Life Unscripted - Stories of Mental Health and Addiction

Send us Fan Mail

More than 5,000 people have called the Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline in 2025.  The hotline is run by the Canadian Centre to End Human Trafficking and is there for people who are being trafficked, including sex and labour, or knows someone who is being exploited.  The number to call is 1-833-900-1010 and help is available 24/7.  

The Centre's Ashley Franssen-Tingly talks about what it means to be trafficked and how to reach out for help.

https://www.canadianhumantraffickinghotline.ca

https://www.canadiancentretoendhumantrafficking.ca

Send us Fan Mail

For more than two decades Ted Mouradian, president of the 2% factor, has helped hundreds of businesses create long-term, sustainable behavioral change using his infallible Law of Cooperative Action.

Ted has written five books and his latest book Yep, Sh!t Happens uses the power of story to take the reader on a journey with Cooper that changes the way Cooper sees the world.

Send us Fan Mail

 Ian Fee had his first sip of beer when he was still in a stroller. His parents liked to party and as he got older so did he. Ian's memoir Wild Ride to Sobriety: Transformation from Drunken Oblivion to Profound Clarity takes us on the road from the culture of drinking with co-workers and clients, two lost marriages and how he got sober and stays sober.  

Buy Ian's book on Amazon

Send us Fan Mail

The first "wind phone" was an unconnected telephone booth installed in the back yard by Japan artist Itaru Sasaki in 2010 to help him process the grief of losing his cousin who he had spoken to every day. After the devastating 2011 tsunami, hundreds of people came to his house asking to use the wind phone so he moved it to a public place. The unconnected telephone booth became a space for people to speak with deceased loved ones and has since inspired hundreds of replicas worldwide. 

There are many wind phones in Canada and you can find locations at https://www.mywindphone.com.

Joy Friesen describes the impact on grief.

Go to https://hospiceniagara.ca wind phone locations in Niagara.

Send us Fan Mail

Rapid Transformational Therapy® (RTT®) is a form of therapy that combines hypnotherapy, psychotherapy, and neuroscience principles. RTT® was developed and launched by hypnotherapist/psychotherapist Marisa Peer in 1985. It is based on a detailed  3-session approach beginning with hynoptherapy. Diane Konkin trained with Marisa Peer and is on the show today to talk about RTT® and her practice Advanced Mind Health.

https://www.advancedmindhealth.ca

Send us Fan Mail

This is Part Two of my interview with Leonard Buschel, author of High: From Cannabis to Clarity. Leonard got sober in 1994 and in this interview we talk about his 30 years helping people recover from addiction and the Addiction Recovery eBulletin. 

In the previous interview, Leonard about talks about his decision to be a successful drug dealer when he was only 17. Leonard's book chronicles some riotous stories of his days as a drug dealer to the stars and as a daily user of cannabis and cocaine, and finally his trip to the Betty Ford Center to get sober.

Leonard's Addiction Recovery eBulliten can be found on his website addictionrecoveryebulletin.org. Sign up to receive his ebulletin.

High: From Cannabis to Clarity is available on Amazon 

Send us Fan Mail

Leonard Buschel was 17 when he decided he wanted to be a sucessful drug dealer and became the drug dealer to the stars for more than 30 years. He was also an addict who smoked cannabis from morning, noon to night and spent most nights using cocaine.  In 1994, Leonard stopped using drugs and for the past 3 decades he has worked helping people recover from addiction. His book High: From Cannabis to Clarity is an amazing chronicle of his life as a dealer, who turned his own experience with addiction to be a recovery counsellor helping others.

Leonard also founded the Addiction Recovery eBulletin which aggregates news, interviews and blogs about addiction and recovery.  You can subscribe at https://addictionrecoveryebilletin.org

You can buy High: From Cannabis to Clarity on Amazon.

Send us Fan Mail

Climate change anxiety is a growing mental health issue. In Canada, massive fires across the country leading to evacuations and homes burning to the ground are leaving people with a sense of dread.

Laurie Sarkadi is a journalist and author who lives off the grid outside of Yellowknife in the North West Territories. Her memoir - Voice in the Wild – in part chronicles her deep connection to nature and watching the deterioration of the animals, land and water from the devastating effect of climate change. Most recently she wrote an article for Canadian Geographic magazine about her personal experience with climate anxiety and isolating herself following the 2023 summer of massive fires. 

 Laurie is with me today to talk about what is becoming an increasingly common mental health issue.

Read Laurie’s article The Great Turning in Canadian Geographic: https://canadiangeographic.ca/articles/the-great-turning/

Find out more about Laurie Sarkadi and her memoir – Voice in the Wild - at https://www.lauriesarkadi.com/

Send us Fan Mail

If you’ve been downtown in St. Catharines recently you may have seen some people wearing bright yellow tee shirts. They are peer support workers, all who have been homeless, and are out every day connecting with and supporting people who are living on the street now.  More and municipalites across Ontario have successful versions of Welcoming Streets.

Welcoming Streets is a one year pilot project funded Niagara Region. The teams work with people but are also there for businesses who need help – whether it’s to de-escalate an incident happening at the time or to give them some information.  

Maddie McNeil is the the Positive Living Niagara team team leader.

----------------------

Positive Living Niagara - https://positivelivingniagara.com
Reach Niagara Mobile Health - https://reachniagara.com/programs/welcoming-streets/

Send us Fan Mail

The Kristen French Child Advocacy Centre in Niarara has released the new Kids First Project for schools. Kids from kindergarten to grade 12 learn about safe and unsafe touching, secrets and recognizing potentially dangerous online behaviour.

Brian Bratt is the Centre's executive director.