January 2025 marks 10 years of Dougy Center's podcast, Grief Out Loud! Grief Out Loud is consistently ranked in the top 5% of most followed and most shared podcasts, and was recently named one of 17 best mental health podcasts by Vogue.
The spark for starting Grief Out Loud was an office doorway conversation between Jana DeCristofaro, our Community Response Program Coordinator, and a Dougy Center colleague about how a podcast could be an accessible way for people around the world to feel less alone in their grief.
Since that quick conversation in late 2014, Grief Out Loud now has more than 300 episodes and over a million downloads world-wide. But what can't be measured is the deep and meaningful impact Grief Out Loud has had on listeners and guests as they navigate their own individual and personal grief experiences.
Here's what past guests are saying to commemorate 10 years of Grief Out Loud
“Grief Out Loud is not just a must-listen podcast — it’s a wildly useful compendium of all the ways we might get through the hardest things that happen to us. Jana, the host, is a brilliant interviewer who asks all the right questions and makes us feel like we’re part of the conversation too. I’ve forwarded many episodes of this podcast to people who I believe will benefit from them just like I have. It is a gift and I hope it keeps going forever.”
“Being a guest on Grief Out Loud was unlike any other interview I've done. I became so engrossed in my conversation with Jana that I momentarily forgot all about the fact we were recording for a broader audience. She is such a compassionate listener that I found myself sharing thoughts and feelings that I hadn't shared with another person before. Some realizations I came to weren't even fully formed in my mind until I spoke them out loud with Jana during the interview! I panicked afterward. Our conversation had been so unscripted — so raw and real — that I was sure I'd made absolutely no sense and I was embarrassed by what I had (over)shared. But when I listened to the episode, I didn't feel that way at all. Instead, I heard an authentic voice open up to Jana about complicated experiences with grief in an unpolished way. And I realised that is exactly what I love about listening to other episodes of Grief Out Loud — that is why I assign this podcast to students in my Grief Communication courses and why I've been such a devoted listener for years. Jana has a remarkable ability to move people past surface-level talking points and well-worn insights to engender fresh perspectives and budding reflections. Developing ideas that unfold authentically in conversation with Jana foster meaningful connections with her listeners — far more than well-rehearsed storylines ever could. This is what Jana does so well and it's also a shining reflection of how the Dougy Center cultivates supportive environments within our peer support groups. Being a guest on Grief Out Loud was truly an honor and an unforgettable experience.”
“Jana is an incredibly gifted interviewer who manages the difficult task of talking about hard experiences while holding compassionate space. Her curiosity is not voyeuristic but rather an opportunity for grievers to tell the world about who and what they love. When talking to Jana, it was clear to me that she had done her homework and heartwork. I have said yes to two interviews, and based on my prior experience with the podcast and appreciation of the quality of the episodes, I would happily welcome a third.”
“Jana DeCristofaro guided me through telling my story with thoughtfulness, and care. Jana, thank you for giving me the honor of sharing this journey with your audience. Your work at Dougy Center is a gift to grieving families, and your calm, comforting presence made this conversation such a meaningful experience.”
“Jana’s unmatched curiosity and empathy made her not only a great interviewer but, perhaps even more importantly, someone who deeply understands — understands grief, understands people, and understands sorrow in all of its messiness and complications. It was a joy to speak to her, to have her intimately grapple with my book.”
“Among the many conversations I had when my book came out in 2023, the Grief Out Loud interview stood out for the ways that Jana so thoughtfully connected the specifics of my story with broader themes about living with loss, which she's come to know so deeply through her vital work with the Dougy Center. As a podcast editor myself, I know how hard it is to prep for and facilitate a conversation that feels effortlessly organic. That is just what Jana did in my episode and all the others on her show. Also, what an amazing experience: to tune into the episode once it dropped and hear Jana's summary of my book for listeners. She captured its essence with such clarity and helped me to understand dimensions of my own work in new ways! I am honored to have been a part of the Grief Out Loud conversation.”
Listen as Melissa Peede Thompson, M.S. shares her Grief Out Loud experience here
Watch Barri Leiner Grant from The Memory Circle share her thoughts on Grief Out Loud as a listener and a guest here
Thank you to Dr. Jennifer Vriend, Child and Adolescent Psychologist and co-host of The Coping Toolbox podcast, for sharing about Grief Out Loud here
We are truly grateful to the hundreds of guests and millions of listeners who have made Grief Out Loud an important part of their lives. And a sincere thank you to Jana DeCristofaro, host and producer, for her labor of love on this project for the past ten years.
