The Mourning Session: Recent Episodes
Tara Tooley
The Mourning Session podcast is a place where open and honest conversations about grief, loss, death & eco friendly burials happen. We live in a death denial society. This podcast aims to increase your knowledge about end of life care & to normalize discussions about it.
In this episode, hospice social worker, Scott Janssen discusses the struggle that end of life care workers face daily. Scott is a clinical social worker at University of North Carolina Hospice. He has over 30 years experience counselling terminally ill patients and their families. He has written over 80 articles for professional & literary magazines as well as two books.
https://www.facebook.com/themourningsession
https://www.jscottjanssen.com
Today's guest on The Mourning Session podcast is Jan James,. Jan is the founder of Hope After Breast Cancer and the Provision Project. We discuss the financial impact of a cancer diagnosis as well as the disenfranchised grief that comes with cancer.
For more information about Jan's organizations:
https://provisionproject.org
https://www.hopeafterbreastcancer.com
For more information on The Mourning Session
https://www.facebook.com/themourningsession
In this episode, we discuss the benefits of music therapy in end of life care with Lauren Beemer, MA, MT-BC. Music therapy is used in many fields. The use of music therapy in end of life care is increasing as there have been many studies that show a positive impact with the dying and their loved ones.
For more information about music therapy:
https://www.musictherapy.org/about/musictherapy
http://www.kcmmt.org
For more information on The Mourning Session:
https://www.facebook.com/themourningsession
In this episode, Scott Janssen discusses the importance of trauma informed care in end of life care. Scott is a clinical social worker at University of North Carolina Hospice. He has almost over 30 years experience counseling terminally ill patients and their loved ones. He has written over 80 articles for professional & literary magazines as well as two books.
For more information on Scott:
http://www.jscottjanssen.com/
For more information on The Mourning Session:
https://www.facebook.com/themourningsession
https://www.instagram.com/themourningsession
In this episode, Scott Janssen discusses deathbed visions. Scott is a clinical social worker at University of North Carolina Hospice. He has almost over 30 years experience counseling terminally ill patients and their loved ones. He has written over 80 articles for professional & literary magazines as well as two books.
For more information on Scott's work:
http://www.jscottjanssen.com
For more information on The Mourning Session
https://www.facebook.com/themourningsession
https://www.instagram.com/themourningsession
In this episode, Joel Simone Anthony AKA The Grave Woman discusses alternative funeral options (including space burial), racism in death care, cultural competency and death in the movies. Joel is a Licensed Funeral Director & Embalmer in Atlanta, GA. It is her mission "to educate everyone –regardless of faith, race, age, or status – that death, dying and grief are sacred and transformative to our journeys as human beings."
For more information on The Grave Woman:
https://www.instagram.com/thegravewoman
https://www.thegravewoman.com
For more information on The Mourning Session:
https://www.facebook.com/themourningsession
https://www.instagram.com/themourningsession
In this episode, I discuss the complicated grief that suicide loss survivors feel. Tom Phillips is my guest & he is the Vice President of the nonprofit organization Suicide Awareness Survivor Support (SASS) . In 2020, there were 48,344 suicides in the United States. SASS believes the public must be educated about suicide. Tom & I discuss the grief that comes with a suicide loss, how to support someone who has experienced a suicide loss, and what steps we can do as a society to prevent suicides.
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline phone number 1-800-273-8255 OR text HOME to 741741 for free, 24/7 crisis counseling
For more information on SASS-MoKan Suicide Awareness Survivor Support
https://www.sass-mokan.com
For more information on The Mourning Session
https://www.facebook.com/themourningsession
https://www.instagram.com/themourningsession
In this episode, I interview Steve Nicely who is a board member with the Funeral Consumer Alliance of Greater Kansas City. We discuss the price surveys that the Funeral Consumer Alliance puts together (yes, you can do price comparisons for funeral services and pricing can be dramatically different across funeral homes). Steve talks through the many myths that surround the funeral industry. Natural burial and eco friendly burial options are also covered.
In this episode, I explore Victorian Mourning customs and practices with Courtney Lane. Courtney is a Victorian Hair Artist, Historian & Professional Weirdo based out of Kansas City. Considered to be one of the world's leading experts in both history and hair art, she has lectured and taught dozens of workshops both nationally and internationally. Her work has been featured in a variety of media outlets including Women's Health Magazine, PopSugar & HowStuffWorks.
For more information on Courtney Lane:
https://www.instagram.com/neverforgottencl
https://neverforgottencl.com
For information on The Mourning Session
https://www.facebook.com/themourningsession
https://www.instagram.com/themourningsession
In this episode, Tara is joined by Melissa Unfred, AKA The Modern Mortician. Melissa is a dual licensed funeral professional that has worked in the funeral industry for close to 20 years. Water cremation (alkaline hydrolysis), human composting , natural burial and therapy dogs in funeral care are topics of discussion.
Melissa can be contacted at
https://www.themodernmortician.com
https://facebook.com/themodernmortcian
https://instagram.com/mod_mortician
For more information on The Mourning Session Podcast
https://www.facebook.com/themourningsession
https://www.instagram.com/themourningsession
In today's episode, Tara is joined by Amber Carvaly. Amber is a licensed funeral director in Los Angeles, CA. She has worked in the funeral industry for 8 years. She cofounded & ran Undertaking LA, a funeral home that focused on giving control over the dead back to the families. She now works in the online world & does all facets of death education.
In this episode, we discuss compassion fatigue that is felt by death care professionals. We also discuss alternative funeral options, such as online memorials. We talk through what death positive (death acceptance) means in a death denial culture.
Amber can be contacted at
http://www.deathcareconnect.com
http://www.greystokemedia.com
http://www.instagram.com/morticianinthekitchen
For more information on The Mourning Session Podcast
https://www.instagram.com/themourningsession
https://www.facebook.com/themourningsession
Today's guest on The Mourning Session podcast is Clara Anderson Sainte. She is the Program Director at Gilda's Club Kansas City. The mission of Gilda's Club Kansas City is to "ensure that all people impacted by cancer are empowered by knowledge, strengthened by action and sustained by community".
In this episode, we discuss grief & loss in the cancer community. There is a lot of disenfranchised grief (grief that is not acknowledged by society) with a cancer diagnosis. For example, if a woman loses her hair because of chemotherapy treatments, she might be told that it is "only hair".
In this episode we also look at the unrealistic expectations that are created for terminal cancer patients and their families. We examine the "battle" mentality that is so common in cancer treatment. We "kick cancer's butt" or we "loose our battle" with cancer. We also discuss if it time to reconsider the term "cancer survivor".
For more information on Gilda's Club Kansas City:
https://gildasclubkc.org
For more information on The Mourning Session:
https://www.facebook.com/themourningsession
https://www.instagram.com/themourningsession
Welcome to The Mourning Session, hosted by Tara Tooley. This podcast was created to normalize conversations about grief, loss, death & mourning. Eco-friendly burial will also be discussed.
Find The Mourning Session on Facebook:
https://facebook.com/themourningsession.com
Find The Mourning Session on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/themourningsession