Archive by Author

Intent.com

Kristin Meekhof writes about her experience as a panelist at The Parliament of World Religions, and shares a bit about the valuable conversation she had with Dr. Robert Gunn in this Intent.com blog.

A few weeks ago I had the honor of being a panelist at The Parliament of World Religions conference in Salt Lake City. The Parliament of World Religions held its first conference in 1893, and since this date has attracted such remarkable speakers including: His Holiness The Dalai Lama, former president Jimmy Carter, Dr. Jane Goodall, Dr. Vandana Shiva, and Dr. Eboo Patel.  [Read More]

Interview with Kristin Meekhof

Kristin Meekhof was interviewed by Super fab magazine and talks about the physical effects of grief in general and then discusses how her own lost impacted her health. Interview is in this link.

Can you die of a broken heart? At first, this might sound like a song title or dramatic story line. In actuality, there is such a thing as broken heart syndrome and author Kristin Meekhof knows it all too well. [Read More]

Huff Post Live

Kristin Meekhof wrote a review of the book, “The Running Brain” for Huffington Post and then they asked her to be a guest on Huff Post Live. Here in this link she asks the author of the book a question.

How To Avoid Hitting A Mental Wall In The 11th Hour Of The Marathon, click here to [View More]

ABC Headquarters – New York City-

On September 17, I was honored to be the guest for Dr. Richard Besser’s live one hour tweet chat. Dr. Besser is the Chief Medical Director and Editor at ABC World News. Several months ago, I proposed that we tweet about the physical effects of grief. This piece, Can You Die Of A Broken Heart?, that I wrote for Psychology Today explains the impetus for this topic.

Many of you participated and I am grateful for your support. The American Psychiatric Association, St. Jude for Reserach, Jefferson Hospital, Gundersen Health, American Greetings (card company), Dr. Lisa Gualtieri, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Liz Neprorent, Modern Widow’s Club, Cook Children’s, Seleni Institute, Pregnancy Death and Infant Death Alliance, University Pittsburgh Medical Center, Amy Morin LCSW, Dr. Alok Patel, Beaumont Health System, Rainbows 4 Children, Dr. Kathleen Rehl were just some of the participants.

Some of the topics we talked about were: the stages of grief, healthy ways to cope, broken heart syndrome, where to get help, how children grieve.

The transcript from the tweet chat is here.

The Parliament of World Religion

I’m honored to be a panelist at The Parliament of World Religion. On October 17, I will be on a panel with the esteemed Professor Robert Thurman. Professor Thurman is an author, speaker, co-founder of The Tibet House, and Time magazine named him one of the 25 most influential people in America.

The Dalai Lama, Dr. Jane Goodall, Marianne Williamson, Krista Tippet, Dr. Karen Armstrong, Dr. Eboo Patel are just some of the keynote speakers. 10K people, 80 Nations, 50 Faiths—I hope to see you there!

Refinery 29

I was honored to be included in Refinery 29 ‘s piece, “What to Say in Life’s Most Difficult Situations.” They featured five troubling situations and offer words of wisdom on how to handle these sensitive situations.  We all know that it is often a struggle to come up with the right words to say and just as tough to show support. My thoughts were included in the fifth situation, What to Do and Say When Someone You Know is in Grief. You can read the piece here .

Big Magic

Last month, I had the thrill of spending the afternoon with best- selling author Elizabeth Gilbert. We ate at Lovin’ Oven in Frenchtown, New Jersey & then the talented Catherine Lent provided us with some beautiful henna. And I was so thrilled when author / artist Rayya Ellis was  to join us. Liz gave me a copy of her forthcoming book, Big Magic, and I loved it. Be sure to pre-order it and visit Liz on her amazing book tour!

Psychology Today

Hello Friends, I am honored to announce that I’ve started writing for Psychology Today. A few of my pieces have been featured as Must – Reads. Here is one of my recent pieces “9 Things Success- Oriented People Do”. You can read the piece here and then visit me here as well. I’d love to address any issues or topics that you are curious about. Please contact me at Kristin@kristinmeekhof.com

Gratitude and Grief: Kristin’s ThankList

When we launched the ThankList, we knew that we would likely hear compelling stories of gratitude from others. Once the concept of a ThankList is explained, it’s hard not to start creating the mental list of those who have had an impact on our lives. But the outpouring of support for our mission and desire from our fan base for their stories and voices to be heard has been truly humbling.

One of those conversations revealed a compelling, inspiring story that we wanted to share here with you.

In 2007, Kristin Meekof’s husband Roy was diagnosed with advanced stage adrenal cancer. Yet somehow, despite the grim prognosis and enduring an aggressive treatment schedule, Kristin found Roy not only accepting of his diagnosis, but relishing in moments of gratitude for the life he’d been given.

He never said, “Why me?”. Instead, he said, “Why not me?”

Despite being widowed at age 33 only 8 weeks after his initial diagnosis, it was Roy’s open heart and attitude of gratitude that has stayed with her. She says that he taught her that gratitude is the answer to nearly every question. Inspired by both his spirit and her ability to turn something tragic into something beautiful, we had a few questions we wanted to ask about Roy and his legacy.

Q: Tell us a little about your husband Roy.

Kristin: Roy was a middle school teacher, a veteran, and a gentle soul. My husband lived with an open heart and very much believed in living in the light, literally and figuratively. Before we were married we exchanged gratitude lists with each other via email, so thankfulness wasn’t something foreign to him. It was part of his being.

{Gratitude when you are diagnosed with terminal cancer

is bringing light out of a very dark well.

In this light of gratitude is the place that he dwelled. }

 

Q: Do you think he knew how he changed you? Did you ever get to say thank you?

Kristin: I would like to think that he knew that his presence, our marriage, our friendship changed me, but I don’t know if he knew how deep it was. Since we were in the habit of exchanging gratitude lists, something we started before we were married, I did say thank you.

And since my late husband’s death, I make it a point to give a handwritten thank you cards to my dear friends because their kindness matters to me. It is important to put these things in writing and thank you cards are a beautiful gesture of kindness.

Q: How has your life changed because of his perspective?

Kristin: With gratitude comes an openness and a sense of bravery. About three years ago, I decided that I wanted to co-write a book for widows of all ages, and I interviewed many widows about their experiences. The widows were incredibly generous with their time and thoughts and for each of them I am eternally grateful. It is all bittersweet because the impetus for this research and book is loss, but gratitude made it possible. Gratitude opened the door for this book project and as a result I’ve formed some incredible friendships.

Q: If you could speak to him today, what would say?

Kristin: I would tell him that I still think of him daily and continue to love him. I would thank him for teaching me that gratitude is the answer to nearly every question.

I think he would be surprised to know that I co-wrote a book, and then I’d explain that I decided to write the book for widows so that they would feel less alone. Then, I would talk about all of the beautiful people who helped me with this three year project, and some of the gorgeous opportunities that I’ve been given.

Kristin is a Huffington Post contributor and co-author of the book A Widow’s Guide to Healing: Gentle Support and Advice for the First 5 Years. As a part of her dedication to helping grieving widows around the world, she’s traveled to Kenya with a charity organization.

See original article

Gratitude For This Early Praise For My Forthcoming Book

Dear Readers, I am grateful to be able to share with you some very early praise for my forthcoming book. This first ‘blurb’ is from my dear friend Dr. Deepak Chopra. I am grateful beyond the telling to have these words from him. It is difficult for me to put into words what he means to me.

“This a very valuable and practical guide for any woman who has lost her husband due to an untimely death.  Kristin Meekhof’s journey is both inspiring and courageous and something we can all learn from.”-Dr. Deepak Chopra 

I am beyond honored to have Maria Shriver give her support. I have the joy of being able to contribute to her online website as an Architect of Change.

“I’m proud of Kristin Meekhof, who has written this inspiring and insightful book to help guide widows through their grief. This book is by an Architect of Change, for all of us who must deal with grief.”-Maria Shriver

I’ve had the privilege of meeting Lord Loomba, CBE, founder and trustee of the Loomba Foundation. Most recently, I was his guest at a UN event in New York. The Loomba Foundation supports and empowers widows on a global level.

“This is a book that should be essential reading for every woman struggling to make sense of life after the death of a husband. I recommend this book because it is highly accessible and will surely improve the lives of many widows and those who help widows.” -Lord Loomba, CBE, Founder and Chairman Trustee of The Loomba Foundation

I am grateful for the gracious support from these three beautiful individuals who bring luminosity to the world simply by being who they are.

– Kristin