Loving Life After Loss
February 12, 2020
Hosted by Cheryl Espinosa-Jones
[Download MP3] [itunes] [Bookmark Episode]
Guest Information
Episode Description
It was a day like any other. Rob Alessi was on a business trip and he and his wife Marie and kids were talking twice a day. Then suddenly, he wasn't calling. The worst had happened- he had died of a brain aneurism and would never return to their happy and satisfying life. Marie, a life coach by profession, had a decision to make. Would she now live a limited and diminished life or would she continue to live the happy and fulfilled life they'd planned? What would it take to choose life, and joy and happiness? Marie was determined to choose joy, stead in the knowledge that her beloved husband would not want less for her. Yes, there would be painful moments. Yes, she would need to make room for her own grief and the grief of her two children. But Marie had to believe it was possible. And as time went on, she found that not only was it possible, but essential. And not only did SHE need to make a commitment to her life, she needed to support others to find their way too.
Good Grief with Cheryl Espinosa Jones
Wednesday at 2 PM Pacific Time on VoiceAmerica Empowerment Channel
On Good Grief we explore the losses that define our lives. Each week, we talk
with people who have transformed themselves through the profound act of
grieving. Why settle for surviving? Say yes to the many experiences that embody
loss! Grief can teach you where your strengths are, and ignite your courage. It
can heighten your awareness of what is important to you and help you let go of
what is not.
On Good Grief, we are inspired by people who have made something miraculous
out of their deepest heartaches! We listen as they share how they have walked
through their own exquisite pain and what they have gained as a result. We
come away ready to follow our own dreams to a deeper, more meaningful time
on this beautiful earth! Listen for Good Grief, broadcast live every Wednesday at
2 PM Pacific Time on the VoiceAmerica Health and Wellness Channel.
Cheryl Espinosa-Jones
Cheryl Jones is a grief counselor. During her education as a Marriage and Family
Therapist, her first wife was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma, which was at the
time a uniformly terminal illness with a six month to one year prognosis. In the
eight years that followed, Cheryl engaged daily in the work of preparing for her
death. She received training during this period from Stephen and Ondrea Levine
(Who Dies and Grieving Into Life and Death) and Richard Olney (founder of Self-Acceptance Training). After her wife’s death, Cheryl immersed herself in her own multifaceted grief, surprised by frequent moments of joy.
Cheryl is a consultant and group leader at the Free Therapy Program of the Women’s Cancer Resource Center. She has trained extensively with Erving Polster, leader in the field of gestalt therapy and author of Everybody’s Life is
worth a Novel. She was Clinical Director at the Alternative Family Project, which served the therapeutic needs of LGBTQ families in San Francisco. She also wrote a column called Motherlines for the San Francisco Bay Times and ran Considering Parenthood groups for the LGBT community.
Before becoming a therapist, Cheryl enjoyed careers as a musician, a restaurant owner and a carpenter. She still enjoys singing with the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir, eating food in outstanding Bay Area locations and remodeling her Craftsman. She lives with her wife in Oakland, California and especially savors
time with her family and friends.
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