Mindfulness & Grief Mastery

Protect Your Passion
For Work & Life

Training & Support For Bereavement Professionals
with Author & Thanatologist Heather Stang

Tell me if this sounds like you....

You are someone who naturally feels deeply for others. You chose a career path that allows you to use this gift to support people through some of life’s most challenging moments.
You love what you do. AND, it takes a toll. 

One day, you noticed it—every day feels heavier than the one before. What used to bring you purpose now drains your energy. The path you loved feels lost in a haze of exhaustion, nausea, and disconnection.

You feel a knot in your stomach when you think about the work you once loved. And with that dread comes guilt—guilt for struggling with a job that’s supposed to mean so much.

The passion you once had has been replaced by a never-ending uphill climb. You spend your days tending to your clients’ pain while pushing your own aside. And now, you can’t help but wonder:

How much longer can I keep this up?

You show up every day and give everything to your clients—listening, supporting, and guiding them through their grief. You care deeply, and you give it your all. But somewhere along the way, you stopped giving anything to yourself.

You know that if you keep going like this, you’re risking your happiness, your health, and your ability to be the practitioner you want to be.

Deep down, the doubts creep in. Maybe I’m not cut out for this. Maybe the only answer is to walk away. But the thought of leaving the work you once knew you were meant to do feels just as unbearable.

This cycle isn’t sustainable. But abandoning the path you’ve dedicated your life to feels like giving up a piece of yourself.

You find yourself wondering: Surely, there has to be another way.

My dear comrade-in-care, I promise you, there is.

Because how can you help others navigate their pain if you’re drowning in your own?
Grief keynote speaker mindfulness self care resilience

This work can get to even the strongest among us 

Feeling overwhelm in our field is not the exception; it’s the rule.

I’ve seen firsthand the personal toll this work takes. Too often, the ledger of time, energy, and vitality becomes so unbalanced that it feels like the accumulation of debits may never be settled. I know because I’ve carried my own debt sheet, paying the price with my mental and physical health.

For two decades, I’ve worked with end-of-life practitioners, bereavement experts, and deathcare professionals. I’ve taught self-care to organizations like the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, state and local hospices, and large funeral home chains.

And without fail, after every session, someone pulls me aside. It might be an attendee, the event organizer, or even the CEO. I find myself looking into the eyes of someone with a deep desire to help, trapped in a system that doesn’t give them what they need to care for themselves.

I prepare myself for what’s coming. They confide in me—the burnout, the fatigue, the sense of being broken. And then comes the part that breaks my heart every time: the shame they carry for feeling this way.

What will it take for you to realize that giving your all to others without taking care of yourself isn’t sustainable?

This cycle of giving everything to others while neglecting yourself is unsustainable. But the good news is, it doesn’t have to be this way.

Here’s the hard truth: if you keep going like this, it won’t get better. In fact, it’s likely to get worse.

Fortunately you already know what you need to do, you just need the guidance to do it

While you can’t control every challenge in your work environment, there is something you can control: how you care for yourself—body, mind, and spirit.

When you neglect your own well-being, everything gets harder. Showing up for your clients becomes more draining, and over time, the toll it takes on you is greater than you might realize.

  • The weight of grief work doesn’t stay at the office—it follows you home, impacting your energy, straining your relationships, and affecting the people you care about most.
  • Your stress begins to take a toll on your health. You’re exhausted, both physically and emotionally, and it feels harder to bounce back each day.
  • You’ve given so much of yourself to others that you barely recognize the vibrant, passionate person you once were.
  • You feel stuck—trapped in a cycle of burnout and yearning for a way to reignite your spark, rediscover your balance, and feel whole again.
  • And worst of all, you’ve started to question your purpose, wondering if what you’re doing truly makes a difference or if you’re just going through the motions.
But here’s the good news: you don’t have to stay stuck.

You already have what it takes inside to overcome this with the right tools and support.

Maybe, like me, you know you have the skills, but what you really need is a community to hold you accountable and cheer you on.

Or maybe the things you’ve tried in the past didn’t work, and now you’re ready to try something new—something that feels aligned with who you are and what you need.

Or perhaps you’re dreaming of going out on your own—leaving a toxic work environment and starting your own grief support program or private coaching practice—but you just need some structure and guidance to make it happen.

No matter where you are right now, there is a way to reclaim your energy, rediscover your purpose, and restore your sense of balance.

It starts with caring for yourself as much as you care for those you serve.

The story I used to keep to myself

Grief work is one of the most challenging fields there is. It often exists on the fringes—underresourced and unacknowledged. Many people outside this space shy away from conversations about what we do and the toll it takes, leaving us without the outlet of shared understanding that so many other professions enjoy.

Even the loved ones who try to lend an empathetic ear struggle to truly grasp the weight of this work—work that is as demanding as it is meaningful.

On top of this professional isolation, we’re expected to process our own losses—both death and non-death—while guiding our clients through theirs. It’s no wonder that burnout and compassion fatigue are so common in our industry.

I know this struggle because I’ve been there too. I’ve felt the isolation, the weight of carrying others’ grief while quietly managing my own. I’ve faced the burnout and compassion fatigue that come from giving so much of myself without having the tools—or the support system—to refill my cup.

Like you, I’ve experienced the toll of work-life imbalance firsthand. And it’s why I’m so passionate about helping grief professionals like you find a way to not just survive this work, but to thrive in it.

The first time burnout hit me, I was a 29-year-old web designer, burning the candle at both ends. My way of handling stress was to numb it—with alcohol and more work. I thought I was fine until my body said otherwise.

When I developed shingles, it was a wake-up call I couldn’t ignore. A nurse practitioner suggested I try yoga, and that single recommendation changed everything. It gave me the tools to navigate stress and grief in a way I’d never experienced before. That journey led me to sell my successful (and stressful) business, become a certified yoga therapist, and eventually earn a master’s degree in thanatology in honor of my Uncle Doug, who died by suicide when I was 7.

During that time, I developed an 8-week yoga for grief program, which eventually evolved into the Mindfulness & Grief System—a framework that blends years of training with the deeply personal stories my bereaved clients entrusted to me. These experiences shaped my methods, my books, and the work I’m so passionate about sharing with others. For the first time in my life, I felt like I had truly found meaning in my work.

Fast forward to 2019. My book Mindfulness & Grief was widely recognized in the grief care field, my private practice was thriving, and I was traveling across the country teaching hospice, home health, and bereavement organizations how to use mindfulness techniques.

From the outside, everything looked perfect. But behind the scenes, I had no guardrails in place for my own well-being—no therapist, no accountability, no community.

This is the part I didn’t share until now: I worked myself to the bone, didn't make time for self-care, and the shingles came back.

I have self-compassion for that version of me. My dog was dying, my marriage was crumbling, and I was working three jobs to support a lifestyle that, unbeknownst to me at the time, was built on financial misinformation.

That second wake-up call revealed an essential truth: self-care and community are deeply interconnected.

  1. The life-saving power of self-care. I had the tools to support myself, but I needed the accountability that only comes from connection with others to truly integrate them into my life.
  2. The transformative power of community. It was within a supportive community that I found the encouragement and accountability to sustain my self-care practices—one cannot thrive without the other.

This symbiosis between self-care and community became the foundation for everything I teach today.

At conferences, people would ask me how I was doing it—how I managed to keep going and survive the challenges. I wanted to share what I’d learned with my professional community, but something held me back. I wasn’t ready, and I didn’t fully understand why.

Another F-ing Growth Opportunity (AFGO) 

In 2022, I faced one of the hardest challenges of my life: I divorced my husband because of the financial infidelity I alluded to earlier. It all came crashing down when we were served notice of a lien on our house due to his unpaid taxes—something he had hidden from me for years. I was embarrassed, betrayed, and beyond angry.

At first, I slipped into old patterns, turning to drinking—a familiar but destructive coping mechanism from my past. I could feel my body starting to protest, and this time, instead of ignoring it, I chose to listen.

I remembered the lessons I had learned: I had the skills to navigate this, but I needed to actually use them. And just as importantly, I needed the support of a community to help me through.

So, I leaned in.

I practiced mindfulness. I journaled. I got myself a relationship coach, and the work we did together was so impactful that I fell in love with the process. I wanted to deepen my understanding and integrate these lessons into my life and work, which led me to become certified as an Integrative Attachment Theory Coach through the Personal Development School.

My publisher reached out and asked me to do a book on non-death loss, and while writing that book i did my own deep work. Navigating Loss is the first time I got really personal in my book, sharing about my divorce and estrangement from my father.

I also co-created a mastermind group of grief professionals—a space where I could be honest about both my good days and my bad ones. That group became a lifeline, reminding me that no matter how heavy the work gets, I am not alone.

While this transition was incredibly hard, it was also profoundly transformative. I’ve learned so much about myself and built a deeper relationship with me. I’ve healed core wounds from my childhood, processed the pain, and—while I didn’t cause my husband’s behavior—I came to understand my role in the dynamic.

This experience reinforced what I’ve always known: self-care and community are inseparable. Together, they create the foundation for healing, growth, and resilience.

It also gave me the confidence and clarity to know that I was ready to share this with you. While I’ve had the skills to teach and support grief professionals for years—and have done so for some of the most highly regarded organizations—putting these practices and the power of community into action for myself was the final piece.

I am finally practicing what I preach, and now, I’m ready to help you do the same.
heather stang grief expert

How I designed Mindfulness & Grief Mastery to help grief professionals just like you

I’ve heard your stories. I’ve met chaplains, hospice workers, therapists, and funeral directors who pour their hearts into helping others, yet often feel depleted themselves. You’ve shared your struggles with burnout, compassion fatigue, and the difficulty of showing up for others when your own well-being feels like it’s falling apart.

This program is your opportunity to break free from the overwhelm, reawaken your passion, and reclaim the energy and resilience that first drew you to this work.

Learning new skills doesn’t just help you grow professionally—it can reignite the spark that made you fall in love with this work in the first place. Through Mindfulness & Grief Mastery, you’ll gain evidence-based tools and practices that can support both your clients and yourself.

Whether you want to build grief support programs, offer private coaching, or simply bring a deeper sense of balance to your current role, the skills you’ll learn in this program will empower you to make a meaningful impact on the people you serve—all while taking care of your own well-being.

With Mindfulness & Grief Mastery, you’ll not only transform how you care for your clients—you’ll transform yourself.

What The Program Includes:

  • 3-Month Program: A structured, immersive training experience.
  • Private 60-Minute Onboarding Call: A one-on-one session with Heather to set goals.
  • Weekly Live Coaching Calls: Interactive sessions with Heather Stang, including Q&A.
  • 8-Step Mindfulness & Grief Framework: A comprehensive approach to grief care.
  • Guided Meditations: Ready-to-use scripts for personal or client sessions.
  • Printable Worksheets & Exercises: Tools to use immediately with clients..
  • Supportive Online Community: Connect with peers who truly understand your journey.
  • Guided Journaling Prompts: Reflection exercises to help you gain deeper insights.
  • Evidence-Based Practices: Grounded in mindfulness, grief, and self-care research.

Putting the Practices to Work

During one of the hardest transitions of my life, I didn’t just rely on what I already knew—I leaned in and applied the practices in ways I hadn’t before. I practiced mindfulness, journaled through my pain, and sought support from a coach. I surrounded myself with a community of peers who understood my struggles and offered accountability, encouragement, and compassion.

This experience reminded me of an essential truth: what we teach to others, we must practice for ourselves. Through this process, I grew—not just as a professional but as a person. I built a deeper relationship with myself, healed core wounds, and learned to navigate life’s challenges with resilience and grace.

Helping You Practice What You Preach

This program isn’t about ego. It’s about eliminating suffering for you and your clients.

All too often, grief professionals displace their own well-being in service to others, believing it’s a necessary sacrifice. But the truth is, it doesn’t have to be one or the other. Both can be true. You can serve others with deep compassion while extending that same compassion to yourself.

When you practice what you preach, you strengthen your ability to support others while modeling the kind of balance and self-compassion that makes this work sustainable—for yourself and those who follow your lead.

You are in the right place if you are ready to...

  • Reignite your passion and purpose for grief work.
  • Prevent compassion fatigue, burnout, and prioritize your own well-being.
  • Master mindfulness techniques to support yourself and your clients.
  • Build resilience and maintain balance in your personal and professional life.
  • Gain confidence using a proven 8-step framework for guiding clients through grief.
This program isn’t just about professional development; it’s a lifestyle shift that will help you refine your purpose, replenish your spirit, and transform your approach to grief work so you can serve others—and yourself—with compassion and confidence.

You’ve been giving so much of yourself to others, but deep down, you know something needs to change. The stress is starting to take its toll—on your energy, your relationships, your health, and even your sense of purpose.

You don’t have to wait for burnout or a breaking point to make a shift. You deserve the same care and compassion you give to others every single day.

Now is the time to reclaim your balance, renew your passion, and rebuild your resilience.

With Mindfulness & Grief Mastery, you’ll gain the tools, practices, and community support you need to not just survive this work, but thrive in it—professionally and personally.

This is your opportunity to create a sustainable path forward, so you can show up for yourself and your clients with authenticity, energy, and confidence.

From Grief to Peace Guided Journal

Heather Stang, MA, C-IAYT, is the author of Navigating Loss,  Living With Grief (formally Mindfulness & Griefand the guided journal, From Grief To Peace. She holds a Master's Degree in Thanatology from Hood College, and is a Certified Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapist. Her 8-step Mindfulness & Grief System that is featured in the Handbook of Grief Therapies, and is the foundation of a self-care focused online grief support group, Awaken. Heather also hosts the Moving Grief Podcast, the Mindfulness & Grief Podcast, and offers private sessions and professional training through her organization, the Mindfulness & Grief Institute.

Her work is grounded in a heartfelt desire to relieve suffering, and in honor of her Uncle Doug who died by suicide when she was a child. Heather holds a master’s degree in Thanatology from Hood College and is a Certified Yoga Therapist in the Phoenix Rising tradition.