Speaking
Bring Compassion, Science, and Embodied Wisdom to the Conversation About Grief
Anna Arnett helps audiences understand how grief lives in the body—and how we can learn to carry grief and moments of joy together.
A grief educator, somatic practitioner, and speaker, Anna combines lived experience with modern neuroscience and body-based practices to create presentations that are compassionate, grounded, and deeply human.
Raised by bereaved parents and surviving the deaths of two of her three children, Anna understands firsthand the lifelong impact of profound loss. Her work integrates grief education, nervous system science, mindfulness, breathwork, and gentle somatic practices to support people navigating grief and trauma.
Her presentations blend storytelling, practical science, and experiential practices that help audiences feel understood, regulated, and hopeful—without minimizing the reality of loss.
Signature Presentation
Reclaiming Joy After Multiple Losses
The death of someone we love changes us forever. When multiple losses occur, grief can become cumulative and deeply destabilizing to the nervous system.
In this experiential presentation, grief educator Anna Arnett explores the unique layers of multiple loss and how grief affects both the brain and the body. Drawing on lived experience and emerging neuroscience, she introduces practical ways to support the nervous system through breath, mindfulness, and gentle somatic practices.
Participants will learn:
- Why grief is both emotional and neurological
- How cumulative loss affects the nervous system
- The brain-body connection and the role of the vagus nerve
- Simple somatic practices that support regulation and resilience
- How grief and moments of joy can coexist
This presentation offers a rare combination of vulnerability, science, and embodied wisdom—creating space for grief while opening the possibility of joy.
Additional Speaking Topics
The Science of Grief: Understanding the Brain-Body Connection
Grief is not only emotional—it is deeply neurological and physical. This presentation explores how loss affects the brain, nervous system, and body, and body, and why body-based practices can play an important role in healing.
Regulating the Nervous System in Grief
Grief can leave the nervous system in prolonged states of stress or shutdown. This talk introduces polyvagal-informed insights and simple practices that help restore a sense of safety and regulation in the body.
Somatic Practices for Grief and Trauma
An experiential workshop introducing gentle movement, breathwork, and mindfulness practices designed to help people navigate grief, overwhelm, and trauma through the body.
What Audiences Gain
Participants leave with:
- A deeper understanding of how grief affects the brain and body
- Compassionate language for understanding loss
- Practical nervous system regulation tools
- Gentle somatic practices that support emotional processing
- Permission to experience grief and moments of joy together
Ideal Audiences
- Grief and bereavement conferences
- Healthcare organizations
- Mental health professionals
- Trauma-informed communities
- Nonprofit organizations
- Retreats and workshops
Book Anna to Speak At
- Conference keynotes
- Breakout sessions
- Workshops
- Retreats
- Organizational trainings