TW: religion and reproductive rights discussed

I’m sharing a full episode of Just Rest today! Just Rest is hosted by a guest on good Grief from my early days, and dear friend Niccole Havelka. Here is more info onh er show and this episode:

What does faith have to do with reproductive justice — and what does either have to do with rest? Everything, it turns out. Nicole sits down with Elaina Ramsey, Executive Director of FaithChoice Ohio, an organization that elevates the moral power of faith communities for abortion justice and reproductive freedom in Ohio and beyond. Elaina shares her journey from fundamentalist evangelical to pro-faith, pro-choice advocate, and how that transformation shaped her understanding of bodily autonomy, mutual aid, and rest as a deeply spiritual practice. Whether you're navigating burnout in movement work or simply trying to stay human while doing hard things in the world, this episode is for you.

CONNECT WITH ELAINA RAMSEY & FAITHCHOICE OHIO:Website: faithchoiceohio.org

Instagram: @FaithChoiceOhio

Facebook: @FaithChoiceOhio

Podcast: R-Soul https://www.faithchoiceohio.org/podcast

CONNECT WITH NICOLE HAVELKA:

Newsletter

LinkedIn

Work with Nicole

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In this bonus episode, I'm reading a letter sent in by a listener named Kim, written shortly after her father's death. Her dad was a brilliant, complicated man whose life was also shaped by depression and addiction. Kim writes about holding his hand through his final hours, singing him the lullaby her grandmother once sang to her, and discovering that his death became one of the most healing experiences of her life.

This isn't just a story about loss, it's about presence, forgiveness, and the strange grace that can show up at the very end. Thank you, Kim, for trusting us with something so personal. If you've ever loved someone whose struggles made loving them complicated, I hope this offers some comfort.

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In blue-collar workplaces, the culture runs on toughness. Show up, do the job and don't complain. But what happens when a worker loses a father, a coworker, a marriage, or a career, and that same "drive on" mentality is the only tool he's been given to cope?

In this episode, I sit down with Adam Daviau, a bilingual end-of-life doula and grief coach who has spent his career helping men navigate loss, especially men in trades and industries where vulnerability isn't exactly part of the job description. We talk about why the standard grief-support system so often fails working men, what unprocessed grief actually looks like on the job site and at home, and what it takes to build a different kind of support.

Adam Daviau is a bilingual end-of-life doula based in Sudbury, Ontario, and the founder of Beautiful Existence Doulas. After navigating the overwhelming logistics and emotional weight of his own father's death, Adam became the advocate he wished his family had had; now helping individuals and families lead through loss with clarity and dignity.

You can find Adam here: https://beautifulexistencedoulas.com/

https://www.instagram.com/beautiful_existence_doulas/

https://www.facebook.com/beautifulexistencedoulaservices#

Support me on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/nikkithedeathdoula⁠

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Dr. Cohen is a pediatric neurosurgeon with more than four decades of experience treating critically ill children at institutions including Boston Children’s Hospital and Johns Hopkins. In his new memoir, Comfort Always: Healing in the Age of Technology he opens up about one of the least discussed realities in medicine: the emotional weight physicians carry when delivering life-and-death diagnoses to children and their families.

Through deeply human stories from the operating room, Dr. Cohen explores what it means to guide families through fear, grief, uncertainty, and hope and how compassion and emotional presence often become just as important as medical expertise itself.

You can find Dr Cohen here: dralanrcohen.com

Please grab a copy of his book here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0G2JVBTJG/ or support your local bookstore!

Support me on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/nikkithedeathdoula⁠

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In this deeply personal conversation, journalist and author Danielle Crittenden joins the show to discuss her new memoir, Dispatches from Grief: A Mother's Journey Through the Unthinkable. On a February morning in 2024, Crittenden received the call no parent prepares for: her 32-year-old daughter, Miranda, had been found dead in her Brooklyn apartment. In this episode, she talks candidly about the howling early days of loss, mourning rituals that gave her structure, the search for a grief therapist who could actually help, and how she found her way back to living .

You can get Danielle’s Book here:

Dispatches from Grief: A Mother's Journey Through the Unthinkable: Barnes & Noble | Amazon

Please read more about Pelotonia here: Pelotonia.org

If you want to donate to me: https://my.pelotonia.org/profile/NS0026

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TW mentions of suicide

What does meditation look like when you strip away the incense, the apps, and the spiritual jargon? In this episode, I sit down with Mark Blacknell, a former Marine turned ordained Soto Zen meditation guide and author of Stare at the Wall, to talk about the no-frills practice he's built his life around.

Mark works with two populations many wellness conversations overlook entirely: incarcerated individuals, including correspondence with someone on Florida's death row, and seniors in assisted living and memory care communities. We talk about why a practice as simple as sitting and staring at a wall can reach people in solitary confinement and people living with memory loss just as powerfully as it reaches anyone else, and why Mark believes simplicity, not complexity, is what makes a meditation practice actually stick.

www.stareatthewall.org

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TW light politics, adult themes

Week 4 of our June Pride Month series brings one of my favorite conversations yet. This week I sat down with my longtime friend Olivia. Olivia is and author and founder of the podcast; It’s All Been Done Radio Hour.In this episode, Olivia opens up about what it felt like to finally step into her true self, what life looks like now as a trans woman and a parent of two amazing small humans.This is a story about love, honesty, courage, and what it really means to live your most authentic life.

You can find Olivia’s show at https://www.iabdpresents.com/

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Get merch and find any other info you need on the podcast here: https://www.nikkithedeathdoula.com/podcast

What happens when you finally stop living by everyone else's rules and start living your truth? This week, I sat down with transformational coach, Human Design expert, and all-around brave human Heather Vickery of Vickery & Co for a warm, honest, and deeply moving conversation about what it really looks like to come out later in life.

Heather opens up about coming out after years of living a life that looked great on the outside: married, successful, a mother. But didn't fully reflect who she was on the inside. She shares what it was like to navigate divorce, redefine her relationship with her children as they grew into adults, and do all of that while going through menopause. (Because of course.) This is the kind of conversation that reminds you: it is never too late to choose yourself.

You can find Heather here: https://vickeryandco.com/

Want to Join the Good Grief Society? https://www.nikkithedeathdoula.com/the-good-grief-society

Support me on Patreon! ⁠https://www.patreon.com/nikkithedeathdoula⁠

Get merch and find any other info you need on the podcast here: https://www.nikkithedeathdoula.com/podcast