Marigold is a grief wellness platform. We're rooted in food culture and rituals as a way to process and even access grief. Happy Friday.
Shannon: What kind of foods do you make when you are trying to comfort someone? You know, oftentimes at funerals and wakes, people bring these sort of heavy, creamy, hot foods for comfort. We choose those qualities for our foods.
A lot of comfort foods tend to have a sort of heaviness to them. Why do we gravitate towards these type of qualities? Some of my background is in Ayurveda. In those initial stages of grief, these heavy, grounding, warming foods are so excellent.
Shannon: What ingredients are in your comfort foods, and why do you think. I love ice cream as a comfort food because it kind of wakes me up out of a state of feeling stagnant. I find it so interesting how we can support ourselves through foods and spicing. We'll be back next Friday for Marigold grief gathering.
Hey, Cadre. Happy Friday. Welcome to the Marigold grief gathering. My name is Rebecca, and I'm co founder of Marigold, which is a grief wellness platform. And we're rooted in food culture and rituals as a way to process and even access grief. And today, I've been thinking a lot about comfort foods for grief and the way that we cook across many different cultures for someone who is grieving. I'm curious, what kind of foods do you make when you are trying to comfort someone? Or what kind of foods have you received when you're in grief?
You know, oftentimes at funerals and wakes, people bring these sort of heavy, creamy, hot foods for comfort. Right. And that makes so much sense why we. We choose those qualities for our foods. Hi, Anna. Hey, Shannon. Welcome. We're just talking about comfort foods and their qualities, and why do we gravitate towards these type of qualities? Giving food as a gift to someone who is grieving. So if you think about it, a lot of comfort foods tend to have a sort of heaviness to them. Right. We don't typically offer someone, like a salad as a comfort food.
That may be your comfort food, and that's totally fine and great, but, you know, we tend towards these warmer, heavier foods. And I was just exploring why that is. And, you know, some of my background is in Ayurveda. And the reason that we tend to lean towards heavier, more grounding foods in a time of grief is because oftentimes in that acute stage of grade, we get kind of disconnected from our senses, and we're not feeling like eating. We're not feeling like doing things that feel good for us.
We're kind of disassociated. So those qualities of heaviness and warmth can help to bring the body's state into a grounded, protected sense. And in those initial stages of grief, these heavy, grounding, warming foods are so excellent to just bring you back into your body. I'm curious, does anyone who's here live have any examples of comfort foods that you gravitate? Casseroles. These are the types of things that I've seen in my family's funerals. And even just when someone has a down kind of experience, like they didn't get into the college they want to or something, we tend to go for these, like, heavy, warming foods and also foods that, like, feed a lot of people, because I think we inherently just need community.
We need family around us to support us during these times. And it's interesting, too, because as grief as we get separated from the acute stages of grief, we tend to feel a little bit, like, stagnant. Right. The qualities of grief as it kind of stays in your body can create this stagnation where you just don't feel that interested in things. And I have found in dealing with that in my own grieving and in helping people in my life who are in grief, that going for stimulating foods like spices such as ginger, cinnamon, cloves, it kind of wakes up your system and helps you get a sense of movement and digestion in the body rather than that stagnation.
So I just wanted to kind of explore that, you know, what ingredients are in your comfort foods, and why do you think. Why do you think that's there, and what does it do for you? Yeah, Shannon, you said pizza. That's one of my comfort foods, too. Ice cream, omelets. Yeah. What kind of qualities kind of speak to you and make you feel like. Yeah, that hits the spot. That makes me feel better. That makes me feel comforted. I love ice cream as a comfort food, personally, because it kind of wakes me up out of a state of feeling stagnant.
That coldness, that brightness, it kind of, like, forces you into a sensation. Right. Not that we want to force anything, but it kind of gives you that wake up. And that's helpful sometimes in grief. Yeah. Something that I'm noticing about someone that's close to me who's grieving right now is that they tend for really spicy foods. And I think that's such an intelligent way that the body speaks to us and lets us know. Like, I could use a little warmth, a little awakening, because the people who are left grieving after they've lost someone or something or even an identity, we have a lot of processing to do, and it's really incredible to see how the things that we allow into our environment and the foods that we choose to put into our bodies can really be an ally in that processing.
So let me know if you have anything that comes up. Any comfort foods that you tend towards or even any foods that you've noticed kind of help elevate your mood, help you get out of stagnation. I'd love to continue this conversation. I find it so interesting how we can support ourselves through foods and spicing. It's great to be with you all today, and we'll be back next Friday for Marigold grief gathering. Taxi.
