Please enjoy this Bonus Episode with the entire crew of The Point is Recovery Podcast: Joan Browne - Producer Ashley Neal - Host & Writer Chris Nasuti - Co-Host Jeremiah Fowler - Sound Engineer The Crew will be taking a creative break and we hope to be back with you real soon with new guests and the same important information. We are so grateful to…

September is National Recovery Month AND this year marks the two year anniversary of The Point is Recovery Podcast! Thank you to everyone who has listened, subscribed and shared - your support is what made this podcast the success that it is. We truly appreciate YOU! For episode 37 we are joined by comedian and person in long term recovery, Alonzo …

Greg Williams is a person in long term recovery. Early on in his journey he witnessed challenges w/ others finding and sustaining recovery and became frustrated with people not looking at the real problems and issues, but rather making a lot of excuses. While in film school, Greg learned that in order to make a good documentary you needed access to…

Our guest for Episode 35 has dedicated most of his career to getting out a very important message - Addiction is a chronically relapsing brain disease, but with treatment and support, recovery is possible! Neil Scott began his career in the addiction field as the Executive Director of the Santa Barbara chapter of the National Council on Alcoholism …

**Listener Note** This episode contains a discussion of traumatic events. If you believe you are experiencing PTSD, please consult with your doctor or a mental health professional. If you are having thoughts of suicide, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800.273.8255. Post-traumatic stress disorder is a mental health conditi…

Today's guest was an elite athlete from a middle-class family with no history of abuse. She grew up sheltered, but later learned that blackout drinking brought out a side of her that everyone around her relished. It was at this point that Nikki Soda started down a path to alcoholism. According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse & Alcoholism…

Our guest for Episode 32 had a rough start in life. Born with a heart defect and debilitating asthma, Leonard lost his father to a heart attack when he was just 3 weeks old. He grew up fast in Logan, PA, learning about being a man from the guys who hung out on the corner. His only real sense of stability was the home that he lived in for 20 years. …

**Listener note** This episode contains discussions about suicide and suicidal ideation. If you are having thoughts of suicide, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800.273.8255 Our guest for Episode 31 is Sharon Fekete, Founder of The Doctor Whisperer & 13th Ave Media. She has been whispering strategies to physicians for over…

Mike Ortoll's world was turned upside down when his daughter Christine started abusing drugs and alcohol. Christine found recovery for several years, but sadly suffered a relapse and passed away from a fentanyl overdose in late 2020. In grieving his daughter, Mike started to think about how he could share his experience with other families facing a…

If you are familiar with recovery, you know it is suggested that you change a few things in order to protect your sobriety: people, places and things. And by places they mean you might have to find a new place to live! When we were using, many of us found ourselves homeless, couch surfing or not welcome back to the place we had once called home. So…

Today’s guest, Ahbra Schiff, joins us from Studio City, California to talk about a couple of upcoming events that shine a light on addiction and mental illness recovery. She also gives us the backstory on how she got involved with these events, starting with making the acquaintance of Leonard Bushel at a 12-step meeting! Almost 6 years after first …

Addiction continues to be a serious national crisis that affects not only public health, but also social and economic welfare. Addiction is a family disease, meaning that the person who is using drugs and/or alcohol is not the only person impacted; the family is impacted too. Family support is crucial for those facing addiction, and very often this…

When faced with a crisis, many families to do not know where to turn. It can be very challenging to help a loved one who is experiencing a mental health crisis or facing addiction. When someone you know is decompensating to the point where they are threating to hurt themselves or someone else or they are using drugs and/or alcohol with no regard fo…

The Point is Recovery Podcast was started one year ago in the midst of the Covid-19 Pandemic to shine a light on some good news. And that good news is that Addiction Recovery is Possible! The podcast was the brainchild of the Professional Relations Team at Turning Point of Tampa, which is led by Joan Browne, Director of Professional Relations turne…

Since 2006, over 58,000 people have joined The Phoenix, a Sober Active community focused on the transformational power of connection. Founder Scott Strode found hope in his own recovery while discovering how ice climbing helped all his problems, fears and the shame of addiction melt away. Through his own experience, The Phoenix was born and a movem…

Check out these facts affecting people in the United States: · Seventeen out of every 10,000 people were experiencing homelessness on a single night in January 2019 · In 2020 in Hillsborough County, Florida, 2,741 people experienced a mental health crisis that resulted in a Baker Act · 1 in 4 law enforcement uses of deadly force are against the men…

The Big Show. The Big Leagues. The Big Time. The Pros. Drinking and Driving. Overdose. Coma. Treatment. All of these are references to the life of today's guest. Vance Johnson is a former wide receiver for the Denver Broncos where he played for 10 seasons. During the “glory years,” Vance was struggling with an addiction to drugs and alcohol so inte…

You may have heard it said before that “we are only as sick as our secrets” and this could not be truer than with eating disorders. People suffering with an eating disorder tend to be very secretive and dishonest about what is going on behind closed doors. Keeping that secret can be life threatening. Today’s guest is an incredible example of how re…

It is estimated that 30 million people in the United States will have an eating disorder at some point in their lives. Contrary to popular belief, eating disorders are not “just a girl thing,” as 10 million of these people will be men. Eating disorders are serious conditions related to persistent eating behaviors that negatively impact health, emot…

Anxiety. Depression. OCD. Bipolar Disorder. ADHD. Most of these conditions probably sound familiar, however, these conditions, and many others, are widely misunderstood. Mental illnesses include many different conditions that vary in degree of severity. According to recent reports, these conditions affect 51.9 million people in the United States an…

Today we are airing a special episode with Interventionist, Ken Seeley. Ken recently made headlines with his views on "California Sober" and he filled us in on exactly how dangerous he believes this new term to be. You probably know Ken Seeley from the Emmy Award-Winning A&E television series, Intervention. Ken Seeley has been both professionally a…

When you think of an “addict” or “alcoholic,” does your mind conjure up images of homelessness, liquor bottles in brown paper bags or someone stumbling down a dark alley in the wrong part of town? You probably don't think of a professional athlete playing on hockey’s most elite stage. With that being said, addiction does not discriminate; it affect…

Some people write books to share their story. Others become motivational speakers. Some even go on to provide staff trainings to companies, large & small. Our guest for this episode has done all three. Tina Levene is an author, nationally-known speaker, and trainer who has worked in social work, education and the juvenile justice field for over 20 …

Happy St. Paddy's Day! Thank you for joining us for Episode 15. Today's guest is Dave M., an Irishman from Long Island, NY who started his drinking career as a pre-teen and ended it after he came to from a blackout, standing in the parking lot of a 12-Step Recovery Meeting. Dave has been sober since 1977 and has averaged a meeting a day for the pas…

Parenting is HARD. Contrary to popular belief, there is not a book for everything you'll need to know when you become a parent. Case in point: Parenting the addicted child. Imagine being consumed with fear and worry, day in and day out, because your child is in the grips of addiction and at the same time being completely unprepared to help them. Th…

Does being homeless, drug addicted, and ending up in a psychiatric facility in 4-point restraints sound funny to you? For most normal people, these are not laughing matters. However, as recovering addicts and alcoholics, eventually we are able to share and laugh at our most painful experiences. Comedian Mark Lundholm learned this talent early on an…

Addiction continues to be a serious national public health crisis. Estimates are that as many as 81,000 people died of a drug overdose in the 12 months leading up to May 2020. Access to addiction treatment has increased with the passage of the Affordable Care Act and the Mental Health Parity Addiction Equity Act. On today’s episode we will discuss …

For Episode 11 we are joined by Robin Piper-Lutz , CEO & Clinical Director of Turning Point of Tampa. Robin is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Certified Clinical Trauma Professional, a Masters Certified Addiction Professional and a National Certified Counselor. On today's episode we will talk with Robin about what family members can do to suppo…

On today’s episode we will discuss Employee Assistance Programs with Mark Davis, LCSW. Employee Assistance Programs, according to today's guest, mean FREE COUNSELING for employees and a healthy workforce for employers. You'll hear him reference that a few times on the episode. Estimates by the National Council on Alcoholism & Drug Dependence are th…

Happy Holidays and welcome to our last episode of 2020. We hope you and your families stay safe and sober as we look forward to 2021. This is also the last episode of Season 1 of The Point is Recovery Podcast but we will be bringing you more great content in Season 2, which kicks off on January 6th! This week we ask the Chicken or the Egg question,…

John Lehr is a comedic actor, writer and producer who works in television, film & theater. In other words, John is a comedian and actor who also has control issues. You will probably know him best from his time as the Geico Caveman. When we first met John about a year ago, we asked if he was “out” in the sense of publicly acknowledging that he is i…

This week's guest is former NFL player, Randy Grimes. During a 10 year career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Randy began using powerful prescription opioids to manage the pain of chronic injuries. When his time on the gridiron ended, his life spiraled out of control for the next 20+ years. When Randy learned that addiction had claimed the life a cl…

Today is Veterans Day and we would like to recognize all veterans for their service to our country. We deeply appreciate your sacrifice for our freedoms. For this episode we are joined by Eugene "Tree" Hairston, Vietnam veteran and author of the book, A Quiet Voice. Eugene struggled for years with the affects of PTSD and addiction after returning h…

We are joined this week by Dr. Hardeep Singh for an in depth discussion about the effects of COVID-19 in regards to addiction, recovery and mental health. There have been recent reports of a spike in alcohol sales, drug overdoses and an increase in suicidal ideation since this Coronavirus surfaced. With many people forced into isolation, family mem…

On Episode 4 we are joined by Ken Donaldson, LMHC, CAP, ICADC (also a PhD student) for a conversation about how addiction can affect relationships. Ken is also the author of Marry Yourself First, a book that was born out of his interest in helping couples to have meaningful, healthy relationships with themselves and their partners. This podcast was…

In Episode 3 we sit down with Danny VanBomel, LMHC, for a conversation about his experience working in addiction treatment AND learn what it was like to get sober at 23 years old in the Bronx. This podcast was started to get the word out that recovery is possible. Whether you are struggling with addiction yourself or you are the family member/frien…

Join us for Episode 2 as Host Chris Nasuti shares about his 25 year struggle with addiction and the gratitude he has found in a life of recovery. This podcast was started to get the word out that recovery is possible. Whether you are struggling with addiction yourself or you are the family member/friend of someone who is suffering, please know that…

Join us as Host Ashley Neal shares her story of addiction to alcohol, drugs and food AND how recovery has changed her life. This podcast was started to get the word out that recovery is possible. Whether you are struggling with addiction yourself or you are the family member/friend of someone who is suffering, please know that there is hope for rec…

Join hosts Ashley Neal & Chris Nasuti for discussions with people in recovery, advocates working to break the stigma of addiction & mental health, the people working on the front lines in the behavioral health field and those who love us until we love ourselves.