Beyond Words with Najwa Zebian 025- You’re Not Stuck. You’re Grieving. (A conversation with David Kessler on loss, meaning, and healing)
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Dec 30, 2025 
David Kessler, a renowned grief expert and bestselling author, dives deep into the nuances of grief, emphasizing it as a change we never wanted. He discusses denial as a protective grace and how grief mirrors the love we’ve experienced. Kessler reveals that true healing comes from witnessing our grief rather than fixing it, and he shares insights on managing relationships with grieving individuals. They highlight the importance of community support, cultural rituals, and the vital role of self-compassion in navigating this journey of loss.
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Grief Is Unwanted Change
- Grief is a change we didn't want and always involves a death of something, not only a person.
- The pain of grief is proportional to the depth of the love you had.
Denial As A Protective Pace
- Denial can be a form of grace because the brain paces processing to protect us from unbearable pain.
- Our minds delay fully absorbing loss to give us time to cope.
Find Meaning Through Later Action
- Meaning rarely lies in the death itself but in how we live afterward and who we become.
- Do grief work and the meaning will reveal itself over time.
