Changes Focus: Dealing with Grief - Cariad Lloyd, Grace Dent, Yebba, Jack Rooke
Aug 5, 2024
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This episode features Cariad Lloyd, a comedian and creator of 'Griefcast', reflecting on therapy's role in her grieving process after losing her dad at 15. Food critic Grace Dent shares her poignant experience of caring for her dying mother. Grammy winner Yebba reveals how her mother's death profoundly influenced her music. Comedian Jack Rooke discusses channeling his teenage loss into creativity and humor. Together, they explore the complexities of grief and how it shapes creativity and connection.
Cariad Lloyd emphasizes that therapy and open communication about grief can evolve painful feelings into healthier memories over time.
Grace Dent highlights the transformative nature of familial bonds during grief, underscoring the importance of unity and support in difficult times.
Deep dives
Navigating Grief and Personal Growth
Experiencing grief can create a significant emotional impact, as highlighted by Cariad Lloyd, who shared her journey following the death of her father at a young age. She explains that while initially, grief feels overwhelmingly painful and stagnant, it can evolve over time with the right support and perspective. Through therapy, she discovered that confronting and communicating about her grief allowed her to soften the intensity of her feelings, helping her to see her memories in a new light. By allowing grief to transform rather than remain a fixed state, individuals can find a way to integrate their loss into their lives in a healthier manner.
The Complexity of Familial Relationships in Grief
Grace Dent's experience of caring for her terminally ill mother reveals the intricate nature of familial bonds during grief. She describes the privilege and challenge of being present through her mother's decline, emphasizing the importance of maintaining family unity during such difficult times. This experience reshaped her understanding of relationships, especially regarding the unconditional support and interest a parent traditionally provides. Grace reflects on how loss shifts familial dynamics, leaving one feeling as though they are now the matriarch, responsible for upholding family ties and traditions.
Using Art as a Healing Medium
Yebba's journey illustrates how profound grief can influence personal expression and creativity. After losing her mother to suicide, she initially struggled with her identity as an artist, feeling disconnected from her voice. Yet, she found solace in music, channeling her experiences into her debut album, 'Dawn,' where she confronts her emotions through songwriting. Yebba articulates that despite the fear and pain associated with her loss, she learned to embrace her voice as a tool for healing, striving to convey hope and life rather than despair in her art.
In this episode of Changes Focus we’re zooming in on a big change that we will probably all experience at some point - grief.
Grief shapes us in different ways and hearing other people’s experiences of how they have coped with their loss can help in moving through our own. In this tender and insightful episode, Annie revisits conversations with Cariad Lloyd, comedian and creator of the podcast 'Griefcast', who shares her reflections on how therapy helped her with the grieving process after losing her dad aged 15. Food critic and podcaster Grace Dent talks about her experience of losing her parents, returning home to care for her mum in the final period before she died and how this shaped her feelings of grief. Grammy award winning singer-songwriter Yebba (real name Abigail Smith) opens up about the heartbreaking death of her mother and how it influenced her music. And comedian and writer of the BAFTA winning ‘Big Boys, Jack Rooke, discusses his experience of losing his dad as a teenager and how he has channelled his grief into creativity and comedy.
Trigger Warning: This episode contains mention of suicide.
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