Henry's Uncle: A podcast about Addiction and Recovery

Today’s guest is Ed Bisch, who lost his beloved son Eddie, a high school senior, to a single oxycontin pill in February 2001. That very week, Ed began sounding the alarm about the dangers of the drug. Ed shares his journey and experiences with his crusade against Purdue Pharma and the unbelievable conversations and run-ins he had with people like J. David Haddox himself. Have you seen shows like Dopesick on Hulu, or Crime of the Century on HBO? Ed recommends that you watch these searing documentaries and read any and all of the books on the topic, if you want to learn more.

Today’s guests are co-founders of TACO (Team Awareness Combatting Overdose) Inc, a student-run non-profit organization that started on the campus of USC. TACO’s mission is to combat the #1 cause of death for GenZ & Millennial Americans with non-judgmental education backed by neuroscience. TACO uses peer-to-peer education about drug safety and interactions and provides access to things like Fentanyl test strips to combat accidental drug overdoses. Isabella (“Issa”) Gianatiempo is the current CEO of TACO, and Madeline Hilliard is one of the Founders.

Today’s guest is Skyler Ray, a hip-hop music artist in recovery. He has been sober for more than three years. Skyler grew up in foster homes and was homeless for multiple years. From getting arrested to sleeping on downtown sidewalks in Portland, Oregon, Skyler refused to give up on trying to achieve his dream goals and build the life he always wanted but would lose if he had a drink or got high.

Today’s guest is Theo Krzywicki, a full-time Los Angeles firefighter and paramedic as well as founder and CEO of End Overdose, a non-profit organization helping to end overdose and provide critical training on how to use harm reduction tools, such as Fentanyl test strips and NARCAN. Theo lost his fiancée to an overdose and wanted to help others. He’s making an impact by giving back to the recovery community and has been sober for 11 years.

Today’s guest is Jordan Barnes, who suffered from alcoholism, drug addiction, and homelessness. Now, he is in long-term recovery with more than 10 years sober and an award-winning, best-selling author. Jordan wrote, One Hit Away: A Memoir of Recovery, as a way to help others struggling from substance use disorder. His other book, Bridgetown: A Harm Reduction Novel, focuses on the role of harm reduction programs as they relate to human rights, mental health, and social justice.

Today’s guest is Jeannine, who was addicted to drugs and alcohol for about 15 years despite her idyllic upbringing. Using led to homelessness, multiple arrests, and losing everything. She has been sober for almost seven years and now owns her own fitness studio, hosts the Chasing Heroine podcast, and is a successful entrepreneur.

Today’s guest is Brandon O’Connell, a punk rocker who was born and raised in California, is married, has a son, and has been sober since July 14, 2017. Brandon talks about being mentally and physically abused as a child by his mother, drinking and using drugs, getting arrested, living on skid row, and attempting suicide three times. Step by step, Brandon recovered, started to give back to the community, and learned to be compassionate to experience a lifetime of beautiful moments.

Today’s guest is Taylor, who grew up in Virginia and now lives in New York. She talks about her abusive and chaotic upbringing, being introduced to alcohol in her early teens and how that gave her a sense of identity. Through all the ups-and-downs, Taylor sought out therapy and recovery and now celebrates over a year of sobriety.

Today’s guest is Laura Didier, a mother who lost her 17-year-old son, Zach, to a fake counterfeit prescription pill made of illicit fentanyl on Dec. 27, 2020. Zach had no history of substance use and was a straight A student, musician, and athlete. Laura explains how easy it is for anyone, especially teenage kids to get fake pills through various outlets, such as social media. She encourages kids who are struggling in any way to go to their school counselors, coaches, parents, and other reliable resources to educate and inform them about fentanyl. Don’t think that these pills are what they are advertised as. It’s like playing Russian roulette.

Today’s guest is Sophie Pyne, who is not only a therapist, coach, and sound healer based in Los Angeles, but a person in long-term recovery. She was born and raised in Hong Kong until her family moved to Thailand for her English father’s job, and then he returned to Hong Kong alone. She felt abandoned and was pulled out of her comfort zone (more than once). Sophie became angry and resentful. It’s when she was sent to an all-girl’s boarding school in Australia that Sophie started using drugs and drinking. She went on to graduate from the University of Southern California (USC) with a Master’s in Social Work (MSW) and co-founded a sober living environment for college students.There’s still a lot of education that needs to be done, but you can go anywhere in the world and know there’s an AA meeting.