Dr. Joanne Cacciatore: Embracing Grief: Meditation, Journaling, and Self-Reflection (#189)

This episode of the Wisdom Podcast features Dr. Joanne Cacciatore. Dr. Jo has a deep relationship with grief and bereavement. She is herself a bereaved mother: her newborn daughter died on July 27, 1994, and that single tragic moment catapulted her unwillingly onto the reluctant path of traumatic grief. For more than two decades, she’s devoted herself to direct practice with grief, helping traumatically bereaved people on six continents. She’s also been researching and writing about grief as a professor at Arizona State University and director of the Graduate Certificate in Trauma and Bereavement program there. She is the founder of an international nongovernmental organization, the MISS Foundation, dedicated to providing multiple forms of support to families experiencing the death of a child at any age and from any cause, and since 1996 has directed the foundation’s family services and clinical education programs. Additionally, she is the founder of the Selah Carefarm, which was featured on Oprah Winfrey and Prince Harry’s Apple TV docuseries, The Me You Can’t See. Her work has been featured in major media sources such as People and Newsweek magazines, the New York Times, the Boston Globe, CNN, National Public Radio, and the Los Angeles Times. She is the author of the award-winning best-seller Bearing the Unbearable. 

In this episode, host Daniel Aitken and Dr. Jo discuss:

• her bestselling book Bearing the Unbearable and the new companion journal;
• the process and benefits of journaling;
• the benefits of meditation and self-care;
• her work with the Selah Carefarm and the benefits we can learn from animals;
• the impact grief plays in our lives; and
• much more!

Additional Content:

• Read up on the double-blind experiment mentioned in the episode
• Learn more about the Selah House care-farm at https://www.missfoundation.org/selah-carefarm/
• Follow Dr. Joanne Cacciatore’s current work on her website and on Facebook.

The views and opinions expressed on this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Wisdom Publications or any entities they represent.

Remember to subscribe to the Wisdom Podcast for more great conversations on Buddhism, meditation, and mindfulness. And please give us a 5-star rating in Apple Podcasts if you enjoy our show—it’s a great support to us and it helps other people find the podcast. Thank you!