Widow 180 The Podcast with Jen Zwinck
When you become a widow, the heartache can be overwhelming. You feel lost. You feel broken. You feel alone. And you find yourself trying to pick up the pieces of your life and function. But I believe that every widow has the capacity to endure, that every widow has the power to overcome and the determination to create a new life filled with meaning and purpose. The Widow 180 Podcast is about turning tragedy, loss and fear into strength and creativity and a new passion for life. It's about self-reflection and realizing that we only have this one precious life to live and that a new life and a new you is achievable.Each week I will be interviewing widows, incredible survivors of loss. These women have taken the lessons they've learned and the insights they've gained and used them to grow and transform themselves. Some have started businesses, went back to school, run marathons, lost 100 pounds, and moved across the world! They made a choice not to be held down.How did they do it? How did they get through their grief? What's their secret? What lessons can we learn from them that will transform our own lives? How can we write our own story because our story isn't over yet? How can we begin our Chapter 2? I hope that you are as inspired by these women as I am. And maybe hearing even just one story will be life-changing for you.
Widow 180 The Podcast with Jen Zwinck
278. "He Died 3 Weeks After Diagnosis"- Julie Wright Halbert on Sudden Loss, Grief Literacy, and Transformational Healing
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Julie Wright Halbert was a national education attorney, married 22 years, when her husband Jim started losing weight and running a fever — symptoms doctors first mistook for an infection.
Three weeks later, he was gone.
In this raw, wide-ranging conversation, Julie shares what it's really like to lose a spouse to a fast-moving, hard-to-diagnose cancer (later identified as cholangiocarcinoma), how she held two teenage sons together while barely holding herself together, and the winding path — through grief therapy, a chance encounter with a life coach in Colorado, a medium session that left her laughing and crying, and healing retreats in Sedona — that led her to become a transformational soul coach, death doula, and author of the forthcoming book Live and Die Awake (releasing November 4, 2026).
This episode isn't just about how Jim died — it's about how Julie learned to live.
In this episode, we chat about:
- The frightening weeks between Jim's first symptoms and his cholangiocarcinoma diagnosis at MD Anderson
- The "angel medevac" flight that got the family home to say goodbye
- Going back to work as an attorney while still in early, acute grief
- The synchronicities — a stranger's conversation, a medium's prediction — that led her to coaching
- How her book Live and Die Awake came together, chapter by chapter, as a healing tool for any kind of loss
- What she looks for first when guiding a new grief client through an identity shift
- Her thoughts on group retreats, Sedona's "vortex energy," and communal healing
Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro
00:23 – Jim's first symptoms and the early misdiagnosis
03:30 – The diagnosis: cholangiocarcinoma at MD Anderson
06:07 – The angel medevac flight home
06:43 – Jim passes away, December 6, 2018
07:23 – The raw grief of losing someone in three weeks
11:15 – Returning to work as an attorney while grieving
20:12 – The Colorado synchronicity that led to her life coach
24:20 – How her book Live and Die Awake began taking shape
27:03 – Connecting with medium Tina Powers
34:45 – Founding Rising Phoenix Life coaching
37:03 – Guiding clients through identity shifts after loss
40:27 – Is there a "too soon" for grief transformation?
44:45 – Sedona retreats and communal healing
59:16 – Where to find Julie + closing thoughts
Connect with Julie Wright Halbert:
🌐 Website: risingphoenix.life
📖 Substack: Living and Dying Awake
💼 LinkedIn: Julie Wright Halbert
📧 Email: julie@risingphoenix.life
📚 Book: Live and Die Awake — releasing November 4, 2026
What stage are you on this widow journey? Not sure? Find out at https://www.widow180.com/stages and get the tailored grief support you need.
Be sure to join our Facebook group, Widow 180 The Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/312036956454927
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Check us out on YouTube at Widow 180: The Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-DK_dl31qMilJ5cE6t9MVQ
For more blog posts and resources go to www.widow180.com
Questions? Email me at jen@widow180.com