I have to admit it was hard to title this interview with Mary McGreevy, creator and host of Tips From Dead People, because we covered everything from the act of writing an obit to the depth and weight of thinking through what you want to leave in this world long after you are gone as your signature of self.

Mary started reading obituaries decades ago for fun, and when she started to read them on Tik Tok and Instagram, hundreds of thousands of followers agreed with her belief - reading about the lives of people after they are gone is fascinating, deep, sad and hysterical.

As our talk unfolds, the alignment with delicious life is clear, - you are rarely remembered for your bank account or the awards on your mantle. It's the fact that you wore two different colored socks, or you always gave chocolates to the post man at holiday time.

As women, we struggle to give ourselves permission, and yet, Mary reads obits about women who have lived wild and unapologetic lives (many involve running from the law, but that is another story!) We think if we do anything out of the box, we are going to be slighted or disliked, but when you realize one day you are going to be dead, and all you have left is your story, you may want to reconsider what you give bandwidth to in your life.

What Mary has given us in her public reading of people's obituaries is that our lives are not what we have achieved by the length of our resume or our professional status, but rather our humanity and how we have interacted with and touched others. What has been our unique impact on those we get the privilege to know and love in this lifetime.

Mary highlights the layered and textured aspects of humanity by reading these obituaries which we forget is what connects us all.

I am intrigued to go and make a list of all the quirky stuff I know about myself, and even ask my partner to do it as well. Or you can ask your adult children to do it. It's not dark. We are all going to pass at some point, and in the process of living life, we can think about what mark we want to leave behind in a spiritual way once our body is no longer here.

Mary gives tips on how to write your own obit and she is currently working on her book!

You can follow her at https://www.instagram.com/tipsfromdeadpeople/

Kristen Noel knows about divorce. She, like so many of us, has experienced it twice. But she took it to the next level by becoming a certified intuitive divorce coach. As women tend to slog through, and beat themselves up while pushing to get to the other side of something as painful as divorce, help is available and deserved.

It's not your fault you want to move on. You are not selfish or self-centered. You are not burning down the castle of dreams. You have decided you are complete with this marital scenario and want different.

Our society makes it hard for women to move on. There has to be a host of reasons, and for some of us, there are. But for others, it's no longer a fit.

But what about the kid? Oh my God, how could you? The guilt, the shame, all the stuff. That's what Kristen works through in a gentle but firm way in helping women navigate a "smart divorce" with an "evidence bank" of wins.

Her evidence bank concept was so aligned to my Delicious Life (and I adore her as a friend) I had to bring her on to the show to share with my "sandwich generation" listeners that there is a path through divorce that makes it a bit easier.

Like life has its ebbs and flows, so does divorce, and it's in the waiting periods, after the dust settles that the doubts and feelings come in.

Join us as we talk about how women may give the marriage a second chance (but usually change their mind and are back for coaching round 2...)and also, what Kristen does for fun and her self care.

I want anyone listening here to understand, through divorce, one still can have self-kindness and love, even when it seems like the world is shifting off its access. Dinners with friends, and beach days, and walks in the park, all teach you that random self-kindness that you find when its all said and done is now a part of who you are.

How we treat ourselves in the trenches, is how we can treat ourselves outside of them.

Kristen has a process to bridge the gap between strategy and self-care with the women she coaches and that couldn't be more delicious. You can find her at https://intuitivedivorce.com

My Live Your Delicious Life newsletter is on fire these days - dropping the mad self-kindness tips and tools for all areas of your life. Highly recommend a join so you don't miss my live Exhale events, as well as more podcast guests!

New here? Start with this one. This is my story — and probably a little bit of yours too.

At 44, I was a single mom with two kids, no savings, and everything to prove.

So I did what so many of us do - I worked harder, gave more, pushed further. I overworked. I overpleased. I said yes when I meant no and kept producing results to prove I was worthy, capable, enough.

And then my body said: not so fast.

The panic attacks started. Not as a breakdown - as a message. My nervous system was waving a white flag, telling me I had been last on my own list for so long I had forgotten I was even on it.

So I started small. I looked at trees in the sunshine. I danced in my apartment. I laughed with friends. I started stealing tiny moments back for myself - what I now call Delicious Moments.

This is that story. And if you're in the messy middle right now, running on empty, holding everyone else together - this one is for you.

Start here. 🌻

Loved this episode? Join Live Your Delicious Life — my free weekly newsletter for women in the messy middle. One story. One act of self-kindness. Every Tuesday. → Sign up here: liveyourdeliciouslife.kit.com.