The Soul Net sisters share on ways we experience grief and loss in our lifetime. We explore the desire to return to the safety of the womb during times of deep grief, somatic messages in the body, running from our feelings, learning to celebrate endings and so much more.

Join us for a heart centered episode as we find our way through hard places and open to laughter and lots of love.

Show Notes:

How we carry grief, how we learn to name it, and how midlife opens doors to healing and self-compassion.

0:00 – 2:20:Welcome & setting the theme: grief as a shared but rarely named experience. The hosts reflect on childhood grief and the absence of language or tools to process loss.

2:21 – 3:52:Unresolved childhood grief: the loss of a father, unacknowledged until years later. How avoidance and shame can bury early loss.

3:53 – 5:20:Freezing and emotional shutdown as grief responses. Stories of grandparent loss, and how grief later surfaces in adult relationships.

5:21 – 7:27:Cultural patterns around “moving on.” The survival strategy of emotional detachment. How midlife reveals old, unprocessed emotions.

7:28 – 9:37:Grief in menopause: losing fertility, identity shifts, and reckoning with aging. The practice of death meditation as a grounding tool.

9:38 – 11:09:The “curse” of living in times of change. Exploring grief as a lifelong return to the womb’s lost safety. Body language and curling inward as unconscious grief signals.

11:10 – 13:13:The human drive to recreate certainty and be “liked.” Grief as a foundational rupture we spend life trying to repair through meaning-making and achievement.

13:14 – 15:09:Embodied grief during sleep: how the body holds emotion. Learning to unfurl from protective postures and meet grief with curiosity and compassion.

15:10 – 16:25:Hair loss and feminine identity: the gift of confronting appearance-based attachments. Self-love as a product of acceptance, not achievement.

16:26 – 17:40:Reframing grief as a series of endings we rarely honor. The power of grief rituals, death meditations, and somatic practices for integration.

17:41 – 19:39:Grief and gratitude as healing partners. How honoring past chapters and parts of ourselves softens the emotional edge of loss.

19:40 – 21:18:Finding spiritual connection with lost loved ones. The comforting ritual of “keeping the love alive” through nature, memory, and presence.

21:19 – 22:00:Closing words: grief, anger, fear—all welcome. Remembering the healing balm of love and the courage to feel.

"When I reflect on grief, I feel like it's a midlife emotion as we go through menopause; we are no longer the vessel that creates life, we're going to create other things. So there is a loss of that whole era and chapter of our lives as well." ~Dayna Bango

Drawing upon wisdom from spiritual traditions, ancestral reflections, and personal stories, Islena shares with Dayna and Megan how fear, scarcity, and the desire for control, shapes our relationships and communities from the love of power, versus the power of love.

We explore the critical importance of vulnerability, repair, and building bridges, both within ourselves and with others, in the power of love.

You are invited to consider what it means to be a new kind of warrior: one who leads with compassion, holds space for diversity, and embodies the role of a bridge-builder. Drawing inspiration from nature, parenting, and ancient texts, we offer practical insights for fostering connection and healing in divided times.

Time-Stamped Show Notes:

0:00 - Opening: The concept of the warrior and building bridges instead of attacking across divides.

0:25 - Introduction: A new kind of warrior wisdom around the power of love versus the love of power.

2:22 - Reflection: The importance of holding the vibration of love within communities.

3:12 - Ancestral Scarcity: Discussion on how fear of loss and scarcity is inherited and shapes our drive for power and control.

5:04 - Relationships: How fear of loss leads to control and division, both personally and collectively.

6:52 - Repairing Relationships: The necessity of repair and vulnerability in maintaining love.

8:14 - Power of Love vs. Love of Power: Exploring how love enables repair and connection, while power seeks control.

10:20 - Modern Warrior: The story of a woman in the trades building bridges, not walls, and the significance of authentic leadership.

13:00 - Nature’s Bridges: Drawing inspiration from nature to build bridges rather than walls in interpersonal relationships.

16:03 - Spiritual Warrior: Merging spiritual depth (Pisces) with action (Aries); lessons from the Bhagavad Gita on fulfilling duty without becoming the conflict.

19:34 - Inner and Outer Conflict: Personal growth as a model for collective healing; embracing vulnerability and difficult conversations.

22:41 - New Warrior Archetype: The bridge builder and lighthouse parent...leaders who hold space for diverse experiences.

25:28 - All My Relations: Honoring ancestors and future generations through connection and attunement.

28:14 - Full Circle: The power of maintaining bridges of peace and mutual respect to prevent division and conflict.

29:27 - Closing: Encouragement for listeners to become bridge builders and a preview of the next episode on healing through grief and loss.

Notable Quotes:

“Maybe the lighthouse warrior IS the power of love. Wow, we came full circle.” ~ Islena

“Lighthouses don’t go running all over an island looking for boats to save; they just stand there shining.” ~ Anne Lamott

“Here in another universe, I meet my father when he is a child. … He tells me he isn’t allowed to cry, but sometimes the world hurts him, and he doesn’t know what to do with all of that pain. So I give him the shoulder he needs to cry on, and he does. … I wish someone could have done that for him, been a kind, safe place for the child he used to be. Would it have made a difference?” ~ Nikita Gill

Resources:

Bhagavad Gita for Beginners (Radha Krishna Temple) – An accessible introduction to the Bhagavad Gita’s teachings.

Anne Lamott – author, novelist.

Nikita Gill’s Poetry and Books – poet, author of poem about father and the importance of safe spaces for emotions.

To wrap our special menopause series, Megan shares her thoughts about the soul's journey during this time and specifically the tension that comes when women experience powerful mind/body/spirit transformations. She talks with Islena and Dayna about the soul’s cry for freedom and its need for solitude to do the work of emotional healing and re-alignment of values. When we consider that menopause is a time for women to journey inward, reclaim authenticity and personal power, we open our minds and our wings to new and higher possibilities.

Resources mentioned in this episode include:

Elizabeth Gilbert's practice of writing Love Letters.

Wise Power: Discover the Liberating Power of Menopause Book by Alexandra Pope and Sjanie Hugo Wurlitzer

The Map of Consciousness Explained by David R. Hawkins

Timeline Show Notes:

0:00 – 3:30

- Introduction to the episode and theme: the “soul cry,” anger, and transformation during perimenopause.
- Framing menopause as a “second spring” or second adolescence, a time for untethering from conditioning and attachments.
- Emphasis on seeking self-reliance and authentic self-worth.

3:30 – 7:00

- Unlearning conditioning from childhood, relationships, and career.
- Midlife as a period when unconscious patterns surface.
- Confronting past beliefs and finding safe spaces for vulnerability.
- Discussion of physical and emotional changes: hormonal fluctuations, health challenges, and anxiety.7:00 – 10:30- The importance of accepting change and softening resistance.
- Putting oneself first and learning self-care, even amidst family and work responsibilities.
- Personal reflections on prioritizing self-needs and learning to be alone.

10:30 – 14:00

- Introduction of the “angry daughter” archetype: the hyper-independent woman burdened by people-pleasing.
- Reading and discussion of a quote describing the angry daughter’s experience.
- Validating anger as a healthy and transformative energy in perimenopause.
- The necessity of expressing anger to avoid illness and to catalyze liberation.

14:00 – 17:30

- How to move and transform anger: writing, movement, and creative practices.
- Reference to David Hawkins’ map of consciousness: anger as an action-oriented emotion that can spark change.
- Encouragement to allow full expression of emotions, especially anger towards parental figures, without blame.

17:30 – 21:00

- The importance of being with your actual experience and using anger as a flash of energy for growth.
- Learning to be comfortable in aloneness and stillness, especially during perimenopause.
- Sharing personal practices: meditation, movement, and joining online communities for support.
- The role of community in validating experiences and soothing the nervous system.

21:00 – 25:00

- The value of soul friends and finding community aligned with new values.
- The dance between ego and soul during this life stage.
- The importance of safe containers for vulnerability and expressing one’s truth.
- Suggestions for practices: self-love letters (Elizabeth Gilbert), and recommended reading (Wise Power by Alexandra Pope & Sjanie Hugo Wurlitzer).

25:00 – End

- Personal reflections on writing and reading as spiritual practices.

Notable Quotes

“The soul cry, the anger, the angry daughter— you’re gonna feel it in perimenopause. Move that. That’s what’s going to help you. That’s what this time in the cocoon is for; to transform that energy into something beautiful.”

“Menopause is a second spring…an invitation to honor your independence, to honor your journey.”

“Healthy anger is like a flash of energy…use it to write, to move, to transform. It’s not victimhood—it’s liberation.”

Disclaimer
The information shared in this episode is not medical advice. Please consult your healthcare provider for guidance specific to your needs.

Thank you for listening to Soul Net! Join us next time as we explore “The Power of Love vs. The Love of Power.”