Ep99: The Questions Kids Actually Ask About Dying with Dr. Korie Leigh

Elisabeth Kübler-Ross never wanted us to call them stages of grief, but the five stages got loose in the world anyway, and fifty years later we're still measuring our grief against a model that was never meant to be linear — and was not even built from data about grief. This week I'm talking with **Dr. Korie Leigh** — thanatologist, clinician, author, and director of one of only two graduate programs in thanatology in the country — about what the actual research says grief is: not a checklist, not a destination, but a bio-psycho-social-relational-spiritual process we learn to live inside of, forever. * * * ## About Dr. Korie Leigh Dr. Korie Leigh is an internationally recognized thanatologist, certified child life specialist, grief counselor, author, educator, and speaker who helps children, families, professionals, and communities navigate grief, loss, and life's hardest changes. With more than 20 years of experience working with children and families, Dr. Leigh is known for making difficult conversations about grief approachable, practical, and deeply human. She is the author of three books with Free Spirit Publishing: *What Does Grief Feel Like?*, *It Won't Ever Be the Same: A Teen's Guide to Grief and Grieving*, and *When Everything Changes: Parenting Through Loss and Grief*. Her work has received a New Mexico Book Award and has been recognized by national media and recommended reading lists. Dr. Leigh is an Associate Professor and Program Director of the M.S. in Thanatology at Marian University and Director of Psychosocial Services for Hero's Path Palliative Care. She has also served as an advisor to Sesame Workshop and presents nationally and internationally on childhood bereavement, pediatric palliative care, grief literacy, expressive arts, and building grief-informed communities. Through her books, speaking, training, consultation, and clinical work, Dr. Leigh offers creative and meaningful ways to live alongside loss, support one another through difficult experiences, and build organizations and communities where grief has a place to belong. **Her books:** - *What Does Grief Feel Like?* — for children under 8 - *It Won't Ever Be the Same: A Teen's Guide to Grief and Grieving* - *When Everything Changes: Parenting Through Loss and Grief* - *Why Are the Numbers All Jumbled?* — coming soon! * * * ## Books & Research Mentioned - *The Grieving Brain* and *The Grieving Body* — Mary-Frances O'Connor - *The Private Lives of Dying Children* — Myra Bluebond-Langer - Instrumental and Intuitive grief theory — Kenneth Doka and Terry Martin * * * ## Links - Dr. Korie Leigh's website: https://www.korieleighphd.com/ - Follow Dr. Korie Leigh on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drkorieleigh/ <!--THE END--> - Follow Morgan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/morgan\_motsinger - Read more from Morgan on her blog: https://www.morganmotsinger.com/blog