Episode 25

full
Published on:

15th Apr 2026

Alisyn Camerota on Loss, Love & Starting Over The Moment Everything Changed

Grief, loss, career reinvention, and starting over after tragedy take center stage in this powerful conversation with journalist and author Alisyn Camerota. When life changes in an instant, how do you rebuild, find purpose, and move forward? In this emotional episode of Call Me Friend, Daryn Kagan sits down with Alisyn to unpack what it really takes to navigate loss, trauma, and major life transitions.

From her experience with workplace harassment and power abuse during the Me Too era to the devastating loss of her husband to pancreatic cancer, Alisyn shares the raw truth about grief recovery, emotional healing, resilience, and rebuilding your life after loss. This conversation dives into career setbacks, personal growth, relationships, and finding strength after tragedy, showing how even the hardest moments can lead to transformation, clarity, and a completely new path forward.

In This Episode You Will Learn

✅ How to rebuild your life after loss and grief

✅ The truth about career reinvention and starting over

✅ What resilience actually looks like in real life

✅ How relationships and timing shape your life path

✅ The reality of workplace abuse and how to recognize it

Powered by Ms Lou’s Cabin https://www.airbnb.com/h/mslouscabin

Timestamps

  • 0:00 Workplace harassment, Roger Ailes, and the defining career moment
  • 3:58 Daryn’s intro and the Call Me Friend setup
  • 5:05 How Daryn and Alisyn connect through journalism
  • 7:39 The golden era of CNN and purpose-driven journalism
  • 11:13 Leaving CNN, management changes, and shifting priorities
  • 13:10 Meeting Tim, commitment, and being ready for love
  • 18:40 Marriage, infertility, IVF, and building a family
  • 19:54 The pancreatic cancer diagnosis that changed everything
  • 20:18 “A grenade thrown into our lives” – everything changes instantly
  • 22:30 Navigating the emotional impact of a terminal diagnosis
  • 25:10 How their family dynamic shifted overnight
  • 28:40 Living through uncertainty and anticipatory grief
  • 33:30 Me Too Story: Roger Ailes, Fox News, Navigating Power, Fear & Career Risk
  • 35:50 Processing fear, reality, and what comes next
  • 46:47 Asking for a Friend: what to say to someone facing grief
  • 58:08 Daryn’s closing thoughts and episode wrap-up

Key Takeaways

🔹 Loss can completely reshape your identity and purpose

🔹 Career setbacks can lead to unexpected opportunities

🔹 Emotional healing requires honesty, time, and support

🔹 True resilience is built through life’s hardest moments

Check out my interview with Bill Hemmer: https://youtu.be/x1VuM_awknA?si=dsX5DNGxA4u1HHic

Guest Bio

Alisyn Camerota is an award-winning journalist, television anchor, and author known for her work on major news networks including CNN and Fox News. She is widely respected for her reporting, storytelling, and advocacy, particularly around issues of workplace culture, personal resilience, and women’s experiences in media. Her journey through grief, career reinvention, and personal growth has inspired audiences around the world.

Resources & Links

loss and grief, resilience, career reinvention, Alisyn Camerota, Fox, CNN, news anchor, overcoming loss, grief healing, personal growth, life after loss, pancreatic cancer story, rebuilding your life, emotional resilience, women in media, career transition, mental strength, life challenges

All Episodes Previous Episode

Listen for free

Show artwork for Call Me Friend

About the Podcast

Call Me Friend
Who do you call when life gets real? When the good news hits, the heartbreak lands, or you're just having one of those days—you call a friend. That’s the heartbeat of Call Me Friend—a feel good biweekly podcast that drops you into the kind of conversations that remind us who we are, where we belong, and why friendship matters.

Hosted by former network news anchor, wife, mom, and Airbnb host Daryn Kagan, Call Me Friend is your weekly reminder of the joy, laughter, and healing that come with connection. Each week, Daryn picks up the phone from Ms. Lou’s Cabin—a 50-year-old log home she and her husband lovingly restored and turned into an Airbnb—to chat with someone in her world, whether it’s a celebrity, her childhood bestie, or someone she just met along the way or maybe even YOU. No matter who she’s calling, the focus is always the same: celebrating the power of friendship and connection.

Every episode kicks off with a ring-ring and drops you into a real-life conversations between friends. These aren’t interviews with hot takes or polished soundbites—just raw, funny, heartfelt, deeply human chats between people who genuinely know and care about each other. From lifelong friendships to surprise connections, everyday legends to familiar names, Call Me Friend is a front-row seat to how beautiful, messy, and meaningful friendships can be.

This show is for anyone craving more depth, more heart, and more of the good stuff that makes life not just bearable—but beautiful. It’s a cozy corner of the podcast world where emotional wellness, storytelling, and humor live in harmony. Whether you’re looking for comfort, relatable stories, or a pick-me-up on a hard day, this podcast is for you, yes YOU. Expect wild stories, sweet memories, laugh-out-loud moments, and those quiet “Yeah… me too” pauses that make you feel truly seen.

Fun segments like “You Gotta Meet My Friend” spotlight special guests introducing someone they love, while “Call Me, Friend” invites listeners to write in with questions and stories. And the “Friend Questionnaire” keeps things surprising, uncovering the quirks and connections that make every friendship unique.

What makes Call Me Friend stand out? This show isn’t about networking or hustle. It’s not self-help. It’s heart-help. Because friendship isn’t just background noise—it’s the main character. If you’ve ever found joy, comfort, or healing through a friend—or just needed someone to say, “I get it”—this is your space.

Call Me Friend is more than a podcast. It’s a weekly call you can count on. A soft place to land. A reminder that even when life feels messy, everything gets better when you talk to a friend. If you love heartfelt conversations, personal stories, and a little laughter with your life lessons, this is the one you’ve been waiting for.

So whether you're commuting, folding laundry, walking the dog, or just trying to quiet your mind—remember this: you’re not alone. Someone out there gets it. Someone out there would totally take your call.

Go ahead, pick up the phone.
Let’s laugh. Let’s cry. Let’s Call a Friend.

About the Host:

Daryn Kagan is a former CNN anchor turned full-time storyteller. After leaving the fast-paced world of network news, she built a life rooted in purpose, connection, and authenticity. Now living on the quiet Georgia coast, Daryn records Call Me Friend from Ms. Lou’s Cabin, a restored 50-year-old log home turned Airbnb. From there she runs the nationwide Just One More Foundation giving grants for second chances. A wife, mom, dog mama, and connection junkie, Daryn’s superpower is bringing people together—and her gift for real conversation is what makes this podcast feel like catching up with your favorite friend.

Just One More Foundation : https://www.justonemorefoundation.org/
Instagram: Call Me Friend
Instagram: Daryn Kagan
Facebook: Daryn Kagan
Website: https://darynkagan.com/
LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/daryn-kagan-14a6893/

About your host

Profile picture for Daryn Kagan

Daryn Kagan