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The Addiction Podcast-Point of No Return — Alternative Health
The Addiction Podcast-Point of No Return

This podcast addresses hope and recovery options for individuals, friends, family, parents and associates who have been or may be addicted to opioids, heroin, cocaine, prescription drugs, fentanyl, alcohol, or marijuana and want to overcome the addiction.

There are interviews with former addicts, stories of having gone through numerous failed rehabes, parents and loved ones that describe the horrors and ultimate methods they have sought to save lives and help.

Issues include the changing world of rehab, from 12 step programs to successful and effective alternative approaches to detox, withdrawal, and education for stable life style changes for former addicts. The benefits and dangers of different types of rehab from those that have experienced it.

The “point of no return’ is when the individual has come to a realization that they need and want help.

This is also for friends and family of addicts who are at their wits end and don’t know what to do to help the addict. This podcast gives hope and inspiration for recovery.

Some topics include:
– Where can I get help?
– How do I know if my child or relative or friend is addicted?
– How do I get someone up to realizing they need help?

Latest Episodes:

Tracy Lynn - Former Opioid Addict - Mom and Podcaster Dec 09, 2021

Show notes

My name is Tracy and I am a 54 year old single mom in CT.

I was in a car accident in 2000 that resulted in back surgery, and subsequently the prescription of opioids which lasted 20 years. I took them as prescribed as I thought I needed them for pain and trusted the doctors. Over the years I had asked about getting off of them and when I would try I would be so sick so fast and too ashamed to cope with it, especially as a single mom, busy trying to raise a son alone, I just kept going back to the medication. In late 2017, I landed in the hospital with a bowel obstruction. The surgeon informed me that it was due to many years of opioid use, Opioid Use Disorder, and it was imperative to get off of them if my body was going to heal and be able to eat solid food again. January 1, 2018, my journey of detox began. Knowing fully well that weaning off OxyContin after 20 years of 60mg a day was going to be brutal. Once I started, I knew how much worse it was. As each day passed, I was gripped by complete fear. I was so sick I kept reaching out to the prescriber. She barely spoke to me, had nothing to offer but a name of a therapist and happier when I went away quietly l, so I did. I felt like an addict, and even believed that I was one. I thought because I would feel "dopesick" I must be an addict as I adopted society's view and the stigma I accepted as my identity. I felt alone, ugly and ashamed. I knew that it was imperative to push through and I was finally ok to live shamefully "out of the closet" in full detox. The days and months that followed were beyond anything even close to imagining. It was an inhumane physical torture on both a mental and physical level. It forced me into determination and resilience that I had no idea was in me. Every day I was sure I was going to die but I didn't.

Now I am watching my story be uncovered through documentaries of who the Sacklers are and how they stole 20 years of my life, but more importantly, my mothering. I can't believe I am alive. I was prescribed a cocktail of death with a combination of opioids and xanax. Hillbilly heroine is a new term I have only recently learned. I continue to be horrified that I was taking heroine in a pill without ever knowing. I am no longer using opioids and haven't for almost 3 years, however I am still living with effects of detox, which through my own research is actually called "post acute withdrawal syndrome", a diagnosis I was forced to uncover myself. I kept waiting for the pain to return but it didn't. I was shocked that I was using opioids for years when I didn't even need them. If it weren't for some divine intervention in the form of a hospital visit, chances are I'd still be living dependent on opioids unaware that there is life out there and that it was achievable. The shame of detox and the lack of tools and education are what kept me on the medication because being sick didn't fit into my life and I was too ashamed to tell anyone. For almost all of this time even through detox, the hardest days, I still thought I was an addict, and now understand that I am, but a different type of addict. I was so confused as to why I didn't want them anymore and that I was not the addict I had stigmatized myself with. What is the most shocking is that no one separates drug addiction from drug dependence. The two are very different. Without education and support how is anyone to know or learn that they may have no pain like me and not be an addict but dependent, like me. Instead we face detox in the closet with the shame of being sick because no one wants to be seen going through it. It's an inhumane torture and builds demons inside of you. If I had the support of anyone, it would have made all the difference.

My journey and my mission to educate about detox, has just begun. The conversation needs to be started. If someone is thinking about going into detox, or if they are in detox or if they are watching someone they love in detox, there needs to be a clear understanding and the accepting that we are human, with a heart, with emotion, with dignity and not what we believe or what we have stigmatized for ourselves. We matter. All of us matter. My story is just mine. We all have one.

I'm creating a safe loving platform through my podcast "Cleaning out the Closet, 1mg at a time..." where anyone can go to listen or share in an interview, their personal experience with detox and be less lonely, feared or ashamed. For me, I had to work full time through my whole detox so I pushed through it very quickly. I had to "fake it to make it" for as many hours as I could. The truth is, this began as my own research and now I feel like it is my responsibility to educate people properly so that no one feels lost or alone and ashamed, living in the closet, like me. My whole story is yet to be shared as I continue to learn and be educated through documentaries and wonderful books what really happened to me. With the release of Dopesick on Hulu, though painful to see, I continue to learn and be educated. I am truly grateful to the beautiful souls that have supported and helped guide me to my truth. The most inspiring part of my story isn't surviving breast cancer through this nightmare, but my son. He went from an opioid addict to graduating college with honors and is now lobbying at the age of 25. He saw my drive for a successful and substance free life and as I got healthy so did he. It has been very painful learning about what happened to me and the self realization of how he saw me. I was an embarrassment to him and his friends and was blacked out every night for him to watch in fear wondering if I was going to wake up. This has created an image in his mind that I hope in time is replaced by his respect and trust. This is my truest purpose.

Thank you for listening.

Grateful, Tracy

Candace Plattor - Former Addict - Now Helping Families Deal with Addiction Dec 02, 2021

Show notes

Candace Plattor is an Addictions Therapist in private practice, where she specializes in working with the family and other loved ones of people who are struggling with addiction, in her unique and signature Family Addiction Counselling and Therapy Program. As a former opioid addict with 34 years clean and sober now, Candace has learned that overcoming addiction is a family condition: everyone in the family is affected by addiction and everyone needs to heal. For more than three decades, she has been helping both addicts and their loved ones understand their dysfunctional behaviours and make healthier life choices.

The results Candace achieves have been astounding: addicts stop using and families regain their lives from the ravages of addiction. Not only has her success led to a waiting list of clients but she is a sought after leader in the field of addictions. As the developer of the LoveWithBoundaries Family Addiction Counselling and Therapy method, Candace now works with her team of top counsellors and coaches, helping both the families and their addicts break the devastating cycle of addiction for good.

Admiral James Winnefeld and Brandee Izquierdo - Helping Others Overcome Substance Abuse Challenges Nov 25, 2021

Show notes

Admiral (ret) Sandy Winnefeld and his wife, Mary, founded SAFE (Stop the Addiction Fatality Epidemic) after their son died of an accidental fentanyl overdose. They later hired Brandee Izquierdo - herself an addict in recovery - to run the organization. Together they are making a huge difference in tackling the addiction pandemic. Learn more here: https://www.safeproject.us/

Dr. Camille Kraft - Former Admin of the NFL Substance Abuse Program Talks About Athletes Nov 18, 2021

Show notes

A strong proponent of balancing advocacy and accountability, Dr. Kraft consults at the collegiate and professional levels championing the development of critical thinking skills in relation to mental health. As the founder and CEO of Camille Kraft Consulting, Camille has had the privilege of working with a first-turned-third round NFL draft pick and a former 14-year NFL veteran battling substance abuse. From 2020-2021 she served as the Commissioner for the Women's National Football Conference (WNFC) and most recently has been named to the Board of Directors for Pro Athletes in Recovery (Pro Air).

Pastor Joe Adevai - Former Addict - Now Bringing the Word to All Nov 11, 2021

Show notes

Joseph Carlucci Adevai is Senior Pastor and Founder of Grace Church of North Brunswick, NJ. He is also the former CEO of Serenity Springs Recovery a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center in Edgewater, Fla. He worked on Wall St. for 25 Years and retired in 2009 as SVP of a $70 billion-dollar company. He pastors full time and still invests to support his family. He has been married to Alicia Adevai for 34 years and they have 6 children. He's the author of the book "A Reason to Live" available on Amazon.

Paul Casey - Former Addict - In and Out of Prison - Teaching Others to Overcome Obstacles Nov 04, 2021

Show notes

After spending almost 20 years struggling with addiction Paul finally made the conscious decision change. With 1 year left on his decade long prison stay he began to work on himself from the inside out. Through internal work and a shift in his mindset he has been able to stay clean while building a successful coaching business. Today he is able to help others become their best self though fitness, nutrition, and mindset coaching. Not only that but Paul has been able to share his story to others in need of guidance and help them see that they too can overcome horrendous situations and obstacles.

Patricia Love - Rising above Childhood Trauma and Addiction - She is Now Seen and Heard Oct 28, 2021

Show notes

Patricia Love is a professional life coach, NLP, EFT who motivates and builds confidence in women who struggle with being seen and heard in their personal or business lives. Turning her own life around from being broke and broken at 57, she made the decision to turn "Her Mess, Into Her Message."

Patricia Love's book – Seen and Unheard - delves deeply into how she ended up with a drug/alcohol problem due to her childhood upbringing, self-esteem issues, and more trauma that she encountered during her early to mid-adulthood (rape/physical abuse). Her mother ignored her when she was a little girl and was a 'closet' alcoholic and her father was an absentee traveling executive.

Danielle Gregorich - former Alcoholic - Talking about the Stroke of Sobriety Oct 21, 2021

Show notes

Danielle Gregorich is an Arizona native. She is an Air Force wife and a sober Mom of two children.

She is a multiple suicide attempt survivor, a kidney cancer survivor, and a stroke survivor.
DG started writing about her sobriety publicly in 2018 after she suffered a massive stroke four months into her sobriety journey. ----That stroke took away her ability to speak, read, and write. Her speech therapist suggested that she write to stimulate her brain function to regain these abilities.
She wrote authentically and raw about her struggles with sobriety, marriage, and motherhood. Writing quickly became therapeutic and played a crucial role during her first year of sobriety.
During DG's first year of sobriety, she overcame multiple struggles and obstacles. Sobriety did not come easily for Danielle, but she embraced the suck of sobriety, with faith and hope that she would experience the miracle and the promises.
She wrote Stroke of Sobriety - The Essential Daily Guide - Embracing the suck of sobriety, in hopes that she will inspire someone to not give up before the miracle. Her book is available for purchase exclusively on Amazon. She will be publishing her second book titled: Stroke of Strength on 11.11.21.

Alan Charles - Walking out the Other Side Oct 14, 2021

Show notes

Growing up in a small garden apartment community, Alan and his brother lost their father at a very young age. Trying to manage in the wake of this tragedy alongside an emotionally destroyed mother and a brother who spiraled downward into mental illness, Alan navigated in the only way he knew how: throwing himself into before and after school jobs, playing baseball and going to the track to bet on the harness races - anything to stay out of the house.

As baseball became increasingly important in his life, Alan found his way to college, playing baseball at the University of Miami and as a starting pitcher at the University of Tampa. When arm surgery for tendonitis and bone chips reduced his pitching speed from 90mph to the mid 80's, Alan's hope of playing professional ball for a major league organization seemed lost.

Still a talented pitcher, Alan signed a contract with a professional team in the Dominican Republic and played a full season. Realizing he had gotten as far as he could in baseball and living a dream, he joined the workforce. After a series of interesting sales jobs, Alan decided to pursue another dream - harness racing - and took a course at the International School of Harness Racing at Roosevelt Raceway. With no experience, Alan landed a job as a harness racing trainer in Maryland finally moving on to become a fully-licensed professional harness racing driver. From 1987 to 1995, Alan drove in harness races all over New York and New Jersey, making a name for himself as a regular driver on the circuit. In 1995, after a couple of serious harness racing related accidents, Alan retired from driving.

During this time, the pain of his dysfunctional upbringing caught up with him. Seeking relief from his lifelong feelings of anxiety and loneliness, he became addicted to cocaine in 1983, which ultimately caused him to lose it all including every relationship he ever had. Over a period of 24 years, Alan struggled with his addiction eventually believing that this is more than likely how he would die.

In and out of rehab and countless meetings at Cocaine Anonymous and Alcohol Anonymous it wasn't until 2007 that Alan finally hit bottom. Deciding once and for all to battle his inner demons, Alan was determined to become sober and change his life. As of December 8, 2007, Alan got clean and remains sober to this day. With a combination of CA and AA, an amazing therapist and friends who believed in him, Alan is happier than he has ever been. Today, he is the doting father of two daughters as he takes life one day at a time, enjoying every moment, drug-free.

Dr. Stephen Gelfand - a Pioneer in Battling Opioid Addiction Oct 07, 2021

Show notes

Dr. Gelfand is a board-certified rheumatologist with over 40 years clinical and teaching experience. Over the last three years he was involved with patient care and teaching rheumatology

to a new Internal Medicine Residency Program of HCA in Myrtle

Beach, SC, until he semi-retired last July, 2018 to devote most of his time to legal medical expert reviews of the medical histories of victims who have died or been harmed from the inappropriate prescribing of prescription opioids for chronic noncancer pain. Since 2010, he has been a founding member and the Rheumatology Consultant for Physicians for Responsible Opioid Prescribing or PROP, the leading physician group in the nation addressing the opioid epidemic, as well as a medical advisor to a number of support and informal groups of people, many of whom have lost loved ones from opioid overdoses.

A note from Dr. Gelfand:

It was Arthur Sackler, not Richard Sackler who marketed Valium to great commercial success. Richard was his nephew and the driving force behind OxyContin, but was a medical student during the earlier Valium and heroin epidemics of the early 70's when I was a medical resident. It is logical that he knew about the psychoactive potential of both benzodiazepine tranquilizers and opioids.

Also, a series of articles just came out on the Comprehensive Pain Clinic of Myrtle Beach which I discussed in my interview. I posted a few on my Twitter account at: Steve Gelfand, MD@SteveGelfand.

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