Ep. 31 The Invisible Concussion of Grief

In this episode, Nathan describes the functional parallel between the experience of acute grief and the documented symptoms of traumatic brain injury.The cognitive fog. The bone-deep exhaustion. The emotional volatility, the strange relationship to time, the inability to make decisions or hold a conversation – all of it has a neurological basis.Drawing on the neuroscientific research of Mary-Frances O'Connor, Lisa Feldman Barrett, and others, Nathan walks through what's actually happening in the brain during acute loss — why it disrupts everything from memory to social cognition to sleep — and closes with seven practical, science-grounded strategies for caring for the grieving brain without abandoning yourself in the process.This is an episode about understanding what happened to you. And about treating yourself, finally, with the same patience and care you'd give someone with a visible injury.You can download your free grief journal ⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠.Send your Grief Confessional ⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠.And contribute to the show ⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠.