This Is What It Feels Like

Latest Episodes:

Caring for a Dying Parent May 02, 2025

Show notes

What does it feel like to care for someone you love as they prepare to die? When Bruce Hastie was diagnosed with stage 4 glioblastoma, he was told he had 12-15 months left to live. In this episode, host Terra Lopez sits down with her wife, her wife's brothers, and their partners to talk about what it was like to walk through those final months together. They discuss the realities of caring for a dying parent - its challenges, its unexpected joys, and the ways it reshaped their relationships.
This episode examines the intricacies, the unanswered questions, and the dark humor that is needed when dealing with the fragility of life, the heaviness of grief and loss and the reality of caring for someone whose time is limited. A story about grief, resilience, and the powerful bonds that form when a family shows up with love at the end of life.
Guests: Jake Hastie, Lucas Hastie, Sam Hastie, Kelsie Hastie, Samantha Pfaff-Hastie, Sara Hastie, Izzy Torrez
National Resources:
Family Caregiver Alliance
HelpGuide.org
Adult Children of Aging Parents
California Caregiver Resource Center
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Join me this Saturday night for A NIGHT FOR EMPATHETIC PEOPLE (first ever live podcast taping)! May 01, 2025

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Join This Is What It Feels Like & Solving Sacramento this Saturday night, 5/3 at DEMO Art & Books in Sacramento, CA for our first ever live podcast taping & Q&A, A Night for Empathetic People.
This is our first ever live podcast taping! Featuring podcast host Terra Lopez & Solving Sacramento's Nick Brunner - join us as they discuss empathy, how it drives the mission of the podcast, and why we need it to survive these uncertain times.
Featuring a photo gallery by Jeffrey Latour, complimentary mocktails by Debbie Wu, and This Is What It Feels Like tote bags for the first 50 people to RSVP via Eventbrite.
Be in community, feel empowered, and exchange ideas for how we can create more empathetic spaces in our lives.
Free & All Ages.
Learn more at @TIWIFLproject
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What 50 Years of Friendship Feels Like Apr 29, 2025

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What makes friendship last? In a time when America is experiencing a loneliness epidemic, how can friendship endure? In this episode, we sit down with 20 women in their 60s who have been friends since childhood. Together, we explore how they've navigated tough conversations, survived difficult arguments, and built a community rooted in love, trust, and honesty. Their stories offer an intimate and very real look at the work, forgiveness, and deep joy that sustain friendships across a lifetime. Friendship isn't just laughter and good times - it's hard conversations, brutal honesty, and choosing to stay even when it's messy.
Guests: Nancy Pierucci-Hastie, Julie Lintz, Lori Uhlig, Christine George, Ruth Lacey, Janice Baker, Kathie Pease, Hilary Bartels, Sue Wessell, Bente Lundh, Anne Kutner-Firestone, Allison Lake, Rachel Robinson Stone, April Long, Linda Ulrich, Donna Perham, Mary Gradinger, Erin Kielty.
Resources: https://www.endsocialisolation.org/, https://www.ioaging.org/friendship-line-california/?gad_source=1, https://reengage.org.uk/
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Leaving the Jehovah's Witnesses Apr 21, 2025

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What does it cost to walk away from the only life you've ever known? In this episode, former members of the Jehovah's Witnesses share their deeply personal stories of leaving the organization. A former Elder reflects on the pain of losing his family and community, while another guest recalls the joy of celebrating her birthday for the first time - at 19.
We explore the emotional toll of shunning and abandonment, the journey of reclaiming identity, and the complicated freedom that follows. We also examine the history of the Jehovah's Witnesses and the harm the organization continues to inflict today. This is a conversation about courage, loss, and liberation.
We received the most voice memos for this episode than we ever have. We tried to include as many of them as we could but we know there are many of you out there who have your own story to tell when it comes to leaving the Jehovah's Witnesses. Feel free to share your story with us at tiwiflpod@gmail.com.
Guests: Tony Rasonsky & Julie Cassotta
National Resources: r/exjw, jwfacts.com, jw.support.com, Silent Lambs, Recovering From Religion
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To Be Gaslit by Your Doctor Apr 15, 2025

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What happens when your body is screaming, but no one is listening? In this episode, we dive into the reality of medical gaslighting - a form of systemic dismissal that disproportionaly affects women, especially Black women, and can have devastating consequences.
From being told "it's just anxiety," to walking out with a false diagnosis, or no diagnosis at all, millions are suffering in silence. But for one woman, being ignored wasn't just frustrating- it was life-threatening. After being told she only had 48 hours left to live, she refused to go quietly. She and her sister fought back and that changed everything.
This isn't just one story. There's too many. We received dozens of stories from listeners who also experienced medical gaslighting from their healthcare providers. We explore the deep harm it causes, the racial and gender biases behind it, and what it takes to reclaim your voice in a system that doesn't always want to hear you.
Guest: Dominique Green
National Resources: National Patient Advocate Foundation , National Association of Healthcare Advocacy, Pan Foundation ,
Patient Advocate Foundation
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We're Back. Season 2 is Coming. Apr 06, 2025

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Season 2 of the award-winning podcast, This Is What It Feels Like is coming! New stories, new perspectives, and more empathy, out April 15th.
Subscribe so that you get notified as soon as it's out. And leave a review while you're at it. It really helps us out!
Learn more at: https://www.feelslikepod.com/
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Update to TIWIFL Listeners: Terra Wants to Hear From You Feb 21, 2024

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"This Is What It Feels Like" Host Terra Lopez announces next steps for the podcast, including a new season of episodes and a Discord discussion page for fans to get involved in the conversation. Discord Link: https://discord.gg/T7srAq5keb Instagram Link: https://www.instagram.com/tiwiflproject/Support CapRadio’s This Is What It Feels Like: https://caprad.io/support-this-is-what-it-feels-likeSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Bonus Episode: NPR’s Ayesha Rascoe Talks Catcalling with Host Terra Lopez Dec 21, 2023

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What does it feel like to be catcalled? In this episode of The Sunday Story, Host Ayesha Rascoe shares her own personal experience with street harassment and discusses the long-term effects of the phenomenon with This Is What It Feels Like Host Terra Lopez. You’ll also learn about the genesis of the podcast, which began as an art installation. Guests: Terra Lopez Ayesha Rascoe This Is What It Feels Like on Instagram ©2023 National Public Radio, Inc. News report “The Sunday Story: This is what it feels like to be catcalled” by Ayesha Rascoe was originally published on NPR’s Up First on October 29, 2023, and is used with the permission of NPR. Any unauthorized duplication is strictly prohibited.Support CapRadio’s This Is What It Feels Like: https://caprad.io/support-this-is-what-it-feels-likeSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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