Brandi Mac | IV Fentanyl, Ambiguous Grief & The "Do What You Can Live With" Path
Recoverycast: Mental Health & Addiction Recovery Stories
Release Date: 01/14/2026
Reno | From Rave Influencer to Sober Movement Advocate: Overcoming Trauma & Bipolar
Recoverycast: Mental Health & Addiction Recovery Stories
From rave influencer to sober advocate, Reno (@CherryEmojiGirl) gets radically honest about the "cringe" and beauty of recovery. Reno shares her intense journey through polysubstance addiction, including alcohol, cocaine, ketamine, and whippets, while navigating the highs of Southern California's rave scene. She opens up about the deep-seated trauma of being adopted out at birth after her biological mother was convicted of child abuse related to Munchausen by proxy. Reno also discusses the co...
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Riley Whelan Returns | Alcoholism, Relapse & the Path to Emotional Sobriety
Recoverycast: Mental Health & Addiction Recovery Stories
Coming up on three years of sobriety, Riley Whelan returns to Recoverycast to share the profound shift from "not drinking" to achieving true emotional sobriety. After a public journey through addiction and a humbling relapse, Riley discusses the reality of rebuilding a life, the anxiety of the "three-year itch," and why she transitioned from a chaotic lifestyle to finding peace in Saturday nights at home. Find mental health and addiction treatment near you: https://recovery.com/ In this episo...
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Samuel Harness | The Voice, Acid, & Fatherhood-Driven Sobriety
Recoverycast: Mental Health & Addiction Recovery Stories
Singer-songwriter Samuel Harness, known for his breakout performance on Season 21 of The Voice, joins Recoverycast to share the raw reality of his journey through addiction recovery and childhood trauma. In this vulnerable episode, Samuel discusses the long-term impact of sexual assault, the complexities of being an adoptee, and the intense pressure of the music industry. From navigating anxiety and depression to his experiences with Adderall, alcohol, and psychedelics, Samuel illustrates how...
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David Manheim | Heroin Recovery, Grief, & Building the Dopey Nation
Recoverycast: Mental Health & Addiction Recovery Stories
From interviewing Coldplay while high to losing his best friend and co-host to a fatal relapse, David Manheim reveals the raw, unfiltered truth about heroin addiction and the grit required for long-term recovery. As the creator of the legendary Dopey podcast, David spent two decades navigating the "frantic energy" of a career at MTV and the legendary tables of Katz’s Deli while battling a severe substance use disorder. In this moving episode of Recoverycast, David discusses the "war stories"...
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Gabe Pietrafesa | Alcoholism, Cocaine Recovery, & Choosing the Band Over the Bottle
Recoverycast: Mental Health & Addiction Recovery Stories
Can you still be funny—or even be yourself—without the substance? Gabe Pietrafesa, longtime guitarist for Young Culture and host of the Trapped on the Internet podcast, joins Recoverycast to share his vulnerable journey through the high-pressure world of the music industry and the internal battle for self-worth.. Gabe opens up about growing up as a "chameleon" and a people-pleaser, navigating a childhood shaped by divorce and a complicated relationship with his father's drinking.. What starte...
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Lucas Curtin | Grief & Loss, Alcohol Addiction, & The Power of Friendship
Recoverycast: Mental Health & Addiction Recovery Stories
How do you keep going when the person you love most suddenly disappears? Lucas Curtin (known online as Fitzgerald Checksworth) opens up about the intersection of cyclical alcohol struggle, sudden grief, and the "snap" in the brain that changed everything. In this vulnerable episode, Lucas shares his journey from being the high school "class clown" to using alcohol to "shut up the voices" of deep-seated anxiety and depression. He recounts the heartbreaking loss of his girlfriend, Marissa, who ...
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Ryan Hampton | OxyContin & Heroin Addiction to Mobilize Recovery Founder
Recoverycast: Mental Health & Addiction Recovery Stories
From walking the halls of the White House to facing homelessness due to a severe OxyContin and heroin addiction, Ryan Hampton’s story is unforgettable. Ryan Hampton was a rising political organizer and White House staffer when a hiking injury introduced him to highly addictive prescription opioids like Dilaudid and OxyContin. What started as a doctor-prescribed treatment quickly spiraled into a decade-long struggle with opioid use disorder, leading him to the streets and eventually to heroin...
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Patrick Custer | Alcoholism, Delirium Tremens & Facing a Brain Tumor
Recoverycast: Mental Health & Addiction Recovery Stories
What do you do when the very thing you have feared since you were three years old actually happens—and you have to face it while five years sober? In this episode of RecoveryCast, Brittany Barnard talks with recovery advocate and media personality Patrick Custer about his intense journey through alcohol addiction and a life-altering medical crisis. Patrick opens up about a childhood shaped by hypervigilance and a "fear of God" that led to chronic anxiety. He describes how his first drink didn...
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Tiffany Jenkins | 20 Felony Charges, Pill Addiction, & Healing Through Humor
Recoverycast: Mental Health & Addiction Recovery Stories
Tiffany Jenkins, the New York Times bestselling author and voice behind "Juggling the Jenkins," joins Recoverycast to share her raw journey from facing 20 felony charges to 13 years of sobriety. Tiffany opens up about her childhood struggles with undiagnosed OCD and how a single sip of alcohol in high school led to a decade-long spiral into alcohol, weed, and eventually a devastating opiate addiction. She reveals the harrowing details of staging a burglary in her own home to fund her habit an...
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Jaimie Alexander | Bourbon Addiction, Near-Death Awakening, & Spiritual Recovery
Recoverycast: Mental Health & Addiction Recovery Stories
From Marvel’s Lady Sif to a hospital bed fighting for her life, actress Jaimie Alexander shares the raw truth about her battle with bourbon and burnout. Jaimie, the celebrated lead of Blindspot, opens up about the "lone wolf" mentality that nearly cost her everything. Despite a thriving career, she used alcohol to medicate social anxiety and the extreme physical toll of performing her own high-octane stunts. She recounts the terrifying moment her appendix ruptured, leading to sepsis and a pr...
info_outlineCritical care nurse practitioner Brandi Mac shares the harrowing journey of her daughter’s IV Fentanyl addiction and the moment Brandi shaved her head to release years of trauma.
In this vulnerable episode of Recoverycast, Brandi Mac discusses the reality of navigating nine treatment centers in four years and the "rehab industry" failures that left her family feeling hopeless. As a medical professional, Brandi reflects on her own stigmatized views of addiction prior to it hitting her home, and how she eventually found peace by abandoning "tough love" to lead with empathy. We dive deep into the science and success of Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT), specifically the life-changing impact of the Sublocade injection, and how Brandi’s daughter found long-term recovery after the family shifted their focus from the addiction back to the person.
Find mental health and addiction treatment near you: https://recovery.com/
This conversation serves as a guide for families struggling with substance use, offering trauma-informed insights on reentry plans, setting boundaries that you can live with, and the importance of ethical oversight in treatment facilities. Brandi's story is a powerful reminder that as long as there is breath, there is hope.
Subscribe for more authentic stories of healing, and share this episode with anyone who needs to hear that recovery is possible.
⏱️ Chapters:
00:00 – Introduction & The Breaking Point
01:12 – A Medical Professional’s Stigma
03:57 – The First Signs of Addiction
05:00 – IV Fentanyl & The Treatment Cycle
07:30 – Early Exposure: From Percocet to Meth
11:15 – The Failure of the Rehab Industry
13:55 – Why Reentry Plans Matter Most
16:00 – The Trap of "Tough Love"
20:48 – Shaving Her Head: Releasing the Trauma
24:54 – Choosing "What You Can Live With"
28:34 – Small Talk & Reconnecting in Active Use
33:44 – Setting Healthy Boundaries Without Cruelty
35:33 – The Truth About MAT & Sublocade
40:46 – Writing the Book on Chaos & Healing
45:09 – Red Flags in Treatment Centers
❓ Questions the Video Answers:
1. How can parents support a child struggling with Fentanyl addiction?
2. What are the signs of burnout in medical professionals treating substance use?
3. Is Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) just trading one drug for another?
4. What is "ambiguous grief" in the context of family addiction?
5. Why do traditional 30-day treatment programs often fail for opioids?
6. How do I set boundaries without using "tough love" tactics?
7. What is the Sublocade injection, and how does it help with recovery?
8. How can I reconnect and have "small talk" with a loved one in active use?
9. What are the major red flags to look for when choosing a rehab facility?
10. How does the concept of "doing what you can live with" help family healing?
11. Can a family find peace while their loved one is still using?
12. What is the role of compassion and empathy in clinical nursing care?
13. Why is discharge planning and reentry support crucial for sobriety?
14. What are the ethical issues surrounding free flights to treatment centers?
15. How does hair hold trauma during a breaking point?
#FentanylRecovery #MAT #AddictionSupport