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Episode 34: Bitter Sweet Sixteens — Navigating Fatherhood Through Milestones

Turning sixteen is supposed to be a celebration — a moment where parents look at their daughters and realize childhood is slowly giving way to adulthood. But for widower fathers, milestones like a Sweet Sixteen can carry a different emotional weight.

In this episode, Jamal and David reflect on their daughters’ sixteenth birthdays and the bittersweet mix of pride, preparation, and grief that comes with it. They share how they planned the celebrations, who helped make those moments special, and the quiet questions many widower dads ask themselves: Am I doing this right? Am I enough for her without her mom?

From candle-lighting ceremonies to family gatherings and private reflections, this conversation explores how fathers honor the mothers who should be there, while guiding their daughters into the next chapter of life. It’s about showing up, building a circle of support, and recognizing that sometimes the most powerful thing a dad can offer isn’t perfection — it’s presence.

Getting Back Up: Finding Life After Death is a podcast that explores the raw, unfiltered reality of surviving profound personal loss—and finding a way forward. The idea for the podcast was born after David and Jamal met in 2023. Both widowers, who had lost their wives to cancer, quickly found a deep connection through multiple conversations about pain, perseverance, and parenthood. They realized that while men often bond over music, sports, or TV, they rarely speak candidly about loss or emotional recovery. Getting Back Up was created to change that narrative—blending the everyday with the existential in a format that’s as relatable as it is real.

Thank you for your support!

Hosts: David McClain & Jamal Jones
Executive Directors: Marlon Jackson & Ted Winners (Like A Gazelle Productions)
Editing: Marlon Jackson
Music:
Grenada, "Treasure"
McDonald, Otis, "Phife for Life", otismusic.com

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram/TikTok @getbackuppodcast and on X @GBUpodcast

Send a text

Episode 33: Am I Depressed… or Am I Grieving?

In this episode, Jamal and David take on a question many widowers wrestle with quietly: Am I depressed… or am I grieving? It’s a question that usually shows up late at night, in the quiet moments when the distractions fade and the weight of loss feels hardest to understand.

Together, they unpack what grief often looks like in men — exhaustion, irritability, numbness, brain fog, and the pressure to keep functioning even when something inside feels off. They also explore the important differences between grief and depression, how the two can overlap, and why asking for help isn’t a sign that grief “failed.” It’s a sign you’re paying attention. This episode is an honest conversation about emotional limits, faith, strength, and why you’re not broken for feeling the way you do.

Getting Back Up: Finding Life After Death is a podcast that explores the raw, unfiltered reality of surviving profound personal loss—and finding a way forward. The idea for the podcast was born after David and Jamal met in 2023. Both widowers, who had lost their wives to cancer, quickly found a deep connection through multiple conversations about pain, perseverance, and parenthood. They realized that while men often bond over music, sports, or TV, they rarely speak candidly about loss or emotional recovery. Getting Back Up was created to change that narrative—blending the everyday with the existential in a format that’s as relatable as it is real.

Thank you for your support!

Hosts: David McClain & Jamal Jones

Executive Directors: Marlon Jackson & Ted Winners (Like A Gazelle Productions)
Editing: Marlon Jackson
Music:
Grenada, "Treasure"
McDonald, Otis, "Phife for Life", otismusic.com

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram/TikTok @getbackuppodcast and on X @GBUpodcast

Send a text

Episode 32: Telling the Story With Heart — A Conversation with Dr. Nicole Clark

In this episode, Jamal and David sit down with Dr. Nicole Clark, Emmy award-winning anchor and reporter for Spectrum News Texas — but before the newsroom, before the camera, there was nearly two decades in psychology.

Nicole opens up about how her background as a Ph.D.-level psychotherapist shapes the way she tells stories today — especially the hard ones. From covering families in crisis to interviewing individuals turning pain into purpose, she shares how empathy, emotional intelligence, and credibility intersect in journalism.

We talk about the stories that stay with you long after the mic is off. How to report on trauma without becoming detached. And what it means to use media not just to inform — but to humanize. Nicole reflects on why she does this work, what continues to inspire her, and how storytelling can create light even in the darkest moments.

This conversation is about purpose, resilience, and the responsibility that comes with holding someone else’s story.

Getting Back Up: Finding Life After Death is a podcast that explores the raw, unfiltered reality of surviving profound personal loss—and finding a way forward. The idea for the podcast was born after David and Jamal met in 2023. Both widowers, who had lost their wives to cancer, quickly found a deep connection through multiple conversations about pain, perseverance, and parenthood. They realized that while men often bond over music, sports, or TV, they rarely speak candidly about loss or emotional recovery. Getting Back Up was created to change that narrative—blending the everyday with the existential in a format that’s as relatable as it is real.

Thank you for your support!

Hosts: David McClain & Jamal Jones

Guest: Jocelyn Barrera, Executive Director of The Christi Center

Executive Directors: Marlon Jackson & Ted Winners (Like A Gazelle Productions)
Editing: Marlon Jackson
Music:
Grenada, "Treasure"
McDonald, Otis, "Phife for Life", otismusic.com

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram/TikTok @getbackuppodcast and on X @GBUpodcast

Send a text

Episode 31: Grief Beyond Death — A Conversation with Jocelyn Barrera of The Christi Center

In this on-location episode in Austin, Jamal and David sit down with Jocelyn Barrera, Executive and Clinical Director of The Christi Center, to explore grief in all its forms — not just death, but displacement, illness, violence, and the quiet losses that reshape families.

Jocelyn shares her journey from bilingual services coordinator to leading one of Austin’s most impactful grief support organizations. The conversation moves beyond textbook definitions of grief and into lived realities — supporting families navigating loss due to sickness, sudden violence, and even the emotional rupture caused by ICE raids and deportation. Together, they unpack how race, racism, culture, and community all shape how grief is experienced and expressed — and why peer-based support can be life-changing.

This episode challenges the idea that grief is only about funerals. Sometimes grief looks like fear. Sometimes it looks like separation. Sometimes it looks like carrying a weight no one else can see. And in every case, connection matters.

Getting Back Up: Finding Life After Death is a podcast that explores the raw, unfiltered reality of surviving profound personal loss—and finding a way forward. The idea for the podcast was born after David and Jamal met in 2023. Both widowers, who had lost their wives to cancer, quickly found a deep connection through multiple conversations about pain, perseverance, and parenthood. They realized that while men often bond over music, sports, or TV, they rarely speak candidly about loss or emotional recovery. Getting Back Up was created to change that narrative—blending the everyday with the existential in a format that’s as relatable as it is real.

Thank you for your support!

Hosts: David McClain & Jamal Jones

Guest: Jocelyn Barrera, Executive Director of The Christi Center

Executive Directors: Marlon Jackson & Ted Winners (Like A Gazelle Productions)
Editing: Marlon Jackson
Music:
Grenada, "Treasure"
McDonald, Otis, "Phife for Life", otismusic.com

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram/TikTok @getbackuppodcast and on X @GBUpodcast

Send a text

Episode 30: “If Only I Had…” — Living With the Loop of Regret (Part 2)

In Part 2 of our conversation on regret, Jamal and David move from awareness to release. Many widowers quietly believe that suffering proves love — that carrying guilt forever somehow honors their wife. But what if that belief is the very thing keeping you stuck? In this episode, we challenge the idea that love requires lifelong punishment and offer a different frame: love asks for remembrance, integrity, and living forward well — not endless self-inflicted pain.

We also share practical, grounded tools to interrupt the regret loop. Naming it out loud. Writing the letter you never got to finish. Separating what was truly in your control from what never was. And asking the anchoring question: If she could see me now, would she want me stuck here — or living? If Part 1 helped you recognize the loop, Part 2 helps you loosen it. You are not broken. You are grieving. And there is a difference.

Getting Back Up: Finding Life After Death is a podcast that explores the raw, unfiltered reality of surviving profound personal loss—and finding a way forward. The idea for the podcast was born after David and Jamal met in 2023. Both widowers, who had lost their wives to cancer, quickly found a deep connection through multiple conversations about pain, perseverance, and parenthood. They realized that while men often bond over music, sports, or TV, they rarely speak candidly about loss or emotional recovery. Getting Back Up was created to change that narrative—blending the everyday with the existential in a format that’s as relatable as it is real.

Thank you for your support!

Hosts: David McClain & Jamal Jones

Executive Directors: Marlon Jackson & Ted Winners (Like A Gazelle Productions)
Editing: Marlon Jackson
Music:
Grenada, "Treasure"
McDonald, Otis, "Phife for Life", otismusic.com

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram/TikTok @getbackuppodcast and on X @GBUpodcast

Send a text

Getting Back Up: Finding Life After Death (Season 1)

Episode 29: “If Only I Had…” — Living With the Loop of Regret (Part 1)

In Part 1 of this raw and reflective conversation, Jamal and David open up about one of the hardest truths many widowers face: regret. The kind that creeps in with the silence — “If only I had noticed sooner… said more… done it differently…” The kind that loops in your mind at night and whispers that you failed.

They explore why regret feels so personal, how grief distorts memory, and why so many men confuse blame with responsibility. This episode lays the emotional groundwork — tackling the trap of the regret loop, how it disguises itself as virtue, and why forgiveness has to include you too. If you’ve been living with that one decision you replay over and over, this conversation may be the beginning of release. Part 2 continues next episode.

Getting Back Up: Finding Life After Death is a podcast that explores the raw, unfiltered reality of surviving profound personal loss—and finding a way forward. The idea for the podcast was born after David and Jamal met in 2023. Both widowers, who had lost their wives to cancer, quickly found a deep connection through multiple conversations about pain, perseverance, and parenthood. They realized that while men often bond over music, sports, or TV, they rarely speak candidly about loss or emotional recovery. Getting Back Up was created to change that narrative—blending the everyday with the existential in a format that’s as relatable as it is real.

Thank you for your support!

Hosts: David McClain & Jamal Jones

Executive Directors: Marlon Jackson & Ted Winners (Like A Gazelle Productions)
Editing: Marlon Jackson
Music:
Grenada, "Treasure"
McDonald, Otis, "Phife for Life", otismusic.com

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram/TikTok @getbackuppodcast and on X @GBUpodcast

Send a text

Getting Back Up: Finding Life After Death (Season 1)

Episode 28: What Must Be Carried (Pt. 2 ) w/ Whitney Lyn Allen

In this second half of our conversation with grief coach and author Whitney Lyn Allen, we explore the deep complexities of what it means to truly move forward. Whitney opens up about the delicate balance she now lives — raising two young boys, coaching others through loss, writing, speaking publicly, and creating space for her own healing… all while building a new life after remarrying.

We also dig into the tough questions. How do you open your heart again after a devastating loss? How do you hold space for what was and what is? Whitney shares the truth behind her second chapter — not as a replacement, but as a continuation of courage, connection, and choosing life again.

Getting Back Up: Finding Life After Death is a podcast that explores the raw, unfiltered reality of surviving profound personal loss—and finding a way forward. The idea for the podcast was born after David and Jamal met in 2023. Both widowers, who had lost their wives to cancer, quickly found a deep connection through multiple conversations about pain, perseverance, and parenthood. They realized that while men often bond over music, sports, or TV, they rarely speak candidly about loss or emotional recovery. Getting Back Up was created to change that narrative—blending the everyday with the existential in a format that’s as relatable as it is real.

Thank you for your support!

Hosts: David McClain & Jamal Jones

Guest: Whitney Lyn Allen

Executive Directors: Marlon Jackson & Ted Winners (Like A Gazelle Productions)
Editing: Chris Gazzo
Music:
Grenada, "Treasure"
McDonald, Otis, "Phife for Life", otismusic.com

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram/TikTok @getbackuppodcast and on X @GBUpodcast

Send a text

Getting Back Up: Finding Life After Death (Season 1)

Episode 27: What Must Be Carried (Pt. 1 ) w/ Whitney Lyn Allen

In this deeply personal conversation, we sit down with Whitney Lyn Allen—grief coach, attorney, author, and widow—to talk about the life she built with her late husband Ryan, and how she’s navigated life after his sudden passing from a rare reaction to a bee sting. In Part 1 of our two-part series, Whitney shares her early life influences, her path into law, and the love story that led to motherhood and devastating loss.

We explore the raw emotional terrain of early grief—numbness, rage, tears—and why she believes you don’t “get over” grief, but learn to carry it differently over time. She offers powerful wisdom on identity, parenting through pain, and why healing is messy, non-linear, and uniquely your own. Whether you’re newly grieving or years down the road, Whitney’s honesty and heart offer hope, not as a destination—but as a companion on the journey.

Getting Back Up: Finding Life After Death is a podcast that explores the raw, unfiltered reality of surviving profound personal loss—and finding a way forward. The idea for the podcast was born after David and Jamal met in 2023. Both widowers, who had lost their wives to cancer, quickly found a deep connection through multiple conversations about pain, perseverance, and parenthood. They realized that while men often bond over music, sports, or TV, they rarely speak candidly about loss or emotional recovery. Getting Back Up was created to change that narrative—blending the everyday with the existential in a format that’s as relatable as it is real.

Thank you for your support!

Hosts: David McClain & Jamal Jones

Guest: Whitney Lyn Allen

Executive Directors: Marlon Jackson & Ted Winners (Like A Gazelle Productions)
Editing: Chris Gazzo
Music:
Grenada, "Treasure"
McDonald, Otis, "Phife for Life", otismusic.com

Thank you for listening! Follow us on Instagram/TikTok @getbackuppodcast and on X @GBUpodcast