Grief, Trauma & the Nervous System: How to Feel Safe Again After Loss with Ramona Kossowan | GRIEF Ladies Podcast
GRIEF Ladies: A Guide to What Comes Next
Release Date: 03/25/2026
Grief & Insomnia: CBT-I Tools to Help You Sleep Again
GRIEF Ladies: A Guide to What Comes Next
If you’ve been lying awake at night since someone died, you’re not alone. Grief often disrupts sleep, making bedtime feel anxious, frustrating, or emotionally overwhelming. For many people, insomnia becomes one of the most exhausting parts of loss. In this episode of the GRIEF Ladies Podcast, we’re joined by Dr. Larissa Tate to explore how Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) can help. CBTI is an evidence-based approach that helps rebuild healthy sleep habits even during grief. We talk about: Why grief interferes with sleep How nighttime anxiety develops What CBTI...
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BONUS: Improving Communication When No One Understands (Full Live Workshop)
GRIEF Ladies: A Guide to What Comes Next
Feeling like no one around you really gets it? You're not alone and it's one of the most common and least talked-about parts of grief. In this bonus episode, Kelly Daugherty of Center for Informed Grief, LLC and Karyn Arnold from Grief in Common bring you the full recording of their free live workshop, Improving Communication: When No One Understands. This is the I in the G.R.I.E.F. Framework — Interacting — and it's one of the topics they hear about most from grieving people across their communities, groups, and individual work. In this episode, Kelly and Karyn cover: Why people in...
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Anticipatory Grief & Alzheimer’s: Coping While Caring for Someone Still Alive
GRIEF Ladies: A Guide to What Comes Next
Grief doesn’t always wait for death. When you’re caring for someone with Alzheimer’s, especially younger-onset Alzheimer’s, you may find yourself grieving ongoing changes long before the end of life. This is anticipatory grief, and it can feel confusing, exhausting, and deeply isolating. In this episode (31 of the GRIEF Ladies), we met with Cheri Davies and Karen Sandone and explored: What anticipatory grief feels like The emotional realities of caregiving Why building a support community matters Self-care strategies that are actually realistic Finding moments of...
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Grief in the Body: Somatic Tools for Healing After Loss
GRIEF Ladies: A Guide to What Comes Next
Grief doesn’t stay in your thoughts, it often shows up in your body. In this episode, we explore how loss can affect your identity, self-esteem, and physical health. Joined by somatic coach Jay Moon Fields, we talk about embodied grief, why physical symptoms like tension and stomach aches are common, and simple tools to help process emotions safely. You’ll learn: Why grief can impact your body How loss reshapes self-identity Practical somatic tools for emotional release The “Of Course” validation technique How to advocate for yourself during grief Grief changes you but it...
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Grief After Estrangement: Healing Complicated Relationships Through Ritual & Creativity
GRIEF Ladies: A Guide to What Comes Next
What happens when someone you were estranged from dies? Grief after estrangement can bring layers of emotion including sadness, anger, relief, regret, gratitude and sometimes all at once. When a relationship is complicated, the grieving process can feel confusing and isolating. In this episode (GRIEF Ladies Episode #29), we talk with Sam Sundius about navigating the loss of her Mom after estrangement from her family, honoring both the hard and meaningful parts of a relationship, and using ritual and creativity as tools for healing. We explore: How grief shows up when the relationship...
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What to Do With a Loved One’s Belongings After They Die (with Janine McDonald) | GRIEF Ladies
GRIEF Ladies: A Guide to What Comes Next
What do you do with your loved one’s belongings after they die? Sorting through clothes, paperwork, furniture, and personal items can feel overwhelming — not just practically, but emotionally. In this episode of the GRIEF Ladies Podcast, Kelly Daugherty and Karyn Arnold are joined by decluttering specialist Janine McDonald to talk about the emotional and practical realities of going through a loved one’s things. This conversation goes beyond “cleaning out a house.” We explore how memories become attached to objects, why certain items feel impossible to let go of, and how to approach...
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Grief, Trauma & the Nervous System: How to Feel Safe Again After Loss with Ramona Kossowan | GRIEF Ladies Podcast
GRIEF Ladies: A Guide to What Comes Next
Why does grief feel traumatic? Why does your body feel on edge after someone dies? In this episode of the GRIEF Ladies Podcast, Kelly Daugherty and Karyn Arnold talk with Ramona Kossowan about the connection between grief, trauma, and the nervous system. We explore why emotional safety matters after loss, how trauma can show up in sleep disturbances, hypervigilance, and identity shifts, and what “gentle trauma release” really means. You’ll learn: • Why grief can feel like trauma • How the nervous system responds to loss • What emotional safety actually looks like • The role of...
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Can You Still Communicate With Someone Who Died? What IADC Therapy Actually Is with April Hannah
GRIEF Ladies: A Guide to What Comes Next
Many grieving people wonder whether it’s possible — or even healthy — to feel connected to someone who has died. After-death communication is a topic that brings curiosity, comfort, and sometimes skepticism. In this episode (26) of The GRIEF Ladies Podcast, Karyn Arnold and Kelly Daugherty are joined by licensed therapist April Hannah to explore Induced After-Death Communication (IADC) therapy and its role in grief work. We discuss how IADC developed, what the process involves, and how some individuals experience meaningful connection through this therapeutic approach. In this...
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Grief and Fear: Why Loss Can Make Everything Feel Overwhelming with guest, Cori Myka
GRIEF Ladies: A Guide to What Comes Next
If grief has left you feeling anxious, fearful, or overwhelmed, you’re not alone. Loss can shake your sense of safety and make even small decisions feel heavy. In this episode (25) of The GRIEF Ladies Podcast, Kelly Daugherty and Karyn Arnold are joined by Cori Myka to explore why grief often triggers fear and how overwhelm impacts your nervous system. Using powerful insights drawn from swimming, Cori explains how we can build internal trust, tolerate emotional waves, and take small, steady steps forward. In this conversation, we discuss: Why grief can heighten fear and anxiety How...
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Growing Around Grief: Staying Connected While Living Forward with guest, Charlotte Shuber
GRIEF Ladies: A Guide to What Comes Next
If you’ve wondered whether it’s healthy to stay connected to someone who died, you’re not alone. Many grieving people struggle with how to carry their loved one forward while continuing to live and grow. In this insightful episode (24) of the GRIEF Ladies Podcast, Charlotte Shuber, a licensed clinical social worker, shares her personal journey and professional expertise in navigating grief. Discover how Charlotte emphasizes the importance of interacting with our emotions and memories to foster connectedness and adaptation. Through her unique approach, she guides listeners on...
info_outlineWhy does grief feel traumatic? Why does your body feel on edge after someone dies?
In this episode of the GRIEF Ladies Podcast, Kelly Daugherty and Karyn Arnold talk with Ramona Kossowan about the connection between grief, trauma, and the nervous system. We explore why emotional safety matters after loss, how trauma can show up in sleep disturbances, hypervigilance, and identity shifts, and what “gentle trauma release” really means.
You’ll learn:
• Why grief can feel like trauma
• How the nervous system responds to loss
• What emotional safety actually looks like
• The role of movement and self-care in grief
• Practical steps to begin feeling safer in your body
This conversation is especially helpful if you’ve been wondering why you still feel on edge, numb, or overwhelmed long after the death.
Guest Bio: Ramona Kossowan is a Gentle Trauma Release Practitioner and empowerment coach who supports individuals navigating both acute loss and long-standing traumatic grief.
She distinguishes between grief — a natural and necessary process — and trauma, which can keep the nervous system looping and stuck long after the loss has occurred. Through gentle, body-based work with the unconscious nervous system, Ramona helps clients experience restorative relief: a settling in the body that allows grief to move rather than remain frozen.
In the early days of loss, this may mean stabilization and grounding — creating enough safety to function and feel supported. In more chronic or traumatic grief, her work focuses on releasing the patterns that interfere with healing, not to erase what happened, but to restore resilience, self-trust, and the capacity to experience meaning, connection, and even joy again.
With years of experience coaching women in sustainable movement and nourishment, Ramona brings a deep understanding of physical, emotional, and nervous system well-being to the rebuilding process. Her approach helps clients lay a solid, embodied foundation for their next chapter — one rooted not in forced positivity or “moving on,” but in feeling safe, worthy, and open to life again.
Connect with Ramona:
Ramona's Free Download: When Grief Feels Stuck: When Grief Feels Stuck
Ramona's free download "Is it trauma?" (self guided Gentle Trauma Assessment)
https://ramonakcoaching.com/gentle-trauma-assessment/
Links:
ramona@ramonakcoaching.com
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ramona-kossowan-380ba66a/
https://www.youtube.com/@RamonaKCoaching
Books:
Confident You - The Raw Conversations (New bestseller):
https://a.co/d/0hOSaoMp Paperback (Canada)
https://a.co/d/0ikwm8UF Kindle (Canada)
https://a.co/d/0hOSaoMp Paperback (U.S.)
https://a.co/d/06Y3yLXF Kindle (U.S.)
Life Lit Up bestseller
GRIEF Ladies: Your Guide to What Comes Next
If you're ready to move forward without moving on—this show is for you.
🎧 Follow and connect: https://www.griefladies.com/
Kelly Daugherty: https://www.kellydaugherty.com/
Karyn Arnold: https://www.griefincommon.com/
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The GRIEF Ladies podcast offers education and support for people living with grief after someone they love has died. Our content is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional mental health care or crisis services. If you are in crisis or concerned about your safety, call 988 in the U.S. or contact local emergency services.
Guest perspectives shared on this platform are their own and may not reflect the views or positions of The Grief Ladies.