The world can feel like such a lonely place sometimes. You ever feel like there’s not enough love and support to go around? Like, there’s a severe shortage of compassion in the world, both for you and well, everyone? Me too, friends. To get us into this topic, this week on Here After with Megan Devine, we cover grief comparisons, like whether divorce and death should be compared, or the death of anyone should be compared to the loss of a pet. Of course the short answer is no: grief comparisons are never useful. For the long answer though - listen to the show. 

This episode is basically my TED talk, if I had one, on how we create that support-filled world we all want (and deserve). It’s my personal favorite episode of season one, brought to you again for this valentine’s day. 

In this episode we cover:

• Why comparing divorce to death, or pet loss to child loss, is a Very. Bad. Idea. (usually)
• Is it ok to be sad about a musician or actor’s death, even if you never met them? 
• How to treat compassion like an abundant resource AND have good boundaries all at the same 
• The path to the love-filled, support-rich world we all want (it’s not easy, but it’s worth it) 
• Fun ideas to help you seed love and compassion in the world, plus the one habit to break and re-make

Notable quote: 

“It sounds pretty woo but compassion really is an expandable resource. Practicing inclusion and validation means people feel heard, and heard people hear people, which means the whole culture starts to change from one of vindictive “how dare you feel that way!” to at worst, a neutral, impartial kindness, and at best - well, being generous like this creates a world built and sustained by love.” - Megan Devine

Resources: 

Love in action! Check out this exceptionally non-extensive list of people to learn from as we grow the love filled world we all want:  Rachel Cargle, Alok Menon, Alice Wong, Free Mom Hugs, Farmer Veteran Coalition, Natalie Weaver, & Resting Waters

Terminology update: in this episode, I use the term “gender fluid,” but the term  gender-expansive is more accurate.

The “is there love available here?” question comes from Mark Silver.

Get in touch: 

Thanks for listening to this week’s episode of Here After with Megan Devine. Tune in, subscribe, leave a review, send in your questions, and share the show with everyone you know. Together, we can make things better, even when they can’t be made right. 

For more information, including clinical training and consulting, visit us at www.Megandevine.co

For grief support & education, follow us at @refugeingrief on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok

Check out Megan’s best-selling books - It’s Okay That You're Not Okay and How to Carry What Can’t Be Fixed

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