Ep 15 - Grief, Relief, and Time to Reflect: The Gift of Endings
June is a time of transition for a lot of families. The end of the school year, graduations from one phase of schooling to the next –– endings and beginnings have a way of surfacing the feels.
And no one likes to process endings more than psychoanalysts. So as we’re at the end of the school year, and Rob has a child who just graduated high school — how?! –– we decided to spend some time today talking about endings. Rob shares some wisdom from his son’s head of school, Gillian talks about navigating change for kids and adults in a household, and we break down how the John Denver/Peter, Paul, & Mary classic “Leaving on a Jet Plane” encapsulates the vulnerabilities and fantasies of saying goodbye.
Listen to the full episode to hear:
- The way so much of parenting becomes maintenance and banality, interspersed with moments of magic
- How the wider community begins to play a bigger developmental role in the transition from little kid to big kid
- Navigating adult transitional phases and relationships alongside your kiddos growing
- How “Leaving on a Jet Plane” taps into the grief, love, and vulnerability of goodbyes of all kinds
- How a child leaving the nest changes the center of gravity for the rest of the family
- The relatively unsung genius of 38 Special
Learn more about I Hate You. What’s For Dinner?
Learn more about Gillian Boudreau, PhD.:
Learn more about Rob Galligan, PhD.:
Resources:
- Ep 03 - “I’m Doing The Song!” Ash Diggs On Cat’s In The Cradle, Comedy, And Family
- Ep 08 - Keeping It Authentic (And Surprising): Dr. Matt Morrison On Raising Kids And Therapists
- Harry Stack Sullivan
- Leaving on a Jet Plane - Peter, Paul, & Mary
- Ep 09 - Fear, Resistance, And Flow: Paula Tursi On Letting Parenting Happen
- Hold On Loosely - 38 Special
- Ep 11 - Toward What Matters: Sarah Markowitz On CBT, Values, And Choice