Melissa Reader on the conversation she wishes she had before her husband’s death

Melissa Reader’s youngest baby was just nine months old when her husband was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer. Just 15 months later, he died, leaving behind three children, a wife, and no will in place. Melissa became a single, self-employed mother and in amongst the agonising grief, she felt angry. Angry that they didn’t plan for the worst and overwhelmed by the death admin that comes with losing your husband, on top of navigating everything else.

And here, she tells us all about it; her story of loss and life after it, navigating motherhood and work through each chapter, and how her experience led her to start Violet, a not-for-profit helping families plan for the last stages of life.

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In this episode, we cover the below topics:

Maternity leave, parental leave, business, owning a business as a mum, newborns, marriage, loss, the sandwich generation, working mums, working motherhood, career mum, returning to work, returning to work after maternity leave, mum guilt, being a mum of three, miscarriage, pregnancy loss, remarrying after death, bringing a new partner into the family, blended families, grief, death admin, losing your husband, finding love again.

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This podcast was recorded on the lands of the Boon Wurong people of the Kulin Nation. The land on which we're lucky enough to raise our sons and daughters always was and always will be Aboriginal land.

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