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Dead Dads Podcast | Grief Support for Men

Dead Dads Podcast | Grief Support for Men

Written by: Scott Cunningham & Roger Nairn
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Dead Dads Podcast is a show for men who have lost their dads. Scott Cunningham and Roger Nairn talk about father loss, grief, family, memory, dark humour, and all the strange stuff that shows up after your dad dies. The numbness. The anger. The guilt. The garage full of junk. The paperwork. The stories you keep telling because you are scared you’ll forget the sound of his voice. Some dads were great. Some were complicated. Some were barely there. This show makes room for all of it. Each episode is a real conversation with a man about his dad, what he lost, what he still carries, and what life looks like after joining the club nobody asked to join. Follow Dead Dads wherever you listen, watch on YouTube, or send us your story at deaddadspodcast.com. Death. Jokes. Closure. Not always in that order. Dead Dads Podcast is produced with the support of JAR Podcast Solutions, the branded podcast agency that helps organizations build shows people actually want to spend time with. Learn more at https://jarpodcasts.com/Copyright 2026 Relationships Social Sciences
Episodes
  • My Dad Taught Me to Be Tough. Grief Broke Me | Jimmy Venia

    My Dad Taught Me to Be Tough. Grief Broke Me | Jimmy Venia
    Oct 16 2026

    Jimmy grew up believing his father didn't want him.


    Years later, he discovered a very different man.


    Anthony was an old-school Sicilian dad from the Bronx. Tough. Proud. Sometimes impossible. The kind of father who drove his son across New York every day for school but refused to bail him out when he landed in prison.


    Jimmy eventually understood his father's version of tough love. Then he watched the toughest man he'd ever known become vulnerable.


    After a series of strokes and heart problems, Jimmy found himself helping his father use the bathroom in a hospital. The man who taught him everything about strength suddenly looked defeated.


    Jimmy asked his dad to show him a different kind of toughness.


    On May 4, 2024, Anthony died.


    What followed wasn't a neat story about healing.


    There was family conflict, a funeral where Jimmy barely had room to grieve, and a year of drinking and drugs to numb the pain. For the first time in his life, Jimmy faced something he couldn't tough his way through.


    Eventually, he started grief counselling. He began journaling, talking to other men who'd lost their fathers, and learning to carry his grief instead of running from it.


    In this episode, we talk about:


    • Growing up believing your father doesn't love you
    • Tough love, prison, abandonment, and forgiveness
    • Watching a once-invincible father become vulnerable
    • The guilt and regret that follow losing your dad
    • How alcohol and drugs can become a way to avoid grief
    • What grief counselling and journaling can actually do
    • Why men struggle to ask for help
    • Keeping your father's memory alive through music, stories, and everyday rituals


    Jimmy's story is about father-son relationships, complicated family dynamics, addiction, masculinity, and learning that grief doesn't care how tough you think you are.


    It's also about Billy Joel, The Sopranos, a terrible Mercedes, and the strange little moments that make you feel close to your dad again.


    As Jimmy puts it: "That tough guy shit don't work."


    About Dead Dads


    Dead Dads is a podcast for men figuring out life after losing their dad.


    Hosted by Roger Nairn and Scott Cunningham, we have honest conversations about grief, father loss, masculinity, family, memory, and all the strange stuff that happens after your dad dies.


    No grief brochure voice. No tidy healing arc.


    Just real conversations about losing your father and figuring out what comes next.


    You're not alone.


    Content note: This episode includes discussion of addiction, substance use, and difficult family relationships.


    Support Dead Dads: https://buymeacoffee.com/deaddadspodcast

    Website: https://www.deaddadspodcast.com/

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deaddadspodcast/


    Produced with support from JAR Podcast Solutions: https://jarpodcasts.com/
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    35 mins
  • My Dad Never Said He Was Proud of Me. I Spent My Life Chasing It.

    My Dad Never Said He Was Proud of Me. I Spent My Life Chasing It.
    Sep 25 2026
    How do you grieve a father you loved, resented, and barely knew?For Ali, grief after losing his dad didn't look like sadness at first. It looked like anger, numbness, ambition, and a 15-year refusal to visit his father's grave.Ali spent much of his life wanting his dad to say four words:"I'm proud of you."He never did.In this episode of Dead Dads, Ali talks about losing his father after a complicated father-son relationship shaped by absence, addiction, resentment, and the search for parental approval.🎧 In this episode, you'll hear about:Grieving a complicated relationship with your fatherWhy grief can show up as anger or numbness instead of sadnessThe impact of addiction on a father-son relationshipChasing achievement because you want a parent's approvalGrieving the father you wanted, not just the father you hadWhy becoming a dad can change how you understand your own fatherLetting go of resentment without pretending the past didn't happenWhat can happen when buried grief finally gets some roomWhen his father was dying, Ali held his hand, said goodbye, and left the hospital.A few hours later, his dad died.Ali felt mostly numb.Then he avoided his father's grave for 15 years.Years later, during a silent meditation retreat, a poem about someone else's dad cracked something open. Ali left the room, walked into the forest, held onto a tree and cried for ten minutes.He realized he wasn't only grieving his father's death.He was grieving the relationship they never had.And he was still trying to earn the approval he'd wanted since he was a kid.This is a conversation about father loss, men's grief, absent fathers, addiction, resentment, parental approval, forgiveness, and what happens when you finally deal with grief you've spent years avoiding.👨 Meet Ali BAli grew up in Iran before coming to Canada.His own father had been abandoned by his dad at 11 and was forced to help support his family while still a child.As a teenager, Ali reconnected with his father while working with him and his brother in Nevada. Addiction made an already difficult relationship harder.Ali eventually returned to Canada, threw himself into school, and built a successful career in dentistry and surgery.But his relationship with his dad stayed with him.Years after his father's death, Ali finally started looking at the anger, grief, and need for approval underneath it.⏱️ Episode chapters00:00:00 My dad never said he was proud of me00:01:27 Why Ali wanted to tell this story00:02:14 Growing up with an absent father00:04:45 Escaping Iran and coming to Canada00:06:45 Reconnecting with his dad00:07:45 Addiction changes everything00:09:45 Years of resentment00:11:55 Watching his father die00:13:35 Why Ali felt numb00:14:20 Avoiding his dad's grave for 15 years00:15:15 The meditation retreat that broke something open00:16:40 Finally grieving his father00:17:05 Chasing his father's approval00:18:10 Why men avoid grief00:19:30 He couldn't find his father's grave00:20:20 Discovering his dad had no gravestone00:21:05 Letting go of the anger00:22:00 Why talking about his dad was terrifying00:23:20 Becoming a dad changed his perspective00:24:15 The person anger was actually hurting00:26:10 Can success fill the hole left by grief?00:28:10 Grieving the father you never had00:29:00 "I never asked if he was proud of me"00:30:00 Finding compassion for a difficult father00:31:20 How grief changed Ali as a husband and dad00:33:35 Final thoughts🖤 About Dead DadsDead Dads is a podcast for men figuring out life after losing their dad.Hosted by Roger Nairn and Scott Cunningham, the show features honest conversations about father loss, grief, identity, family, memory, masculinity, and all the strange stuff that happens after your dad dies.No grief brochure voice. No tidy healing arc.Just real conversations for guys who are grieving, remembering, avoiding, laughing, carrying on, or trying to understand what losing a father did to them.You're not alone.☕ Support Dead Dads:https://buymeacoffee.com/deaddadspodcastWebsite:https://www.deaddadspodcast.com/YouTube:/@deaddadspodcastInstagram:/deaddadspodcastTikTok:/dead.dads.podcastSubstack:https://substack.com/@deaddadspodcastNew episodes every week.Dead Dads Podcast is produced with the support of JAR Podcast Solutions.https://jarpodcasts.com/
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    36 mins
  • We Hadn't Spoken in 6 Weeks. Then My Dad Died by Suicide.

    We Hadn't Spoken in 6 Weeks. Then My Dad Died by Suicide.
    Sep 4 2026

    🎧 In this episode, you'll get:

    • Language for the guilt that can follow suicide loss
    • Permission to stop chasing an answer you may never get
    • A reason to ask for help before you think you “need” it
    • A better way to think about therapy when the first person isn't the right fit
    • A frame for the three paths grief can put in front of you: fall apart, white-knuckle it, or use it
    • Permission to cry, talk about your dad, and stop treating emotion like weakness
    • Ideas for keeping your dad present through music, traditions, and rituals


    Scott Panov never imagined his dad would die by suicide.


    They hadn't spoken for six weeks after a family disagreement. After his dad died, Scott was left with guilt, anger, and questions he knew might never be answered.


    That night, he asked for help.


    This one's about suicide loss, therapy, letting go of blame, and realizing the dad you thought was superhuman was human too.


    👨 Meet Scott Panov

    Scott is a son, father, hockey coach, artist, and advocate for men's mental health.


    After his dad Nikolai died by suicide in 2023, Scott sought trauma therapy and grief counselling. It changed how he thought about strength.


    Instead of carrying everything alone, he started talking, asking for help, sharing how he felt, and supporting other men who were struggling.


    ⏱️ Episode chapters

    00:00 — “I never would've seen it coming”

    01:00 — Welcome Scott Panov

    02:50 — Meet Nikolai

    04:30 — Measuring yourself against your father

    07:00 — Dad and Splash Mountain

    10:15 — Men who weren't taught to talk

    10:55 — August 24, 2023

    11:40 — The phone call from Mom

    12:50 — The signs nobody understood

    14:35 — We hadn't spoken for six weeks

    16:00 — Telling his kids

    17:45 — His superhuman dad was human

    18:30 — The backpack full of rocks

    18:55 — Searching for a reason

    19:20 — Asking for help that night

    22:00 — Trauma therapy

    23:15 — The three paths after trauma

    24:45 — Making emotion a superpower

    25:30 — Finding the right therapist

    29:00 — Becoming kinder to himself

    30:00 — Men's mental health

    31:50 — Buying Dad records every birthday

    34:30 — Where his grief is now

    36:00 — “I miss my dad”

    37:00 — Scott's advice to other men


    Meet another guy in the club:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yutMlctDGYE


    🖤 About Dead Dads

    Dead Dads is a podcast for men figuring out life after losing their dad.


    Hosted by Roger Nairn and Scott Cunningham, the show features honest conversations about father loss, grief, identity, family, memory, masculinity, and everything that happens after your dad dies.


    No grief brochure voice. No tidy healing arc.


    You're not alone.


    If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts, reach out for help. In Canada and the U.S., call or text 988.


    ☕ Support the show:

    https://buymeacoffee.com/deaddadspodcast


    Website:

    https://www.deaddadspodcast.com/


    Instagram:

    https://www.instagram.com/deaddadspodcast/


    TikTok:

    https://www.tiktok.com/@dead.dads.podcast


    Substack:

    https://substack.com/@deaddadspodcast


    New episodes every week.


    Produced with the support of JAR Podcast Solutions:

    https://jarpodcasts.com/
    Show More Show Less
    39 mins
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