The Grieving Body with Mary-Frances O'Connor

The Grieving Body with Mary-Frances O'Connor

Author: Tricycle: The Buddhist Review March 19, 2025 Duration: 1:13:44
Grief is often thought of as a psychological phenomenon. Yet loss also has a profound impact on our bodies, often affecting our cardiovascular, endocrine, and immune systems. As a Professor of Clinical Psychology and Psychiatry at the University of Arizona, Mary-Frances O’Connor specializes in studying the physiology of grief. In her new book, The Grieving Body: How the Stress of Loss Can Be an Opportunity for Healing, she draws from her clinical research and her personal experience to explore the toll that loss takes on our bodies—and what this can teach us about care, compassion, and interdependence. In this episode of Life As It Is, Tricycle’s editor-in-chief, James Shaheen, and meditation teacher Sharon Salzberg sit down with O’Connor to discuss the phenomenon of dying of a broken heart, how grieving can be thought of as a form of learning, how meditation can change how we show up for others, and the challenges of rediscovering a sense of purpose in the wake of loss.

In a world full of noise, Tricycle Talks offers a different kind of conversation. This podcast from the team at Tricycle: The Buddhist Review sits down with insightful teachers, authors, and practitioners to explore how ancient wisdom meets modern complexity. Host James Shaheen, the magazine's editor-in-chief, guides these discussions with a curious and grounded presence, often joined by co-host Sharon Salzberg for the "Life As It Is" series, which focuses on integrating practice into daily routines. What you'll hear isn't abstract theory, but tangible reflections on navigating life's big questions-from dealing with anxiety and loss to cultivating compassion and clarity in a distracted age. Each episode feels like a thoughtful dialogue, peeling back layers on meditation, ethics, and what it means to live an examined life. It’s a natural extension of the award-winning work Tricycle is known for, translating the depth of Buddhist thought into accessible, personal audio. Listening to this podcast provides a pause, a moment to reflect alongside voices who have dedicated their lives to the path, offering practical insights that resonate long after the conversation ends.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Tricycle Talks
Podcast Episodes
Did the Buddha Really Teach That There Is No Self? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:19
Thanissaro Bhikkhu is an American Theravada Buddhist monk trained in the Thai forest tradition. He currently serves as abbot of the Metta Forest Monastery in San Diego County and is a frequent contributor to Tricycle. Ov…
Opening to Wonder with Ada Limón [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 59:26
Ada Limón is the author of seven books of poetry, and she recently completed her term as the 24th Poet Laureate of the United States. During her tenure as Poet Laureate, Limón undertook a series of projects harnessing po…
Bridging Worlds with US Poet Laureate Arthur Sze [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 59:16
Arthur Sze is a poet and translator based in Sante Fe, New Mexico, and he is currently serving as the 25th Poet Laureate of the United States. His new book, Transient Worlds: On Translating Poetry, takes readers through…
A Buddhist Guide to Understanding Emotion with Maria Heim [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 50:28
Buddhism can often be mischaracterized as encouraging the elimination of emotion. Yet, as scholar Maria Heim points out, feeling is central to Buddhist teachings and practices—in fact, the Buddha presented the four noble…
Reimagining the Story of Citizenship with Daisy Hernández [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 57:09
Daisy Hernández is an associate professor at Northwestern University and a Tricycle contributing editor. Her new book, Citizenship: Notes on an American Myth, blends memoir and political analysis to examine the shifting…
Dementia and the Sense of Self with Philip Ryan [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 51:36
Philip Ryan is Tricycle’s executive editor, and he has worked at Tricycle on and off for the past thirty years. In the Spring issue of Tricycle, he wrote an article, "Old Friend," about his father’s dementia diagnosis an…
Demystifying Tantra with Richard Payne [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:07:04
Tantric Buddhism is often mischaracterized or misunderstood, both in the academy and in the popular imagination. Scholar Richard Payne has dedicated much of the past twenty years to studying tantric teachings and practic…
The Practice of Refuge with Sunita Puri [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 59:00
Sunita Puri is a writer, a palliative medicine physician, and an associate professor of medicine at the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine. She is the author of That Good Night: Life and Medicine in the…
Poet Li-Young Lee on Awe, Adoration, and Turning Toward the Unknown [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 59:00
For poet Li-Young Lee, writing is a deeply spiritual practice. Taking inspiration from Daoist and Christian texts, his poems investigate the paradoxical relationships between silence and sound, stillness and motion, and…
‘To Live the Right Way’ with David Guterson [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:09
David Guterson is a writer based in Washington State. His new novel, Evelyn in Transit, follows the interlocking stories of Evelyn and Tsering, a young woman from Indiana and a Buddhist monk from the mountains of Tibet.…