Colin Campbell: Can We Keep Our Hearts Open to the Pain and Experience the Joys of Life as Well?

Published: Dec. 6, 2023, 11 a.m.

Colin Campbell, a writer and director for theater and film who was nominated for an Academy Award for Seraglio, a short film he wrote and directed with his wife, Gail Lerner, is the author of a powerful memoir about catastrophic loss titled Finding the Words: Working Through Profound Loss With Hope and Purpose. When his two teenage children, Ruby and Hart, were tragically killed by a drunk driver, Colin was thrown headlong into a grief so deep that he felt he might lose his mind, and he found much of the common wisdom about coping with loss\u2014including the ideas that grieving is a private and mysterious process and that the pain is so great that \u201cthere are no words\u201d\u2014to be unhelpful. Join us as Colin shines a light on a path forward through the darkness of grief and empowers us to live more fully while also holding our loved ones close.


IN THIS EPISODE, YOU'LL HEAR ABOUT THINGS LIKE:

  • The tragic accident that took Colin\u2019s two teenage children\u2019s lives.
  • What a doctor did that became a \u201cbeautiful lesson\u201d in Colin\u2019s grief journey.
  • Why \u201cthere are no words\u201d is akin to the worst thing you can say to someone who is grieving. 
  • The amazing, inspiring ways Colin turned his first birthday without his children into a powerful experience of love and active mourning. 
  • Why leaning into pain helps a person to be less fearful and promotes healing. 

SOME QUESTIONS IRENE ASKS COLIN:

  • Why is it important to take community with you on your journey through grief?
  • What makes grief frightening, and why does it take courage to grieve?
  • Why should anyone who has had a traumatic loss seek therapy? 
  • Is therapy always unaffordable, and how can we discern if we need a different therapist?
  • How did you find a way to think once more about a meaningful future and a life with purpose?