Critical Junctures - Navigating the loss of a child
Finding peace in life after the loss of a child. Celebrating the time you had with your beloved child. Discussing all the family, friends and people that provide support to parents that have lost a child. Interviews and conversations about loss of a child, dealing with the emotions, relationships, financial, and more. Interviews with parents that are several years removed from the loss providing insight and guidance to help navigate the pain and emotion of the loss of a child.
The loss of a child creates an enduring grief for a parent. The parents sharing stories on this podcast deal with that grief forever. They share their stories of how they manage that grief and how the grief, at times, can still overwhelm them. Managing grief is a journey. There is no easy fix or way to avoid it but there are lessons from others that can help manage the grief.
Critical Junctures - Navigating the loss of a child
2026 planned impact and how we did in 2025
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2026 starts a new chapter. This episode of Critical Junctures we look at what plans we have for the podcast in 2026, a recap of 2025 and an ask of listeners to help get the podcast out to others.
In 2025 the podcast was downloaded in 26 countries. That is with no promotion. Apple Podcasts were the way 73% of people found the podcast.
We have received notes from parents that appreciated the stories of other parents and how it has helped their grief journey.
My ask of anyone listing is that you follow us on Facebook, download a podcast, listen to a YouTube episode. Any likes, subscribes, follows all help the podcast gain a greater reach.
For 2026 we plan on a video interview each month and several podcast episodes a month.
Thank you to everyone that has liked, liked to, downloaded, watched an episode, or recommended the podcast to a friend. Looking forward in 2026 to impacting more lives of parents in a positive way who have lost a child.
Welcome to the Critical Junctures Podcast and welcome to 20 26, 20 25. We started this podcast with the goal to reach parents who have lost a child similar to our journey. Losing a child is a very challenging. Life event, but it happens to a number of people. So we started this podcast to really share experiences with other parents and how they've navigated it a few years out and what their experience has been during this short video.
Here I'd like to share a recap of 2025. I have an ask of. Most of you watching, and then I'd also like to give you the goals of what we're gonna do for 2026. I'm gonna start with that. The ask. The ask is that you like this, that you follow us on Facebook, that you go to YouTube and watch a at least 30 seconds of a video.
If it's less than 30 seconds, it doesn't get recorded, or listen to a podcast. Just some things to recap. In 2025 at the end of the year, the podcast had been listened to in 26 different countries, which to me is just staggering because we've done virtually no promotion on the podcast. And just through, putting it out there, it's found people that have really connected with this need.
To hear from other parents and how their lives have been shaped since the loss of a child. Just give you a couple things that are some facts about the, the podcast. So, we've been listened to on every continent, with the exception of Antarctica. Most of them obviously come from North America, but again, every, continent has listened to it.
Most of the podcasts are listened to on Apple Podcast. That's like 73% of them. So again, just, amazing the way that that's connected with other people. We've had a number of, people that have listened to it, that send personal notes, just how they've appreciated some of the stories of other parents that they realize that they're not going through this alone.
That this is a journey that, anybody that starts through this, it is personal for us, but other parents have experienced it. And just knowing that has been incredibly helpful. Some of the comments, and things that I've observed personally have just been, you think you're dealing with this alone.
You have these thoughts in your head, you deal with 'em. You go through life, you still try to put on, the brave faces. You interact with life and there's a lot of really great experiences that happen in life, but you always kind of have that burning hole in your heart. For me, doing these podcasts and talking to other parents, it's been very helpful to know that my experiences were common with other parents,
that's the real purpose of this podcast. Um, again, my ask of you guys is to follow us on Facebook, listen to a podcast, share it with others, watch it on YouTube. This is something that is a passion for me. There's no one asking you for funding or help or anything like that. This is something that doing entirely to connect other parents, with.
The tools that can help them maybe mitigate their losses. Um, just a little bit. One of the things I wanted to share with you, when I first did this podcast, I put up a logo on the podcast that you can see behind me, and I'll just share this, this picture. Mary Lou and I, I took this when we were in Alaska and this is of one of the glaciers, but what you really can't see in this.
And a slide to this next one. This is a boat full of people and they're almost minuscule looking at this, the, this glacier that's in front of 'em. And it really kind of impacted me in a way that a lot of the problems that we seem like we face, that's what it feels like. You're on this little boat and there's this glacier in front of you that you can't navigate.
But you can, and other people have done it and other people that have, they're sharing their stories, really appreciate some of the people that have opened their hearts up and just been very personal and real about the experiences that they've had. Regardless of all of the good things that you see that go on for them, this has been something that's it's, it impacts them significantly and emotionally.
A couple of other things I wanted to share with you. This last year has been a somewhat challenging year for me personally. We launched the podcast on June 1st. That was the five year anniversary of my, son's passing, and a few days later this year, my youngest brother passed away, and then later in the year, just in November, my mom passed away.
So. Been a challenging year, in, in keeping some kind of consistencies of things that I'm doing, for the, the podcast. But this year we're planning on, I'm doing at least one major interview on video, a month. I found that videos are more challenging than the podcast. Probably do several podcast versions, each month.
But one of the things too that, again, I appreciate that you guys have stuck with us learning some of this new technology has been a challenge. Um, the first video I did with, my friend Wale, he, we had this really major echo and feedback in it, and so I had to edit that out, which meant on the video.
Uh, it doesn't always sync the way people talk to, the way that, uh, what's on the video, the audio versions are a lot easier on the, the second one I did with Tony and Kelly Trent, I had to actually turn off my sound when I would ask them a question, turn off the sound. They couldn't, I couldn't hear what they were saying.
When they would get done talking, they would give me a thumbs up, then I would slide my volume back on, ask the question, then turn it off. So we had those technical challenges now worked out. So should have a lot better quality of, videos in particular out this year. But I just want to say again, thank you for, all of the support that everyone's done with this.
We're really looking forward to a strong 2026. Again, the purpose of this is helping these parents who have lost a child, so you can help us cost you nothing. Click on to follow us on Facebook, listen to a YouTube video, download a podcast. All those help with the metrics. If you. Find someone that you know that has lost a child, please share it with them, in one of the versions.
Also, if you're a parent and you would like to share your story, we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know someone that their story could be super helpful to others, you know, please send them our way. We are gonna redo later in the year, a new upgraded version of the website. The website is critical-junctures.com and anyone that wants to get a hold of us, they can, send me an email at info@critical-junctures.com.
Here's looking to a, strong and prosperous 2026, and we wish all of you guys the, the same this year and appreciate the support that we've had, starting this podcast. Thank you.
