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Widow's Permission Slips with Gladys Jean Ullstam
Nobody hands you a rulebook when your person dies. But somehow, everybody seems to have an opinion about how you should be grieving — how long it should take, how sad you're allowed to be, when you should start feeling better, and what moving forward is supposed to look like.
This podcast is a permission slip for all of it.
Widow's Permission Slips is hosted by Gladys Jean Ullstam — certified life coach and Gary's widow. Gary died in late November of 2021. He was 56 and a quarter years old. And Gladys is still, every single day, figuring out what it means to keep going without him.
Each episode, Gladys sits with you in one specific thing you might be experiencing — the exhaustion, the guilt, the identity questions, the impossible holidays, the moments nobody warned you about. Not to fix it. Not to rush you through it. Just to say: you are not alone in this, and you have permission.
Widow's Permission Slips is written primarily for widows — but if you have lost a spouse or partner and you are trying to find your footing, you belong here too.
New episodes drop regularly. Subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts.
Gladys Jean Ullstam is the founder of Ember & Bloom Coaching for Widows and a certified life coach. To book a free Holding the Ember discovery call, visit emberandbloomcoaching.com/appointments.
Widow's Permission Slips with Gladys Jean Ullstam
Latest Episodes
Episode 14 — The Lessons We Carry
As I mark 40 years since our wedding day and 41 years since Gary and I met, I am reflecting on the lessons his love still teaches me. In this episode, I share the wisdom I carry from Gary—about joy, family, strength, beauty, and believing that ...
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Episode 13 — Rest Is Not Giving Up
You can be exhausted all day and still lie awake at night. After Gary died, sleep was one of the things that stopped making sense to me. But the tiredness went beyond lost sleep. Life still needed my attention, even when I felt like I had nothi...
Episode 12 — The Loneliness That Doesn't Go Away in a Crowd
After Gary died, I learned that being alone and being lonely are two completely different things. I could be surrounded by people who loved me, sitting at a full table, and still feel completely alone because the one person I was looking for wa...
Episode 11 — Your Kids Are Grieving Too, and So Are You
When Gary died, I didn't just become a widow. I became the only living parent of two grieving kids. Mine are grown, and it turns out grown kids still need their mom in grief. In this episode, I talk about the juggling act nobody hands you a man...
Monday Permission Slip - Out of the Cave - 8.10.26
Widowhood makes you want to get small. To pull the world in close, shut the door, and stay in the cave where it feels safe. I know that pull. I felt it hard after Gary died. In this episode, I talk about what happened when I made myself venture...