Relationships with in-laws can be complicated! But after the death of a spouse, things can really go off the rails!

In this emotional and eye-opening episode of Widow 180, we gather two widows, Renee and Gretchen, for a candid roundtable discussion about the ways their connections to their late husbands’ families changed after loss, and the surprising, sometimes painful, ways in-laws can impact the grieving process.

We explore how cherished extended family ties often dissolve or morph at the very moment widows need support most. Gretchen shares the contrast between her two sets of in-laws: one side offering comfort, boundaries, and ongoing connection, while the other brought stress with overbearing involvement and competitive grief. She recounts the heartbreak and shock when her mother-in-law skipped her son’s funeral, and how she navigated complex expectations about maintaining family ties for her children’s sake.

Renee opens up about her devastating experience with a financial betrayal: her sister-in-law, once named the beneficiary on an old IRA, agreed to transfer the funds to Renee’s children—only to keep the six-figure inheritance for herself. Despite attempts at family intervention, Renee was left feeling isolated, let down by in-laws who refused to get involved, and forced to protect her children from further harm.

The discussion delves into setting boundaries, communicating through high-emotion situations, and the heartbreaking financial complexities widows may face, often learning the heard way.

Want some practical scripts for difficult conversations? We have them here!

This conversation is for anyone who has felt “family” slip away at the worst possible time, or needs guidance for tackling tough relationships and decisions after loss. Tune in to hear honest stories and actionable advice for protecting what matters most.

Want the "Get Your Life Back Together After Loss" freebie? Click HERE!

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Life can feel "griefy". You know what I mean! Some days are heavy in a way that's hard to explain — not a crisis, exactly, just "griefy".

And then there are the moments a wave hits out of nowhere: a song, a habit, reaching for the phone to tell them something, or nothing you can even pinpoint.

In this episode, we talk honestly about both kinds of days — the low, gray-cloud heaviness that settles in for hours, and the sudden waves that can knock you off your feet. You'll hear why grief doesn't move like a project with a finish line, and why a hard day doesn't mean you're grieving wrong.

We cover practical ways to get through the heavier days: lowering the bar for what counts as "getting through it," keeping one small anchor of routine, asking for specific help instead of a vague offer, and understanding why grief shows up in your body — the exhaustion, the forgetfulness, the disrupted sleep — just as much as in your mind.

Then we walk through a simple four-step practice designed for the exact moment a wave of grief hits and you feel overwhelmed:

1. Name it, don't fight it
2. Put your feet on the ground
3. Breathe out longer than you breathe in
4. Let the wave move through, then do one small next thing

It's short enough to remember in the grocery store, at your desk, or lying awake at 3 a.m. — anywhere grief catches you off guard.

This episode is for anyone who's lost a spouse or partner and is looking for something steadier than "just give it time." It won't make the grief disappear, and it isn't meant to. It's meant to help you stay standing inside it — one wave, one small next step, at a time.

If grief is showing up often, lasting a long time, or making it hard to function, we also talk about when it's worth bringing to a grief counselor or therapist — not because anything is wrong with you, but because what you're carrying deserves support sized to match it.

Be sure to join our Facebook group, Widow 180 The Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/312036956454927

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For more blog posts and resources go to www.widow180.com

Questions? Email me at jen@widow180.com

In this deeply honest and moving episode, I sit down with Rachel Powell — widow, remarried wife, mother of a "super blended" family, and founder of Hope Speaker — to talk about the messy, complicated, and ultimately hope-filled path she's walked since losing her husband.

Rachel shares the story of meeting her late husband Andre in high school youth group, building a life together that included raising four children (three nieces and nephews plus their biological daughter), and the devastating final year of their marriage marked by addiction, undiagnosed mental health struggles, and abuse — before losing him to suicide in June 2019.

She opens up candidly about the darkest chapter that followed: navigating single parenthood during the COVID pandemic, wrestling with guilt and shame, surviving two suicide attempts of her own, and the pivotal turning point that led her to prioritize her own healing. Rachel discusses:

~the tools that helped her rebuild, including the Grief Recovery Method

~holistic approaches to healing body, mind, and spirit

~vagus nerve regulation work

~her journey into remarriage — meeting her husband Mike online, navigating a cross-state relationship, and blending their families

~encouragement for widows considering dating again.

She closes with a powerful reminder: today's reality is not your forever reality!

Rachel also speaks to the urgent, under-resourced needs of the widowed community, sharing striking statistics about how little nonprofit support exists for the 11.6 million widows in the U.S., and the work she's doing through her coaching practice and the Hope Stronghold community to change that.

This episode is a raw, faith-centered conversation about grief, resilience, and finding purpose on the other side of unimaginable loss.

Connect with Rachel: hopespeaker.com | hopespeaker.com/coaching
The community: hopestronghold.com

A note: this episode discusses suicide loss and suicidal ideation in detail. If you or someone you know is struggling, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (call or text 988) is available 24/7.

Be sure to join our Facebook group, Widow 180 The Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/312036956454927

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For more blog posts and resources go to www.widow180.com

Questions? Email me at jen@widow180.com

Losing a spouse is one of the most disorienting experiences a person can go through, but grief doesn't have to be the end of your story. In this uplifting episode, we explore what it really means to find purpose and meaning after loss, and why choosing happiness again isn't a betrayal of the person you lost, it's an honor to them.

We talk honestly about the danger of staying stuck in grief, why "waiting for the right time" to move forward often means waiting forever, and how rediscovering who you are after loss can become one of the most unexpected gifts hidden inside your grief journey. You'll hear practical, heartfelt encouragement for widows and widowers who are ready to stop surviving and start truly living again — building a life filled with purpose, joy, and possibility.

The Finding Purpose and Meaning After Loss Workbook, a 43-page guided resource full of journal prompts and reflective exercises designed to help you rediscover yourself and reconnect with what makes life meaningful, one page at a time! Find the workbook at www.widow180.com/purpose

If you're a widow or widower feeling stuck between honoring your past and building your future, this episode is your reminder: your story isn't over!

Grief and growth can coexist. Life — even after profound loss — is still amazing, and it's still yours to shape!

Tune in for a warm, honest conversation about healing, resilience, and choosing joy on purpose.

Be sure to join our Facebook group, Widow 180 The Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/312036956454927

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For more blog posts and resources go to www.widow180.com

Questions? Email me at jen@widow180.com

Gia was 19 when she met Jonas and she loved him almost from the start, even though fate took a few tries to bring them together. What followed was a whirlwind life: a blended family, two kids ten years apart, constant moves, and a marriage built on Jonas's fearless, say-yes-to-everything spirit. His biggest dream was returning to his native Tanzania to build a business, and after the pandemic hit, he finally got his shot — opening a boutique hotel and tour company he poured his heart into.

Then, in April 2024, everything changed. Gia describes the surreal morning she couldn't reach him, the strange phone call from their housekeeper delivering the impossible news, and the disorienting hours that followed as she tried to get answers from thousands of miles away.

She opens up about:

~the altercation that took Jonas's life

~the confusion and misinformation that clouded the early days

~leaning on her widow community during the darkest moments

~carrying a business she never intended to run

~starting Seasons Of Life Celebrations to honor life-changing moments

~the excruciating wait for legal answers that, over two years later, still aren't fully resolved

~finding her footing again while still living inside the unknown

In this deeply honest conversation, Gia shares what it's like to grieve not just a husband, but the future they'd planned together — the "empty nest" chapter she never got to have.

This is a story about love, sudden loss, resilience, and the long, uneven road toward healing.

Find Gia at www.SeasonsOfLifeCelebrations.com.

Be sure to join our Facebook group, Widow 180 The Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/312036956454927

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For more blog posts and resources go to www.widow180.com

Questions? Email me at jen@widow180.com

What do you do with the clothes still hanging in his closet?

The shoes that seem to multiply the moment you try to pack them away?!

In this raw, unfiltered Widow 180 roundtable, four guests — three widows and a widower — open up about one of the hardest, least-talked-about parts of loss: deciding what to do with a spouse's belongings.

Lindsay Lawrence, Sarah Fox, Lakisha Lefever, and psychologist Stephen Taylor share their timelines, triggers, and hard-won strategies — from turning t-shirts into memory bears, to donating shoes to strangers in need, to the surprising guilt that can surface over something as small as a comforter or an empty cologne bottle.

They talk honestly about outside pressure and unsolicited opinions from family. As Lindsay puts it: "Until you are walking in my shoes, I really don't need to hear your opinion anymore."

And Stephen offers a piece of wisdom that reframes the whole conversation: "If you don't do something with your grief, your grief is gonna do something to you."

This episode also covers the power of pre-loss conversations, the "widow brain" phenomenon, navigating family traditions around belongings, and two simple questions to help guide any decision:

Will I ever actually use this? and

Where is the right place for it to go?

Whether your loss was sudden or came after years of illness, this conversation offers permission to move at your own pace — because when it comes to grief, there's no right way. There's just your way.

For more support and guidance in widowhood, check out the Widow 180 Workbook series at www.widow180.com/workbooks

What stage of widowhood are you in right now? Not sure? Click here to get the specific help you need for where you are right now on this journey. Go to www.widow180.com/stages

Be sure to join our Facebook group, Widow 180 The Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/312036956454927

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For more blog posts and resources go to www.widow180.com

Questions? Email me at jen@widow180.com

What happens when widow brain and ADHD collide?

In this episode, we sit down with Jennifer Dall — grief-informed neurodivergence specialist, founder of Curveball Press, and widow of four-plus years — to unpack how grief and neurodivergence amplify each other in ways almost no one talks about.

Jennifer opens up about losing her husband to suicide, navigating grief alongside her adult daughter, and the messy, ongoing work of sorting through his belongings (tools, fishing gear, and all).

We dig into decision fatigue, executive dysfunction, and why "widow fog" hits differently when you're also managing ADHD — plus practical, compassionate strategies for getting through the hardest days, releasing guilt, and rebuilding an identity that's been completely upended.

If you're in the thick of grief and wondering whether you'll ever feel capable again, this conversation is a reminder: you will. One day, one wave, one Netflix episode at a time!

In this episode:

• Grief triggers, "random Tuesdays," and anticipating hard anniversaries
• Widow brain vs. ADHD — how they compound each other
• Practical tools for decision fatigue and overwhelm
• Releasing guilt around big life decisions
• Rebuilding identity after loss
• What "mini survival mode" looks like — and how to get through it again

Connect with Jennifer: adhdholistically.com

There are 5 stages of healing in widowhood. Not sure which one you're in? Go to www.widow180.com/stages to find out. Get a curated list of resources you need to start healing today!

Be sure to join our Facebook group, Widow 180 The Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/312036956454927

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Check us out on YouTube at Widow 180: The Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-DK_dl31qMilJ5cE6t9MVQ

For more blog posts and resources go to www.widow180.com

Questions? Email me at jen@widow180.com

If you're listening to this at 2am because grief won't let you sleep, or three years out wondering why you still don't feel like yourself — this episode is for you!

Forget the 5 stages of grief you've heard about a hundred times.

In this episode, we are breaking down the 5 stages of healing in widowhood — a framework built specifically for what it actually looks like to lose your spouse and rebuild a life afterward:

1. In the Thick of It — raw, early grief and survival mode
2. Finding Your Footing — small wins and the guilt of feeling capable again
3. Searching for Yourself — the identity work of figuring out who you are now
4. Stepping into Chapter Two — building a new life on purpose, joy and grief coexisting
5. Thriving and Paying It Forward — a new relationship with your loss, and helping others through theirs

These stages aren't a ladder you climb in order, rather, you can move back and forth between them, sometimes in the same week. We walk through what each stage actually feels like, what it looks like from the outside, and exactly what you need in each one.

Whether you're in the fog of week one or years into rebuilding, this episode will help you understand exactly where you are and know that where you're headed is real.

FIND YOUR STAGE: Head to https://www.widow180.com/stages to find your stage and get a personalized list of resources to support you right where you are!

For all Widow 180 Workbooks in the series, go to https://www.widow180.com/workbooks

Be sure to join our Facebook group, Widow 180 The Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/312036956454927

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Check us out on YouTube at Widow 180: The Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-DK_dl31qMilJ5cE6t9MVQ

For more blog posts and resources go to www.widow180.com

Questions? Email me at jen@widow180.com