Gwen Kapcia is a licensed social worker in the state of Michigan and holds a certification in Thanatology, the study of death, dying and bereavement. She has spent her entire career in grief and loss, spanning from hospice care, funeral home aftercare support, and Director at a center for bereaved families. She currently operates Your Grief Guide, which supports bereaved individuals and provides training for those supporting them. Through online classes, virtual checkpoints and educational presentations she aims to convey and normalize the reactions to loss. Please visit grief-guide.com. She knows what grief feels like for her but most of her experiences come from walking alongside thousands of bereaved individuals who bravely taught her about grief. Along with directing 6 camps for bereaved children, she has co-authored a faith-based curriculum for bereaved children, teens and adults and recently published book titled: Not another lasagna: How to Help a Grieving Friend. She is a wife, mother of 3 adult children, and recently promoted to grandmother. She resides in Portland Michigan, but her heart remains in the Upper Peninsula where she was born and raised.