247: Chatting About Grief Transforms Us with Meg Nocero

Sometimes, difficulties and loss can reshape who we are and nudge us into growing. Just like a caterpillar sheds its skin and spins itself a silky chrysalis, what results is a breathtakingly beautiful creature we could never imagine, the butterfly. Meg Nocero’s story is not so different as she depicts her extraordinary transformation in Butterfly Awakens. As a forty-something Italian-American immigration attorney, Meg moves through unimaginable grief and sadness watching her beloved mother lost her battle to breast cancer. Questioning her life choices and opening herself up to her soul’s calling, Nocero brings readers along on her journey through a dark night of the soul. We experience with her the grieving process, a toxic work environment, and intense stress that results in depression and anxiety, along with a somatic nervous disorder called tinnitus. Meg never gives up and– instead– looks for the help she needs to start to heal and find her light. In the end, like the metamorphosis from caterpillar to butterfly, her story is a beautiful love letter honoring her mother’s legacy while detailing the awakening of her own. Among the many stories about breast cancer and grief, none are quite like this one. After resigning from her career as a federal prosecutor due to a toxic administration, she searches for the lighthouse she saw in a vision when her mother died. Embarking on an inspiring spiritual pilgrimage on El Camino de Santiago in Northern Spain to get to the lighthouse at Cap Finisterre, she sets out to wake up and live again. The butterfly connection and stark honesty of her writing offer readers important lessons learned from moving through grief so that each person can shine their light again. Meg Nocero is a former Department of Homeland Security attorney. After 19 years of federal government service, she resigned to pursue her dream as a writer, inspirational speaker, success coach, and attorney for justice. Nocero is an avid learner who holds a BA in Spanish, with a concentration in Italian from Boston College; an MA in international affairs from the University of Miami; and a JD from St. Thomas University School of Law. She is a member of the Florida Bar, serves on the Wellness Committee of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), and holds certifications as a Federal Law Enforcement Training Center instructor, as a Professional Coach from the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching, and as an Associate Certified Coach from the International Coaching Federation. She has a Certificate in Happiness Studies through Harvard Professor Dr. Tal Ben-Shahar’s Happiness Studies Academy and a Certificate for the Science of Well-Being from Yale University. Helpful Links Grab Butterfly Awakens: A Memoir of Transformation Through Grief https://amzn.to/3n46M9X  {affiliate link} Manifesting with Meg: Conversations with Extraordinary People. YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCati3jiHnBi5ym6z8Pcu5i Anchor Podcast: https://anchor.fm/meg-nocero Facebook: www.facebook.com/meggiebliss Twitter: https://twitter.com/megnocero  @megnocero Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/megnocero/ @megnocero Linked In: www.linkedin.com/in/meg-nocero-esq-686b8715 Website: www.megnocero.com