She explains the five different types of grief that we all face, which I had actually never heard of before and it gave me a powerful reframe.

From the expected loss of a loved one to the unexpected grief that comes from a major life change or more ambiguous or

complicated losses that you feel deeply but others can't see. She offers insights

into how to helpily process complicated grief when relationships are less than perfect.

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