Now we get to what may be the toughest part of reckoning with our planet’s situation: dealing with numbness, grief, and despair. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the enormity of the many crises around us, and natural to want to numb ourselves to the pain.

Joanna and Jess speak with great vulnerability and candor about what it takes to navigate our darkest feelings—and the strength and beauty that can be found when we honor our pain.

Trigger Warning: In this episode, we discuss suicide.

In this episode:

When it feels like our pain could swallow us whole, it helps to remember that all feelings come and go
Desperation can take us to dark places, but we are more than our despair
Numbness—Jess opens up about her familiar tactic for escaping pain
Our pain becomes sacred when we allow it to deepen our connection with the world
Bonus Exercise: Breathing Through

We recommend starting a podcast club with friends or family to do these practices together. Links and assets to help prompt reflection and build community can be found with every episode on WeAreTheGreatTurning.com.

Ep 5: This Pain Is Not for Nothing