Show notes
Join Brave Through the Holidays: bravewidow.com/holidays This 12-week pop-up group includes coaching, worksheets, community support, holiday planning, communication guidance, and vision planning for 2027. The holidays can feel painful, overwhelming, and completely different after losing your spouse. And the second year does not automatically feel easier. Brave Widow Resources Book a call with me to see if Academy is right for you: https://www.bravewidow.com/callFree, 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 of The Brave Widow Show, I share my personal experience navigating Thanksgiving and Christmas after Nathan died, including the year I canceled Thanksgiving and the year I created an entire project-management chart just to host Christmas dinner. I also explain how widows and widowers can create a more peaceful holiday plan by deciding:Which traditions to maintainWhich traditions to modifyWhich traditions to releaseHow to communicate decisions with familyWhat to do with loneliness and empty spaceHow to create a Plan A, Plan B, and escape planHow to enter the new year without abandoning your person You do not have to recreate the holidays exactly as they were. You are allowed to change your mind, set boundaries, participate differently, or take a break. You do not need the perfect holiday plan. You need a plan that supports you. Chapters00:00 Why the holidays can feel harder after loss 00:55 An invitation from Stand in the Gap Ministries 02:00 Is the second year of grief harder? 03:12 My first Thanksgiving after Nathan died 04:25 When I tried to do everything for Christmas 06:20 The expectations widows put on themselves 08:00 Why avoiding holiday planning creates more stress 09:25 Create a Plan A, Plan B, and escape plan 11:15 Which traditions should you keep, change, or release? 13:20 Handling family expectations and guilt 14:30 Planning for loneliness and empty space 15:35 Join Brave Through the Holidays 21:20 A real-life donkey interruption