Brave Widow Show
Brave Widow Show
Emily Tanner
5 Widow Coaches Share What Finally Helped Them Heal (Faith + Real Stories) BW: 197
1 hour 11 minutes Posted May 26, 2026 at 11:00 am.
– Meet the 5 Brave Widow coaches
– Life before Brave Widow: grief groups, therapy, and feeling stuck
– Finding a faith-based widow community online
– Tiny brave steps: leaving the house, trying new groups, asking for help
– Grief Recovery Method and completing “unsaid” conversations
– Rebuilding confidence, boundaries, and a new relationship with God
– What transformed widows do differently
– An invitation if you feel “too broken” or “too far gone”
and in groups, and talked with thousands more through the podcast, communities, and events.
. Word spreads quietly. The same patterns and problems keep showing up, so I start building frameworks instead of one-off advice.
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Brave Widow Resources Mentioned 
Join us for Renew: A Brave Widow Retreat: https://bravewidow.com/retreat
Join the free Brave Widow Community: https://bravewidow.com/free
Brave Widow Academy (apply): https://bravewidow.com/academy
Schedule a free, no-pressure call: https://bravewidow.com/call
 
Description / Show Notes
When you hear “widow,” do you picture old, sad, and alone?
These 5 faith-based widows will change that perspective.
 
In this roundtable, Brave Widow coaches share raw, faith-filled stories of losing their husbands, feeling shattered, trying counseling, books, GriefShare, and groups… and still feeling stuck.
 
 Then they talk about how finding a like-minded widow community, real tools, and tiny brave steps helped them rebuild confidence, purpose, and hope.
 
 
If you’re a widow who feels lost, lonely, and “not truly living,” this is for you.
 
In this episode you’ll hear:
Why so many of us hated the word “widow”
What life looked like before Brave Widow (brain fog, isolation, “walking in place”)
How faith-based community felt different from therapy and generic grief groups
Specific tiny steps that rebuilt confidence, identity, and friendships
How tools like Grief Recovery Method created peace with “unsaid” conversations
The choices widows make when they experience the biggest transformation
What our coaches would say to the widow who thinks she’s “too broken” or “too late”
 
Chapters
 
Call to action
If you’re tired of feeling lost and alone and want a structured, faith-based plan to move forward, book a free consult at BraveWidow.com and see if Brave Widow Academy is a fit for you.
 
 
 
💛 Ready for deeper support? Brave Widow Academy is my 6‑month, faith‑based program to help you heal your heart and rebuild a life you can love again. Small group, step‑by‑step roadmap, and weekly support. Learn more and apply here: bravewidow.com/academy
 
Subscribe for more faith‑based, hopeful grief support for widows: @BraveWidow on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram & Facebook
 
💬 If this episode helped you, please: 
Hit Subscribe 
Leave a quick rating & review – it helps more widows find this support
Share this with a friend who’s facing grief or the holidays without their person
 
If you’re new here, my name is Emily Tanner. I’m the founder of Brave Widow and Brave Widow Academy.
 
I help widows move from barely surviving their loss… to rebuilding a life they can actually love again without feeling like they’re betraying their person.
 
By day (and for 20+ years), I’ve led large teams and complex operations in the corporate world. 
 
After my husband Nathan died in 2021, just shy of our 20-year anniversary, I took everything I knew about leadership, systems, and change — and started applying it to grief.
 
Since then, I’ve:
Shared my story publicly to make widows feel less alone.
Launched the Brave Widow podcast, now with 180+ episodes and listeners around the world.
Coached hundreds of widows
Built Brave Widow Academy, a 6-month coaching program with a clear framework for moving from deep grief to rebuilding a life you can love again.
 
I don’t teach “just think positive” grief tips.
 
I teach widows how to:
Heal their heart.
Stop waiting on “time” to fix everything.
Take small, brave steps toward a life that feels meaningful again.
 
How I Got Here…
 
2021: My husband Nathan dies unexpectedly. I’m 4 kids in, overwhelmed, and drowning in paperwork, decisions, and pain. Therapy helps, but I still feel stuck with no roadmap.
 
2021–2022: I start devouring books, interviewing widows, trying grief groups, and studying coaching — desperate to find something that actually helps me feel different.
 
2022: I start the Brave Widow podcast, recording episodes while terrified and crying between takes — but determined that no widow should feel as alone as I did.
 
Year 1: I begin coaching widows
 
Year 2: I launch Brave Widow Academy — a structured, 6-month coaching program with a step-by-step path: from deep grief, to stability, to rebuilding.
 
Year 3: Brave Widow has listeners around the world. I’ve personally coached hundreds of widows and spoken with thousands more through consults, lives, emails, and DMs. 
 
Today: My work is simple:
 
Help widows stop surviving each day… and start rebuilding a life that makes them genuinely glad to be alive again.