Stephen Stott: A Different Approach to Healing Grief

By Jennie Bellinger | September 11, 2026 |

Episode Summary

Grief doesn’t only come from death. It can come from divorce, losing a job, illness, the end of a relationship, losing a pet, or any experience that changes the life and identity you once knew. And sometimes, that grief can quietly affect your ability to move forward personally and professionally.

In this episode, Jennie Bellinger sits down with Stephen Stott, a social worker, speaker, and creator of the Breathing Into Grief community. Stephen brings both professional experience and a deeply personal understanding of grief, having experienced more than 15 deaths throughout his life, including surviving the car accident in which his sister Stacy died.

Stephen shares how discovering somatic breathwork changed his own relationship with grief more than 20 years after his sister’s death and ultimately changed the direction of his work. Together, Stephen and Jennie explore why grief doesn’t need to be compared or ranked, how loss can show up in the body, and how breathwork can offer another option for people who don’t want—or simply aren’t ready—to talk about what they’ve experienced.

Three Topics Discussed

  • Why there is no hierarchy of grief and how comparing losses can prevent people from feeling supported.
  • Recognizing grief beyond death, including divorce, illness, career changes, pet loss, estrangement, and other major life transitions.
  • Stephen’s experience discovering somatic breathwork after years of traditional therapy and grief support.

Three Key Takeaways from Stephen Stott

  1. Your grief doesn’t need to be compared to someone else’s. As Stephen explains, your worst loss is your worst loss. Different types of grief don’t need to compete for legitimacy.
  2. Grief can affect how you show up in other areas of life. Feeling stuck, procrastinating, staying inside your comfort zone, or struggling to move a business forward may sometimes coexist with unresolved experiences of loss.

  3. Breathwork doesn’t have to be extreme. Stephen intentionally uses a gentler approach designed to avoid pushing participants into the intense emotional displays sometimes associated with somatic breathwork.

“My loss is my worst loss, and your loss is your worst loss.” — Stephen Stott

Connect with Stephen Stott

Social Worker | Speaker | Creator of Breathing Into Grief

Stephen combines his personal experiences with loss and his professional background in psychology and social work to support people navigating grief. His goal is to create an inclusive community where people can explore grief without comparing losses or being required to talk about their experiences.

Experience Stephen’s “Breathing Into Grief” with his free 5-minute session

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