Thriving Through Grief with Executive Coach Dr. Yvonne Ator

Have you or someone you love experienced grief?   We all have.  We usually think about grief as it relates to the loss of a loved one.   But in today's episode Dr. Yvonne Ator and I are discussing grief as it relates to all the other types of loss we may encounter...  the loss of a job, a friendship, your health, a marriage, a child going away to college, the ability to bear children, and so many more.  Dr. Ator is passionate about helping people, especially physicians, thrive through their grief and move forward with meaning.    It is such a great conversation and is so relevant to what so many of us are experiencing.  We hope you enjoy it!

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In this episode, Dr. Yvonne Ator discuss Thriving Through Grief including answers to the following questions:

- How did Dr. Ator become interested in coaching people through burnout, grief and loss?
- Other than death of a loved one, what sorts of situations or circumstances can cause grief?
- What strategies can we learn to meet grief and move past it?
- What is DABGA?
- Why is it important to go through different phases of grief?
- What are adaptive vs. maladaptive ways to grieve?
- What is the difference between numbing and comforting?
- Why is it important to incorporate moderation into our grieving process?
- Why is it so hard to identify what we need?
- How can we grieve in a way that supports us?
- How does grief help us heal?
- What happens if we don't process grief in a healthy way?
- How can grief be intentional?
- Is there an appropriate amount of time to grieve?
- Why is self-compassion so important during the grief process?
- How can you utilize grief to move forward or make meaning?
- How do we remain nonjudgmental toward those experiencing loss or grief?

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Dr. Yvonne Ator serves as a personal and executive coach for mission-driven physicians. A Certified Facilitator of the Daring Way and Dare To Lead from Brene Brown, she is also a certified in other coaching methodologies including Personal and Executive Coaching Positive Psychology and Unbeatable Mind Coaching (Mental Toughness and Emotional Resilience training from Retired Navy SEAL Commander Mark Divine). She is passionate about creating wholehearted culture in medicine and helping physicians thrive in their personal and professional lives without succumbing to compassion fatigue, disillusionment or burnout while making their positive impact in the world.

As the Founder of Thriving Physicians and Thriving Idealist, she has spent the past several years coaching mission-driven Physicians and other helping professionals who desire to serve and lead sustainably and thrive in their personal and professional lives while making their positive impact in the world without succumbing to disillusionment, moral injury, compassion fatigue or burnout. As a sheepdog for sheepdogs, she equips helpers and leaders struggling with overwhelm, overwork or feeling stuck with tools and resources to master themselves so they can live authentically and serve to their fullest potential. Yvonne is also passionate about creating daring leadership and courage cultures in the workplace.

Born in England, raised in several states in Nigeria and the United States, Yvonne was the quintessential idealist who wanted to change the world through medical mission. However, after finding herself at a crossroads, overwhelmed and compassion-fatigued as a new mom having to choose between her mental health and burnout in the medical profession she had sacrificed everything for, Yvonne became an avid advocate for physician wellness, courageous service and leadership, suicide prevention and a more wholehearted culture in the workplace.

After losing her comatose dad during a physician strike and finding herself homeless, divorced and financially destitute, Yvonne realized the pitfalls of bu