There is a strange, quiet comfort in knowing that the person standing next to you is feeling exactly as devastated as you are.

In this episode of It's a Death Sentence, we dive deep into the heavy, fascinating world of collective grief. From the profound national mourning that followed the death of Princess Diana to the shared, daily trauma of the Covid-19 pandemic, we explore why we cry for people we have never met, and what happens when an entire nation is forced to process loss at the exact same time.

What You’ll Discover

- Parasocial Loss and Its Power: Why we feel such a deep, personal ache when a public figure dies, and how the media shapes our permission to mourn.

- When Shared Trauma Divides: How a global event like Covid-19 can simultaneously bring us together in solidarity while driving deep wedges between our closest relationships.

- Why Rituals are Necessary: Why being denied the traditional, communal acts of saying goodbye - like funerals and bedside vigils leaves us with a complicated, lingering grief.

Ultimately, it seems that whether we are mourning a royal, a local legend, or the victims of a global tragedy, our response says far more about us than it does about the event itself. We are pack animals, and even in our darkest moments, we are simply looking for a way to know we aren't entirely alone.

It's A Death Sentence shares real stories of life after loss and is produced by Urban Podcasts. Listener discretion is always advised.