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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
Monday Permission Slip - Tired of Being Brave - July 20, 2026
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July 20th - MONDAY Permission Slip
Strong. You're so strong, I don't know how you do it, you're handling this so well. People hand widows that word like a gift, but if you've been widowed more than a few weeks, you know it starts to feel less like a gift and more like a job. In this episode, I talk about the day I hit the wall, bone tired of holding it all together, and why that kind of tired is not weakness or failing at grief. I share the picture that changed how I see it, the heavy box everyone praises you for carrying but nobody offers to take, and one small thing you can try this week to finally set it down. Real strength was never about staying steady and dry-eyed. You're allowed to stop being brave.
Widow's Permission Slips is a production of Ember & Bloom Coaching for Widows, hosted by Gladys Jean Ullstam, certified life coach and Gary's widow.
If you are ready to be met exactly where you are, my free discovery call, Holding the Ember, is open at emberandbloomcoaching.com/appointments.
Follow the show so a new permission slip finds you each week, and share it with a widow who needs to hear it.
Website: emberandbloomcoaching.com
You are not alone in this.