The Grief You Don't Know You're Carrying — with Claire Bidwell Smith

What if some of the anxiety, exhaustion, irritability, or emotional heaviness you're carrying is actually grief?

In this episode of the Emotional Longevity Podcast, Dr. Elisha Goldstein sits down with renowned grief therapist and bestselling author Claire Bidwell Smith to explore the many forms grief can take—and why so many people don't recognize they're grieving until it begins affecting every area of their lives.

Claire shares insights from decades of personal and professional experience helping people navigate loss. Together they explore anticipatory grief, caregiving, anxiety, non-death grief, generational grief, and what it means to grieve consciously rather than pushing pain away.

This conversation offers a compassionate roadmap for anyone moving through loss—or supporting someone who is.

🎧 In this episode, we explore:

✅ Why grief doesn't follow a timeline
 ✅ The hidden connection between grief and anxiety
 ✅ What anticipatory grief feels like
 ✅ How old losses resurface through new experiences
 ✅ Why non-death grief deserves attention and validation
 ✅ The physical impact of grief on the brain and body
 ✅ How conscious grieving promotes healing
 ✅ Simple ways to support grieving loved ones

⏱ Chapters:

00:00 – Introduction
02:22 – Claire's Personal Story with Loss
06:15 – Common Myths About Grief
08:56 – Anticipatory Grief Explained
11:08 – Conscious Grieving and Healing
20:51 – Recognizing Non-Death Grief
23:23 – Why People Minimize Grief
24:27 – Different Ways People Grieve
30:47 – Anxiety and Loss
35:28 – What Conscious Grieving Looks Like
37:04 – Brain Fog, Fatigue, and Grief
39:53 – Supporting Someone Through Loss
41:39 – Spiritual Bypassing and Avoidance
43:30 – Final Thoughts on Healing

🌟 Learn More About Claire Bidwell Smith
https://clairebidwellsmith.com/ 

Books:

Conscious Grieving
https://amazon.com/Conscious-Grieving-Transformative-Approach-Healing/dp/1523520280?utm

 Anxiety: The Missing Stage of Grief
https://amazon.com/Anxiety-Missing-Revolutionary-Approach-Understanding/dp/073823477X?utm 

Instagram: https://instagram.com/clairebidwellsmith/?hl=en 

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 https://elishagoldstein.com/3days

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YouTube: https:/.youtube.com/@drelishagoldstein 

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