Episodes

Born in Italy to Russian parents, Dan came to the U.S. as a baby and grew up in a highly driven immigrant community near Princeton, New Jersey. An only child, he was pushed hard to be successful in academics and athletics, with video games becoming an early escape. As a teenager, he turned to marijuana and alcohol, escalating after his mother passed away during his senior year. He headed to college in 2013, where he bounced between fraternities for drug- and alcohol-related issues while throwing...

Seeing him on this podcast for the first time in 13 years, Matt admits to his old friend Austin York that he robbed him during the chaos of their using days in Southern California. Like Matt, Austin got into trouble very young, fighting in school and using drugs at a young age. His parents sent him away several times to try to get him back on track. He bounced around multiple high schools but never graduated, spending most of his teen years in juvenile rehabs like Phoenix House in San Diego and ...

After Cynthia was molested in childhood, she used food as a coping mechanism, developing bulimia and extreme body dysmorphia. As a teenager, vaccinations triggered hormonal and immune imbalances, causing mood changes and hives. When she became pregnant as a young adult, it motivated her to stop smoking and make healthier choices. She later married someone struggling with alcohol addiction, leading to domestic violence and emotional turmoil. Because of her faith as a Jehovah’s Witness, she stayed...

Chris grew up in Odessa, Texas, in a home where alcohol and drugs were part of everyday life. At 15, he altered his birth certificate to work in the oil fields. By 19, he was drilling, and by 25, he was running crews—building a successful career. Drug addiction resulted in four incarcerations, and by his last conviction he faced a potential life sentence. In prison, he began seeking faith and direction but his addiction destroyed his family. When an 86-year-old lawyer offers to take Chris’s case...

Kratom is a plant-based substance that’s easy to find in smoke shops, gas stations, and even health food stores. Marketed as a natural remedy for pain, energy, or opioid withdrawal, it’s gained a reputation as a “safe” alternative. But according to Houston addiction medicine specialist Dr. Kamal Shah, that couldn’t be further from the truth. He’s seen firsthand how quickly people can become dependent, from those in long-term addiction recovery to others simply looking for pain relief. What start...

Growing up in Spring, Texas, Jordan was a standout student and star athlete. Raised in a supportive, yet strict household, he excelled in sports and academics, graduated near the top of his class, and was inducted into his high school’s Hall of Fame for football. While attending Cornell University on a football scholarship, sports injuries shifted his focus from athletics to cocaine, ketamine, and marijuana. After graduation, he moved to Miami for law school and a master’s in sports administrati...

At the age of 17, Robert entered treatment for the first time for heroin addiction, painkillers, and Dilaudid. Over the next few years, he cycled through nearly 60 detoxes and programs across the country, spending several years in and out of institutions. At 19, he moved to California for a fresh start—attending trauma therapy, enrolling in college, and playing football at Santa Monica College—until a fractured femur ended his athletic goals and he literally ended up homeless and living on Skid ...

Rachel grew up in Louisiana in a family marked by loss. Her older sister died of leukemia at age seven, leaving deep grief that shaped her childhood. At 13, she experienced sexual abuse, and by 21, she lost her mother to untreated hypertension and heart disease—the event that sent her drinking spiraling out of control. She developed depression and anxiety early on, and alcohol addiction quickly became her way to cope. By 25, she was a new mother, married to an alcoholic, and caught in a cycle of...

Ted was sent to military school, later joined the Navy, and served during the Gulf War, stationed in Jacksonville and working drug interdiction missions off the coast of Venezuela. During his Navy service, he developed alcohol addiction, a habit he continued for years in New Orleans while working in the oil and gas industry, as drinking was embedded in the local social culture. After several failed recovery attempts, Ted achieved sobriety in March 2017 and launched Bodine Recovery, an addiction ...

Candice grew up surrounded by addiction and loss. Both parents drank heavily, and by 11, she had lost her mom. Her dad died soon after, and by 19, most of her family was gone, including her sister, who was killed in a murder-suicide. She became a single mother at 16, and by 21, she had three kids. After her third child, heroin addiction and painkillers took over her life. She lost custody—her daughters went to live with an aunt, and her son entered the court system—while she lived with dealers a...

Brandon grew up in Houston with an abusive, alcoholic father and experienced trauma from sexual abuse at ages eight and 10. By 11, he had his first sip of alcohol, and by seventeen, he was charged with organized crime and began a seven-year prison sentence—learning basic life skills like shaving from other inmates. Over time, he spent a total of fifteen years incarcerated, carrying a street mentality that followed him long after release. On parole, Brandon returned to drugs, relationships, and o...

Karen married young and became a mom at 15. By 17, she had two children, and by 36 she was a grandmother. Her brother’s Xanax addiction and overdose involving alcohol at age 19 propelled her toward addiction recovery work, determined to help others find the support he never had. Jill lived in her car in the East Texas heat and humidity, calling treatment centers nonstop after losing her insurance. After more than a year of pestering, she was finally granted a spot in a state-funded facility. Ten...

From Jason’s first drink at 17, his alcohol addiction spiraled into prison, and homelessness. He tried AA, NA, and church, but staying in recovery was tough, and a string of DUIs and prison sentences made things harder. While homeless, Jason describes walking the streets of Pensacola, covering about 20 miles in June heat until his shoes were bloody and had to be discarded upon arrival at a mental hospital, where he collapsed. This grueling walk marked a turning point, leading him to seek help an...

Rune never directly struggled with substance abuse, but grew up surrounded by it and then married into it. His father battled alcohol addiction and eventually died. Later, his ex-wife also lost her life to addiction after multiple attempts at treatment and time in jail, leaving their two children without a mother. For years, Rune kept his head down and worked quietly in IT to avoid the weight of his own reality. When he finally got divorced, he shifted and slowly stepped into the addiction recov...

Andy grew up in Houston and started drinking in high school, escalating in college. After getting kicked out and switching schools, she eventually graduated while trying to keep her drinking under control. But when she entered the workforce, it got worse. In 2013, after a family ultimatum she went to AA for the first time and stayed sober for a month. She relapsed and repeated that pattern for several years, bouncing between AA and psychiatric hospitals, searching for something that would stick...

Raised in a solid, loving family, Danny was a standout athlete with a full ride to UCLA for golf. His future was golden, but the lure of partying and a fast lifestyle spiraled into meth and heroin addiction, multiple jail stints, and years of chaos. Danny’s last relapse was the breaking point. Detoxing himself at his mother’s house after a dangerous encounter involving fentanyl, he surrendered and asked God for help. Facing his mounting court cases, he was sentenced to 90 days in treatment at M...

Dr. Kamal Shah’s perspective on addiction recovery is both deeply personal and scientifically informed. Addiction isn’t just behavior. It’s the brain, trauma, and the emotional patterns that keep people stuck. Over a decade into sobriety himself, Dr. Shah combines his lived experience with a background in neurology, movement disorders, and addiction medicine to explore what really drives relapse and what truly supports lasting recovery. GUEST Kamal Shah, MD Dr. Kamal Shah is a behavioral neurol...

Scott’s last relapse ended with him withdrawing in jail, where for the first time since age 13 he made it past five days sober. Facing probation, restitution, treatment and childhood trauma, he found purpose through service work, community support, and helping others just starting their recovery. Ironically, a broken leg led him to a role supporting newcomers—work he excelled at and that launched a career dedicated to helping others heal. Today, Scott’s life is proof of what’s possible. He went ...

My Last Relapse explores what everyone is thinking but no one is saying about addiction and recovery through conversations with those whose lives have changed. For anyone disillusioned by traditional recovery approaches and still feels left out, misunderstood, or burdened by unrealistic expectations, this podcast looks to the future – rejecting the lies and dogma that hold people back from seeing their future without using. Full episodes launching September 2025. Subscribe for new episode notifi...