Show notes
What happens when grief, dark humor, motherhood, and entrepreneurship collide? Connect With Lucy Facebook: @jeannetterizzi Instagram: @jeannetterizzi Instagram: @puresweatwoodlandhills Brave Widow Resources Free, Live “Four Seasons of Grief” Training + Quiz: bravewidow.com/liveRebuild a Life You Can Love Again in the Brave Widow Academy (join the waitlist or book a call): https://bravewidow.com/academyCreate Calm from Chaos and Heal Your Heart inside Brave Widow Foundations:👉 bravewidow.com/foundationsJoin the free Brave Widow Community: https://bravewidow.com/free In this episode, Jeannette Rizzi shares how losing two close friends to suicide as a teenager shaped her life, her relationships, and her work as a comedian. After years of silence and people avoiding difficult conversations, Jeannette found a way to process her grief by writing and performing a one-woman show. She explains why sometimes the best thing you can do for someone grieving is simply sit beside them, why humor can create space for painful conversations, and how she turned her personal story into fundraisers supporting mental health, suicide prevention, and neurofibromatosis research. Jeannette also shares the reality of performing vulnerable material, handling criticism, parenting through trauma, and choosing kindness when life feels heavy. Content note: This episode discusses suicide loss, grief, mental health, and trauma. If you or someone else may be in immediate danger, contact emergency services or the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in the United States. Chapters00:00 Meet Jeannette Rizzi 01:30 Experiencing suicide loss as a teenager 04:00 When people avoid your grief 07:00 Why sitting beside someone matters 09:00 Turning grief into comedy 12:00 The power of dark humor 15:00 Giggles for Good and giving back 19:00 Writing a true story for the stage 24:00 Why writing can help process grief 27:00 Parenting, trauma, and difficult conversations 30:00 Finding the right professional support 34:00 Where to connect with Jeannette 💬 If this episode helped you, please: Hit Subscribe Leave a quick rating & review – it helps more widows find this supportShare 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.