Grief is not just about when you lose a loved one. We experience grief whenever we face loss, something many have experienced during the pandemic - whether this be loss of job, status, financial security, routine, human connection, or loss of health.
In this episode we explore grief as an aspect of living with a serious health diagnosis with Jennifer Hollington as our guide. Many people came to know Jennifer as I did through her daily blog that she began immediately after being diagnosed with ovarian cancer. In it she records the day to day experience of living with cancer, her treatments, her thoughts about her changing world.
Jennifer's ability to face the reality of her situation head on and communicate her emotional, professional and health journey has been an inspiration to many and it was a privilege to have her join Sarah and I as she shared her thoughts on issues such as:
The initial shock of diagnosis and her response
The role of community in providing support
How gratitude helped her overcome adversity
Needing to focus on the here and now - as a friend said to her early on "don't die while you are yet alive"
Anticipatory grief
Grief at the loss of work and health
How sometimes it comes down to Grit - finding an inner strength to move forward when things get really tough
For more info on my work as a conference emcee, spoken word artist, panel moderator and event designer check out my site at https://conferencebard.ca/