Grief and pain will make you a stranger to yourself. It will compromise your system. Everything becomes a reminder of what you’ve lost, or your limitations.

How do we prepare ourselves for the end of life? How do we move on after the loss of a loved one? And how can we find strength of spirit even when it feels like our body is working against us?

This episode is about my journey navigating grief after the devastating loss of a loved one, and coping with chronic pain in a condensed timeline. My journey with grief and pain is unique in that it’s also been inextricably linked to creating new life, as I found out I was pregnant not long after losing one of the most important people in my life. However, it’s made me see that when we break down the process down into its bare parts, the cycle of death bringing new life is something we all experience in some way.

In this episode I talk about:

- The importance of training ourselves our eyes to see signs of pain (in both human and nonhuman animals)

- How strength of spirit is so much more valuable than physical strength

- The phenomenon of losing a loved one and then birthing new life into the world

- How grief and pain transform us when we unflinchingly open our senses to them

- My insights on how to navigate the grieving process, and how there is no right or wrong way to grieve

- Why I have the utmost respect and empathy for those who suffer from chronic pain

- How time with my horses, even very limited, has helped me to find strength of spirit when I needed it most

Resources:

This show is supported by The Herd.

Saddle up to find greater harmony in your health and horsemanship. Join the holistic horse community by becoming a Herd Member today! Membership offers behind-the-scenes bonuses for each episode, access to my growing content library on all things health, wellness, and horses, and much more.

Check out the transcript for this episode, ‘Navigating Grief and Transforming From Pain’on the blog.

This episode’s bonus for Herd Members is access to the full behind-the-scenes post, ‘Turning Pain Into Purpose, Part One’ which introduces important research on signs horses are in pain under saddle, and how we can learn to identify behavioral triggers and prevent pain in our own lives.

Links from this episode:

Wild Willing Therapeutics & Training

Wild Willing on Instagram

The Herd Membership

Podcast cover photo by Tricia Mogensen