Navigating Grief During the Holidays: Real Talk on Loss & Healing | Barri Leiner Grant

Barri Leiner Grant—founder of The Memory Circle, Certified Grief Coach, and self-proclaimed Chief Grief Officer™—knows this terrain intimately. After losing her mother Ellen suddenly at age 50 in 1993, Barri spent years without the tools or language to process her grief. Today, she helps others navigate loss of all kinds—death, divorce, estrangement, miscarriage—especially during the holidays when external messages of joy clash with internal pain. In this raw conversation with host Dara Levan, Barri shares her personal journey, practical tips for supporting grieving friends, how to ask for signs from loved ones who've passed, and why giving yourself permission to pivot, leave early, or say no is not selfish—it's survival. Whether you're grieving or supporting someone who is, this episode offers warmth, wisdom, and real talk for the holiday season.

Keywords: holiday grief, grief support, sudden loss, The Memory Circle, grief during holidays, coping with loss, Barri Leiner Grant.

0:00 - Intro & welcome
2:37 - Barri's personal grief journey begins
4:23 - Losing her mother Ellen in 1993
7:16 - Dara shares her own sudden loss story
9:57 - The "tucking in" before a loved one passes
13:08 - The day Ellen died
14:52 - Dark humor as a coping mechanism
16:13 - Signs from the other side: ladybugs & rainbows
20:17 - Asking for specific signs
23:41 - The power of pivoting
24:49 - When friends don't show up
27:57 - Meeting people where they're strongest
29:45 - Processing trauma before grief
32:53 - Supporting those with non-death losses
37:59 - Where to find Barri & The Memory Circle
40:36 - Outro & closing thoughts

• https://www.instagram.com/dara.levan/
• Website: daralevan.com3
https://thememorycircle.com/bio

QUOTES:

"The messages on the outside that are coming at us are like joy and happy and holiday carols... And on the inside, we may be feeling so differently."
– Barri Leiner Grant

"One of the universal things that we share as human beings is grief and loss, we can't avoid it."
– Dara Levan