"We have to remember our loved one is gone, and that's horrible. But we're still here, and we still have work to do. We still have purpose, we still have value, and that's to love our lives and help others love their lives as well." —Dianne Brazell

Creativity became Dianne Brazell's lifeline after losing her husband, Paul, just five months after their wedding. In this episode of Live, Love, Survive, Thrive, Dr. Kimberly Hubenette sits down with author and educator Dianne Brazell, who went from bride to widow in the span of a terminal cancer diagnosis — and found her way through grief by writing letters to a man she wasn't ready to let go.
Dianne shares three things that shaped her healing: writing as emotional release (including a chapter on anger she almost cut from her memoir), the unexpected gift of Paul's sisters becoming her closest travel companions, and learning — after a lifetime of fearing it — that she is her own best friend.
Seven years out, Dianne describes her grief as a pain that's dropped from a nine or ten to a one or two most days. It spikes. It surfaces on birthdays and anniversaries. But it no longer defines her.
Her new book, Weaving Peace: Creating Your Next Act, gives grievers practical tools to use photography, movement, music, and writing to rebuild. If you're in the early fog or years deep and still finding your footing, this conversation meets you there.

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Episode Highlights:
02:42 Meet Dianne: From Bride to Widow in 5 Months
07:44 Losing Paul
13:47 Early Stages of Grief and Coping Mechanisms
19:52 Coping by Serving Others
26:18 Learning to Love Alone and Balancing Life
32:12 Recipe: Creative Chili

Resources:
Get Kim's Books
📖Grid: Once in a Lifetime You Get to Start Over
📖Live, Love, Survive, Thrive!
Get Dianne's Book:
📖Weaving Peace: A Memoir of My Time with Paul
📖Weaving Peace: Creating Your Next Act
Thank you for listening.
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