Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic
Angela Kennecke
After losing her 21-year-old daughter, Emily, to fentanyl poisoning, veteran journalist Angela Kennecke made it her life’s mission to break the silence surrounding substance use disorder and the overdose crisis. Grieving Out Loud is a heartfelt and unflinching podcast where Angela shares stories of devastating loss, hard-earned hope, and the journey toward healing. Through powerful interviews with other grieving families, experts, advocates, and people in recovery, this podcast sheds light on the human side of the epidemic — and how we can all be part of the solution. Whether you're coping with grief, supporting a loved one, or working to end the stigma, you’ll find connection, comfort, and inspiration here.
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Top 10 Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
Embracing hope after the loss of a daughter to suicide
Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic
05/15/24 • 33 min
The statistics are deeply troubling. Between 2007 and 2021, youth suicide rates surged by more than 60%. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveals that teens living in the most impoverished areas were 37% more likely to die by suicide. However, this distressing trend isn't confined to those facing socioeconomic challenges; it also impacts young people who outwardly appear to have everything.
Angela Drake understands the devastating impact of this epidemic all too well. Her 17-year-old daughter lost her life after battling depression. Rather than allowing grief to consume her, Drake made a courageous decision to confront her pain head-on and dedicate herself to preventing further tragedies. In this episode of Grieving Out Loud, she shares her invaluable insights for navigating loss and discusses her efforts to support the community.
We want to stress that if you or someone you love is grappling with suicidal thoughts, help is available. Remember, you are not alone.
Subscribe to Grieving Out Loud/Emily’s Hope Updates
For more episodes and information, just go to our website, emilyshope.charity
Wishing you faith, hope and courage!
Podcast producers:
Casey Wonnenberg King & Marley Miller
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'Be Glad:' Honoring the Legacy of Dr. Gladys McGarey
Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic
10/23/24 • 35 min
In this special episode of Grieving Out Loud, we revisit a cherished conversation with Dr. Gladys McGarey, a trailblazer in holistic medicine who passed away on September 28th at the age of 103. Her wisdom transcended the medical field, emphasizing that love is the most powerful healing force.
Dr. Gladys built her life around the five L’s: love, life, labor, laughter, and listening—with love as the cornerstone. Her message continues to inspire us to live with purpose and joy, regardless of life’s hardships. Join us as we honor her legacy by revisiting this insightful episode, originally recorded one year ago. Listen now to remember her spirit and her words.
Link to Dr. Gladys' Celebration of Life Services: https://www.foundationforlivingmedicine.org/memorial/services/
Link to Dr. Gladys' Book, The Well Lived Life: https://gladysmcgarey.com/#
The Emily’s Hope Substance Use Prevention Curriculum has been carefully designed to address growing concerns surrounding substance use and overdose in our communities. Our curriculum focuses on age-appropriate and evidence-based content that educates children about the risks of substance use while empowering them to make healthy choices.
Subscribe to Grieving Out Loud/Emily’s Hope Updates
For more episodes and information, just go to our website, emilyshope.charity
Wishing you faith, hope and courage!
Podcast producers:
Casey Wonnenberg King & Marley Miller
Mindfulness and Grief
Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic
03/06/21 • 44 min
In this episode of Grieving Out Loud, Angela Kennecke talks with Heather Stang, a, thanatologist, yoga therapist, author of Mindfulness & Grief and the new guided journal, From Grief to Peace. Stang founded the Mindfulness and Grief Institute and is the host of her own podcast by the same name.
Stang shares how her own experiences with grief brought her to her profession and has advice for anyone suffering with loss, especially overdose loss, on how to use mindfulness to cope with the extreme pain that accompanies grief.
Subscribe to Grieving Out Loud/Emily’s Hope Updates
For more episodes and information, just go to our website, emilyshope.charity
Wishing you faith, hope and courage!
Podcast producers:
Casey Wonnenberg King & Marley Miller
Fake Prescription Drugs Laced with Deadly Fentanyl
Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic
02/17/20 • 20 min
According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, fake prescription pills are flooding the market in the United States. They look exactly like the real thing, but often contain the deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl. In this episode, Angela Kennecke talks with DEA Agent Travis Ocken about the problem and his advice for parents in dealing with drug issues that are killing tens-of-thousands of mostly young people every year. The DEA paints a frightening picture of the hold drug cartels have on the population in the United States as the demand for illegal drugs remains high.
Subscribe to Grieving Out Loud/Emily’s Hope Updates
For more episodes and information, just go to our website, emilyshope.charity
Wishing you faith, hope and courage!
Podcast producers:
Casey Wonnenberg King & Marley Miller
Growing Up with Grief: Emily’s Siblings Open Up
Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic
05/14/25 • 30 min
In this deeply personal episode of Grieving Out Loud, host Angela Kennecke sits down with her own children to talk about the very public loss of their sister, Emily, who died of fentanyl poisoning in 2018. While the nation saw the news story, what it didn’t see was the quiet heartbreak that unfolded behind closed doors.
In episode one of What About Us? Stories of Sibling Grief, each sibling shares how Emily’s death changed them—how they grieve, how they’ve grown, and what they want others to know about life after unimaginable loss. It’s the start of a powerful new series on sibling grief, with raw honesty, love, and hope at its heart.
There’s more to come—join us in the next few episodes as we continue sharing stories of siblings navigating life after loss.
The Emily’s Hope Substance Use Prevention Curriculum has been carefully designed to address growing concerns surrounding substance use and overdose in our communities. Our curriculum focuses on age-appropriate and evidence-based content that educates children about the risks of substance use while empowering them to make healthy choices.
Subscribe to Grieving Out Loud/Emily’s Hope Updates
For more episodes and information, just go to our website, emilyshope.charity
Wishing you faith, hope and courage!
Podcast producers:
Casey Wonnenberg King & Marley Miller
Coping with a Xanax overdose death
Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic
10/13/21 • 41 min
Janet Ropp's 19-year-old son, James, died October 13, 2018, from a Xanax overdose. James had struggled with addiction throughout his teenage years. He had been diagnosed with ADHD at a young age and his mother believes he was self-medicating with illicit drugs. Janet is marking the third anniversary of James' death by sharing what she has learned about grief and how to cope. She took classes through the Grief Recovery Method and found comfort in the book Where Did You Go, by Christina Rasmussen.
Subscribe to Grieving Out Loud/Emily’s Hope Updates
For more episodes and information, just go to our website, emilyshope.charity
Wishing you faith, hope and courage!
Podcast producers:
Casey Wonnenberg King & Marley Miller
How to help people in grief
Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic
09/22/22 • 19 min
Your host, Angela Kennecke, has brought you conversations she has had with different speakers and authors from the Bereaved Parents USA Conference over the last four weeks. This week, Angela wraps up the series with a conversation she had with Pat Sheveland.
Angela and Pat first met in 2020, when she was a guest on Grieving Out Loud, for the first time. Since that conversation, Pat has lost her mother and now has a new book called The Confident Grief Coach. In this episode of Grieving Out Loud, Pat shares even more about the best ways to cope with loss.
Listen to Pat's first episode with Angela, Strategies for Survival after the Loss of a Child, here.
Subscribe to Grieving Out Loud/Emily’s Hope Updates
For more episodes and information, just go to our website, emilyshope.charity
Wishing you faith, hope and courage!
Podcast producers:
Casey Wonnenberg King & Marley Miller
Mother, grandmother in recovery with help from Emily's Hope
Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic
02/14/21 • 21 min
Norma is a 52-year-old mother and grandmother. She didn't start drinking until the age of 35, but within a year, she says she was an alcoholic. She had period of sobriety, but now has new hope for long-term recovery after seeking treatment at the Avera Addiction Care Center and receiving an Emily's Hope Treatment Scholarship.
Norma shares her story in hopes of reducing the stigma and shame surrounding addiction and encouraging. others to seek help.
Subscribe to Grieving Out Loud/Emily’s Hope Updates
For more episodes and information, just go to our website, emilyshope.charity
Wishing you faith, hope and courage!
Podcast producers:
Casey Wonnenberg King & Marley Miller
Narcan Nate: From selling drugs to saving hundreds from dying
Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic
01/11/23 • 20 min
As the U.S. struggles with a deadly drug epidemic, Nathan Smiddy has made it his mission to prevent deaths and mourning. He believes that by distributing Narcan, he has saved around 450 lives in the past year.
The issue hits home for “Narcan Nate” because he started not only using but selling drugs in high school. In this episode of Grieving Out Loud, hear how Nate overcame his substance use disorder after a couple of close encounters with death.
Nate has created a Go Fund Me page to help with his efforts at https://www.gofundme.com/f/narcan-nate-fund.
Subscribe to Grieving Out Loud/Emily’s Hope Updates
For more episodes and information, just go to our website, emilyshope.charity
Wishing you faith, hope and courage!
Podcast producers:
Casey Wonnenberg King & Marley Miller
A mother's journey through grief, addiction, and finding hope after losing her daughter
Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic
08/28/24 • 33 min
Your life dreams may include starting a business, building a dream home, or nurturing a healthy marriage. But for many, like Sandra Radford, the deepest dream is raising children—a dream she fought to achieve through IVF. Despite the heartbreak of losing two of her triplets during pregnancy, Sandra’s joy was boundless when she welcomed her daughter into the world.
But life’s harshest trials lay ahead. Sandra’s world shattered when her cherished daughter fell into the grip of substance use disorder, ultimately losing her battle to a fatal overdose. The pain was compounded as Sandra faced her own struggle with addiction, plunging her into a darkness where the will to live seemed almost impossible to find.
Yet Sandra’s story is not just one of loss and despair. It is a testament to resilience, a reminder that even when life delivers its cruelest blows, there remains a spark of hope. Sandra refuses to be defined by her grief. Instead, she strives to inspire others, showing that no matter how deep the pain, we must continue to dream, to fight, and to live.
The Emily’s Hope Substance Use Prevention Curriculum has been carefully designed to address growing concerns surrounding substance use and overdose in our communities. Our curriculum focuses on age-appropriate and evidence-based content that educates children about the risks of substance use while empowering them to make healthy choices.
Subscribe to Grieving Out Loud/Emily’s Hope Updates
For more episodes and information, just go to our website, emilyshope.charity
Wishing you faith, hope and courage!
Podcast producers:
Casey Wonnenberg King & Marley Miller
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FAQ
How many episodes does Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic have?
Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic currently has 217 episodes available.
What topics does Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic cover?
The podcast is about Addiction, Health & Fitness, Society & Culture, Grief, Personal Journals, Love, Mental Health, Drug, Podcasts, Inspiration, Loss and Death.
What is the most popular episode on Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic?
The episode title 'Embracing hope after the loss of a daughter to suicide' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic?
The average episode length on Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic is 35 minutes.
How often are episodes of Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic released?
Episodes of Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic are typically released every 7 days.
When was the first episode of Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic?
The first episode of Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic was released on Apr 11, 2019.
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