041: Why Unresolved Grief Is Behind So Much Pain (and How to Heal It) with Victoria Volk

Connect with Victoria Volk: Website: www.theunleashedheart.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/theunleashedheart   As the host of the Feel Free Again Podcast, I’ve had the privilege of hearing countless stories of loss and restoration — but few moved me like my conversation with Victoria Volk, a grief recovery specialist and mother of three from rural North Dakota. In this episode, we explore what it really means to confront decades of buried pain and how doing so can restore connection, compassion, and freedom. Victoria opens up about losing her father at age 8, enduring abuse, and spending 30 years trying to outrun grief through achievement, distraction, and numbing. Her breaking point led her to the Grief Recovery Method, which completely changed her life — and even saved her relationship with her mother. She shares how healing her heart didn’t require others to change, but instead invited empathy, forgiveness, and peace that rippled through her entire family. We also talk about how grief recovery helps parents and children communicate more openly, why boundaries create safety, and what happens when anger is finally understood instead of suppressed. If you’ve ever lost someone, faced trauma, or felt emotionally stuck, this episode will remind you that you can’t heal what you won’t feel — and that freedom is closer than you think.   ⏱️ Chapters: 00:00 – Intro & Welcome to the Feel Free Again Podcast 01:05 – Meet Victoria Volk: Finding Grief Recovery After 30 Years 04:56 – The Midlife Unraveling: Identity, Motherhood & Burnout 06:50 – Discovering the Grief Recovery Method & Choosing Healing 10:05 – Why You Can’t Heal Alone: The Power of Safe Spaces 16:42 – Healing the Relationship with Her Mother Through Compassion 23:04 – Boundaries, Body Awareness & Feeling Safe Again 31:02 – Teaching Kids Emotional Honesty & Healthy Anger 45:00 – Victoria’s Son’s Accident: How Grief Tools Saved Their Family 1:00:07 – Grief Is Everywhere: Why the World Needs This Work