How To Start Wanting Life Again After Widow Grief (Without Big Dreams) | BW: 207

Brave Widow Resources   Brave Widow Academy (join the waitlist or book a call): https://bravewidow.com/academy Join Brave Widow Foundations (gentle, faith‑based support for the first seasons of grief):👉 bravewidow.com/foundations Join the free Brave Widow Community: https://bravewidow.com/free   📍 In‑Person Events Mentioned: • Held in Hope Conference – Jenks, OK – Oct 8–9, 2026: https://www.standinthegap.org/heldinhope/ • San Antonio, TX meetup (September 2026) • Faith and Growth Summit – Miami, FL – Dec 3, 2026: https://faithbasedcoachingacademy.com/faith-and-growth-summit/     If you stand in front of the fridge asking, “What do I want?” and come up blank – not just about food, but about life – this episode is for you.   After losing your person, wanting anything can feel numb, wrong, or like a betrayal. In this Brave Widow episode, Emily gently helps you practice wanting again without forcing yourself into big dreams or a brand-new life purpose.   In this episode, you’ll hear: Why grief flattens desire and makes “neutral” feel safer than hope How to start with “coffee-level” wants instead of life purpose A simple way to design 90 minutes of your weekend to feel more like you How to try new things without promising an outcome A new way to see old dreams, shared dreams, and the dreams that belong to you now   🎁 Free “Desire Again” Worksheet Want help unpacking your own resistance and desires as you listen? Grab the free worksheet that goes with this episode: Click here to download: https://bravewidow.com/want     Chapters: 00:00 – “What do I want?” when the fridge question is really about life 01:18 – How grief suppresses desire and makes “neutral” feel safe 04:05 – Practicing tiny wants: coffee, mornings, and dinner plans 07:02 – Not “What do I want out of life?” but “What do I want more of?” 08:45 – Redesigning your weekends: three words and a 90‑minute block 11:35 – Trying without guarantees: experiments vs promised outcomes 13:40 – Frozen vs healing: numbness, overwhelm, and timing in grief 15:35 – Old dreams, shared dreams, and the dreams that are yours now 17:25 – “I’m allowed to want…” and giving yourself permission 18:40 – How to get the worksheet, join the community, and live events     Subscribe for more faith‑based, hopeful grief support for widows: @BraveWidow on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram & Facebook   💬 If this episode helped you, please:  Hit Subscribe  Leave a quick rating & review – it helps more widows find this support Share this with a friend who’s facing grief or the holidays without their person   If you’re new here, my name is Emily Tanner. I’m the founder of Brave Widow and Brave Widow Academy.   I help widows move from barely surviving their loss… to rebuilding a life they can actually love again without feeling like they’re betraying their person.   By day (and for 20+ years), I’ve led large teams and complex operations in the corporate world.    After my husband Nathan died in 2021, just shy of our 20-year anniversary, I took everything I knew about leadership, systems, and change — and started applying it to grief.   Since then, I’ve: Shared my story publicly to make widows feel less alone. Launched the Brave Widow podcast, now with 180+ episodes and listeners around the world. Coached hundreds of widows 1:1 and in groups, and talked with thousands more through the podcast, communities, and events. Built Brave Widow Academy, a 6-month coaching program with a clear framework for moving from deep grief to rebuilding a life you can love again.   I don’t teach “just think positive” grief tips.   I teach widows how to: Heal their heart. Stop waiting on “time” to fix everything. Take small, brave steps toward a life that feels meaningful again.   How I Got Here…   2021: My husband Nathan dies unexpectedly. I’m 4 kids in, overwhelmed, and drowning in paperwork, decisions, and pain. Therapy helps, but I still feel stuck with no roadmap.   2021–2022: I start devouring books, interviewing widows, trying grief groups, and studying coaching — desperate to find something that actually helps me feel different.   2022: I start the Brave Widow podcast, recording episodes while terrified and crying between takes — but determined that no widow should feel as alone as I did.   Year 1: I begin coaching widows 1:1. Word spreads quietly. The same patterns and problems keep showing up, so I start building frameworks instead of one-off advice.   Year 2: I launch Brave Widow Academy — a structured, 6-month coaching program with a step-by-step path: from deep grief, to stability, to rebuilding.   Year 3: Brave Widow has listeners around the world. I’ve personally coached hundreds of widows and spoken with thousands more through consults, lives, emails, and DMs.    Today: My work is simple:   Help widows stop surviving each day… and start rebuilding a life that makes them genuinely glad to be alive again.