We’re All Insane Podcast
Host: Devorah Roloff
Episode: "My Husband Died 4 Days After Our Wedding"
Date: August 18, 2025
Guest: Bri

Episode Overview

This emotionally raw and candid episode centers on Bri, a 24-year-old woman who lost her husband Easton in a tragic motorcycle accident just four days after their wedding. At the time, Bri was five months pregnant with their first child. Throughout the conversation, Bri unfolds the story of their relationship, the devastating loss, her grieving process, and the challenging journey of navigating young widowhood, single motherhood, and profound personal transformation. Her story is equal parts heartbreaking, humorous, introspective, and bracingly honest.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Meeting and Relationship Origins

• Meeting Easton:

  • Met on Tinder in late 2018; talked for a year and a half before meeting in person due to Easton's packed work schedule.
  • Their first meeting occurred under practical circumstances—Easton came to help jumpstart her car after a graveyard shift.
  • “My parents showed up and I was like, no, get—like, get the fuck out of here. Easton's on his way.” (03:20)

• Moving In Together:

  • Their relationship progressed organically and quickly—she moved in while Easton was away on a trip, notifying him with a Snapchat.
  • “Did you just move into my house? And I was like, yeah. And he was like, all right, I'll see you when I get home on Monday.” (04:34)

• Deepening Connection:

  • Shared experiences like traveling (first trip to Arizona, the Virgin Islands, camping) cemented their bond.
  • Easton was portrayed as hardworking, selfless, and family-oriented, despite family fractures from his parents’ divorce.

Turning Points: Engagement and Pregnancy

• Change of Heart About Motherhood:

  • Bri never wanted kids until, unexpectedly, she felt deeply incomplete and wanted a child with Easton.
  • “Out of nowhere, I was like, telling Easton, I, I want a child. I feel like I need a child. I feel incomplete. And it was so out of character for me.” (11:40)

• Easton’s Career Progress & Engagement:

  • After seven years, Easton finally got a coveted job at a military base, setting the stage for family planning.
  • Secretly bought a ring with his mom’s help and proposed at a family Christmas Eve gathering—Bri was genuinely surprised and humorously self-deprecating about her appearance.
  • “I turn around and Easton's asking me to marry him. And I was like, oh, what the fuck? Like today? Really?” (12:56)

• Pregnancy Discovery:

  • The couple learned they were expecting, and began quietly preparing for parenthood.
  • “We flip it and there's a faint line. And I was like, oh. And he was like, no, it's negative. I'm like, no, it doesn't matter how bright it is. If it's there, you're pregnant.” (17:43)

Wedding & Final Days Together

• Courthouse Wedding:

  • Opted for a quick courthouse ceremony for insurance and practical reasons, postponing a larger event until after the baby’s birth. The day was filled with small joys and irreverent family humor.
  • “There's only 3 prongs for the... lobster and whatever. They both stole one for us for as a wedding present. Little kleptos.” (27:13)

• Fishing ‘Honeymoon’:

  • Spent the days following the wedding fishing—an activity they shared and loved—punctuated by friendly competition.

• Final Night:

  • That night was filled with the ordinary: a walk, picking a cigar, and joking in typical style.
  • Memorable last exchange: “He was like, what if I crash on my motorcycle and die tomorrow? And you went to bed not giving me a kiss? How would you feel?” (32:41)
  • “Go brush your fucking teeth.” (32:46)

The Accident and Its Immediate Aftermath

Easton’s Death (May 31st, 2023)

• Receiving the Call:

  • Bri worried when Easton didn't text after leaving for work. The hospital called, requesting she come in and not drive herself.
  • “Is he okay? And she was like, you need to find a ride. I don't want you driving.” (46:08)

• Hospital Experience:

  • The gravity hit when a social worker delivered the news; Bri recalls the numbness and disbelief vividly.
  • “How do you do this?...You’re gonna sit right here next to me and you're gonna tell me that the man I just married four days ago is somewhere in this hospital, dead.” (53:12)

• Family’s Immediate Grief:

  • Her father collapsed upon hearing the news. “He just screamed. He was like, no. And he fell to the floor.” (57:41)

• Recounting the Details:

  • Accident caused by another driver’s negligence—no malice, ruled an accident.
  • “He turned right out in front of him, and Eason hit the back corner panel...your brain kind of turned into mashed potatoes.” (80:24)

Early Grieving Process & Overwhelm

• Overwhelming Support & Frustration:

  • Family and friends descended upon her, but the support often felt stifling.
  • "Don't bug me, don't bug me. I'm always getting bugged." (71:44)

• Identity as a Young Widow:

  • Grapples with the entirety of her identity being reduced to “24-year-old pregnant widow.”
  • “My title has now gone from this really funny, bubbly person...is now a 24 year old pregnant widow. And that was so hard for me to grasp.” (60:40)

• Dark Thoughts and Survival:

  • Openly shares suicidal ideation, noting, “If I go, the baby goes, and we can all be a family.”
  • “Jokes on all of them. I'm way too big of a wuss to kill myself, so they have nothing to be worried about.” (74:31)
  • Her pregnancy/child is a literal anchor that keeps her going.

• Practical Struggles:

  • Immediate fallout included financial/legal hassles, losing her apartment, and navigating bureaucracy alone as a widow.

Navigating Single Motherhood, Community, and Self-Reinvention

The Funeral & Community Support

• Funeral Planning:

  • Navigating conflicting family desires versus her own—suppressed her wishes in favor of family harmony.
  • “They really wanted it at the church. And I was like, no. East and I were not religious, but we did it for money reasons...I was tired of arguing.” (90:06)

• Massive Turnout:

  • The funeral/viewing was packed—lines out the door, many cards and memories shared.
  • “There was a line out the door to the parking lot for hours...I could not go to the bathroom without somebody coming with me.” (92:10)

Raising Her Daughter Alone

• Birth Experience:

  • Delivered daughter "Bee" surrounded by supportive women.
  • “My biggest fear the entire pregnancy was that I was going to have her on 9, 11. And I was like, how depressing.” (113:37)

• Adjusting to Motherhood & Loss:

  • Candid about postpartum emotional disconnection; therapist reassures her this is common.
  • “For the longest time, I don't feel anything for her. I don't feel like her mom. I don't care. I get irritated when she cries. And she was like, no, that's completely normal.” (147:09)
  • “I'm never getting pregnant again. Stupid. I'm envious of the women that are like, oh, I'll do it a hundred times. I'm like, nope, I had a hard time with the one. But I have to be good for her.” (148:13)

Processing Grief and Growth

• Therapy & Self-awareness:

  • Credits her therapist and self-reflection for helping to process grief, regret, and growth—especially regarding difficult relationships with family members.
  • “I found Blair. Beautiful. Oh, my God. I got so lucky to find a therapist that I liked on the first go.” (141:47)

• Changes in Trust & Perspective:

  • Her worldview shifted; now “sees the world and life and people...completely different.”
  • “Everything to me now is a threat...I'm scared they're out to get me.” (109:55)

• Remaining Support System:

  • Reflects on who stayed in her life and values quality over quantity.
  • “It’s quality over quantity.” (140:32)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Our last name are no stranger to tribulation and tragedy. But this one hurts a little more, leaves a cut a little deeper, and comes with a greater level of pain…” — Mitch, reading Easton’s eulogy (36:43)
• “How lucky am I for having something that makes saying goodbye so hard?” — Eulogy (Winnie the Pooh quote) (36:41)
• “He was always a lover of the outdoors…Easton loved Moab so much that when he brought home that chocolate lab that he was told he could not have, he named this big clumsy companion Moab.” (38:04)
• “I don't want her to have to try to understand as to why her mom did that. Because her mom's cool.” (109:09)
• “I know I'm funny, and I know I'm great. And I know that they love to be around me because I am…I get the chills. And she's just such a good baby. And she saved my life.” (150:51)
• On grief: “Strength doesn't mean not crying and not breaking down…The fact that you're still here is strength.” – Host, Devorah (148:47)
• “I have grown and I am able to see my wrongdoings and correct them…I have a lot of self-confidence now...I’m just great. I can’t help it.” (154:01)

Episode Timeline & Critical Segments

• 00:00–11:48 | Meeting, relationship development, moving in, family background
• 11:48–24:05 | Engagement, pregnancy, early wedding planning (ad break skipped)
• 24:05–36:40 | Courthouse wedding, fishing honeymoon, meaningful and light moments
• 36:40–46:00 | Eulogy reading, setting tone of loss and impact
• 46:00–65:00 | The accident, hospital experience, family reactions, initial grief and adjustment
• 65:00–88:00 | Aftermath, managing support and loneliness, practical hardships, funeral planning
• 88:00–109:55 | Birth of daughter, navigating new identity, post-loss difficulties
• 109:55–140:00 | Learning to parent alone, healing, family dynamics, returning to self-love
• 140:00–154:40 | Reflections on support, transformation, resilience, and meaning-making

Tone and Style

Bri’s storytelling is unfiltered, darkly humorous, at times shockingly direct, and always open-hearted. She combines candor about the uglier sides of grief (“I say fuck way too many times in a sentence to have any kind of grace.” 72:49) with vivid anecdotes and moments of absurdity and affection that keep the narrative deeply human, not just tragic. Host Devorah maintains an empathetic, gentle presence throughout, prompting, validating, and holding space for Bri’s vulnerability.

Concluding Reflection

Bri’s journey is, in her words, far more than the “super lame and super depressing” tag society might attach to a “24-year-old pregnant widow.” It’s a story of immense, irreparable loss, yes—yet also one of stubborn humor, hard-won growth, maternal devotion, and forging meaning from devastation. She leaves listeners with both an honest look at young, tragic widowhood and single parenthood, and a model for embracing the messiness and resilience of real-life grief.