If you’ve ever questioned why your grief feels different, episode 394 of the Grief and Happiness podcast is for you. Award-winning author and grief educator Theo Boyd shares the life-shifting losses that shaped her work and the signs that helped her forward. She explains why comparing grief adds to the pain and why sadness is not a disorder. Her story offers a clear, hopeful reminder that healing begins when you honor your own way through loss.

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

(01:02) How a tragic farm accident changed Theo’s life overnight

(02:40) Why journaling became her first lifeline through overwhelming grief

(03:55) The moment she realized her notes needed to become a grief book

(04:50) How compounded loss shaped My Grief Is Not Like Yours

(06:10) The story behind her second book Hope All the Way and the signs that inspired it

(09:03) What her national grief study reveals about America’s hidden grief crisis

(11:37) Why society’s discomfort with sadness harms grievers

(12:47) The real meaning of “complicated grief” and why labels can be damaging

(14:22) How early counseling support helped her survive the darkest period

(17:22) How signs and moments of meaning helped her rediscover purpose

Thelizabeth “Theo” Boyd is an award-winning author, speaker, podcast host, and certified grief educator whose work centers on validating the many forms of loss. A former high-school English and creative writing teacher, she turned to journaling after a series of life-altering events, including the accidental death of her mother, the sudden loss of her longtime counselor, the end of her marriage, and later her father’s suicide. These experiences shaped her first book, My Grief Is Not Like Yours, and her upcoming release Hope All the Way, which also incorporates findings from her national study on the state of grief in America.

In her conversation with Emily, Theo reflects on how writing became both an anchor and a purpose after her world collapsed. She explains why grief must be witnessed, why comparisons rarely comfort, and how meaning deepens into purpose only when it serves others. Theo also shares the powerful signs she’s received from her parents, the importance of normalizing sadness instead of pathologizing it, and the urgent need to address the country’s grief crisis. Her perspective offers listeners a grounded, hope-filled reminder that healing grows from honesty, connection, and staying open to moments of grace along the way.

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