Lex Jacoby’s story is one of strength, resilience, and quiet courage.

In this episode of Rise Above, Lex shares her journey from serving eight years in the U.S. Marine Corps to navigating divorce, single motherhood, and the isolating transition back into civilian life — all without a safety net.

This conversation goes far beyond labels. Lex opens up about rebuilding her identity, learning how to stand on her own, and finding confidence and freedom by being unapologetically herself.

Whether you’re a veteran, a single parent, or someone going through a major life transition, this episode is a reminder that you don’t have to hit rock bottom to have a powerful Rise Above story.

#RiseAbove #SingleMomLife #MarineVeteran #WomenWhoRise #LifeAfterTheMilitary #DivorceRecovery #MentalHealthMatters #StrongWomen #VeteranStories #RebuildingLife #HealingJourney #PersonalGrowth

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Avery Schlereth never planned on getting sober — until alcohol stopped numbing her anxiety and started running her life.

In this New Year, New Me episode of Rise Above, Avery shares what sobriety really looks like beyond the first year. Not just quitting drinking, but learning how to live, heal, and evolve as a sober woman — one year at a time.

Year one was about survival. Getting sober in 2024 meant sitting with anxiety she had spent years trying to silence, learning how to exist without alcohol, and discovering a completely new way to move through the world.

Year two was where the real work began. Avery focused inward — getting comfortable with herself, addressing old wounds, rebuilding self-trust, and learning who she was without alcohol, chaos, or external validation.

Now heading into year three, Avery is operating on all cylinders. She’s applying everything she’s learned, revamping her business, and fully stepping into a new version of herself — grounded, confident, and intentional.

In this conversation, Avery opens up about drinking two bottles of wine a night, blacking out, hiding alcohol from loved ones, and why moderation never worked for her. She also shares the moment she realized she was living below her potential, how therapy and AA helped her rebuild from the inside out, and why sobriety didn’t take her life away — it gave her one back.

Today marks Avery’s two-year sober anniversary, and her story is a reminder that New Year, New Me isn’t a slogan — it’s a process of growth, honesty, and commitment.

If you’re entering a new year feeling anxious, stuck, or tired of telling yourself “I’ll start tomorrow,” this episode is for you.

I host a free Rise Above recovery meeting every Monday night.

🎧 Subscribe for real stories about mental health, sobriety, growth, and resilience.

#SobrietyJourney #AlcoholRecovery #AnxietyAndAlcohol #SoberLiving #MentalHealthAwareness #RecoveryIsPossible #TwoYearsSober #WomenInRecovery #AlcoholFreeLife #SoberPodcast #RiseAbovePodcast #AddictionRecovery #HealingJourney #SelfWorth #LifeAfterAlcohol #SoberCommunity #AnxietyRecovery #HealthAndWellness #RealRecovery #SobrietyStories

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kristen had what looked like a perfect childhood — loving parents, athletics, stability. But at 16, alcohol flipped a switch she didn’t know existed.

From blackouts every single time she drank, to toxic relationships, infidelity, sudden death, hospitalizations, and a terrifying medical wake-up call that nearly cost her life — Kristen’s alcoholism spiraled fast and quietly.

She drank alone. She drank to numb. She drank to survive.

This is a brutally honest conversation about:

Blackout drinking from the very first drink

Alcoholism hiding behind “normal life”

Betrayal, trauma, and repeated loss

Near liver failure and hospital intervention

Being forced into treatment — and why it finally worked

Finding purpose, accountability, and real recovery

Today, Kristen is 4.5+ years sober, married, trusted again by her family, and living proof that even when recovery starts for someone else — it can still save your life.

If you or someone you love is struggling, this episode may be the wake-up call you didn’t know you needed.

#AlcoholismRecovery #BlackoutDrinking #SobrietyJourney #AddictionRecovery

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support recovery in style with SBR Cartel — 10% of every purchase helps struggling addicts and alcoholics find hope. Get 15% off with code RISEABOVE at sbrcartel.com

#trauma #addictionrecovery #prisonstories #survivor #riseabove #opioidepidemic #addictionawareness #childhoodtrauma #recoveryjourney #healingjourney #overdoseawareness #soberlife #sobriety #abusesurvivor #mentalhealthmatters

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support recovery in style with SBR Cartel — 10% of every purchase helps struggling addicts and alcoholics find hope. Get 15% off with code RISEABOVE at sbrcartel.com

Ronnie’s story is one of the most powerful recovery journeys you will ever hear.

In this episode of Rise Above, Ronnie opens up about his unbelievable transformation — from being a professional soccer star drafted #1 in the country, battling alcohol addiction, Valium dependence, cocaine, compulsive gambling, and lying, to becoming a man with 35 years sober and 31 years free from gambling.

Ronnie shares:

How a Valium prescription at 14 years old led to 20 years of addiction

What it was like gambling while playing professional soccer

Losing everything — including trust, money, family, and self-respect

The $25,000 he stole from his own brother

The brutal reality of detox, rehab, and psych wards

How the 12 Steps, God, and service saved his life

Making amends to the man who raised his children after addiction

Building a successful business after recovery

Teaching young people how to truly work the steps

What it really takes to stay sober one day at a time

This episode is for anyone struggling with addiction, gambling, anxiety, lies, ego, shame, or relapse — and for anyone who needs proof that it’s never too late to change your life.

#35YearsSober #GamblingAddiction #RecoveryPodcast #AddictionRecovery #RiseAbove #SobrietyJourney #FromAddictionToRecovery #12StepProgram #ValiumAddiction #CocaineAddiction #CompulsiveGambling #Alcoholism #MentalHealthAwareness #RecoveryIsPossible #SoberLife #GamblersAnonymous #AARecovery #FaithInRecovery #OneDayAtATime #LifeAfterAddiction #RedemptionStory #KevinLanning #RiseAbovePodcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support recovery in style with SBR Cartel — 10% of every purchase helps struggling addicts and alcoholics find hope. Get 15% off with code RISEABOVE at sbrcartel.com

Annie shares one of the most powerful family-side addiction stories ever told on Rise Above. From growing up in a home filled with alcoholism, violence, and silence… to becoming a young mother… to watching her son become addicted to opioids after a football injury — this is the side of addiction rarely spoken about.

Annie opens up about:

Growing up in a chaotic alcoholic household

Her son being prescribed opioids at 17 after a broken jaw

Years of chasing, enabling, fear, and emotional collapse

Her son’s journey to treatment and now over 10 years sober

Hitting her own emotional rock bottom

Recovery for family members through meetings, boundaries, and self-work

Learning how to stop living in fear and start living in peace

Today, Annie works in peer support, helps families in crisis, and is the author of Unhooked and Unbroken, two powerful books about family recovery and surviving addiction.

This episode is for:

Parents of addicted children

Spouses and family members in chaos

Anyone affected by addiction who thinks the only problem is the addict

Because recovery isn’t just for the person using — it’s for everyone.

#AddictionRecovery #OpioidCrisis #ParentsOfAddicts #FamilyRecovery #Codependency #OxyContin #RecoveryIsPossible #RiseAbovePodcast #Alcoholism #DrugAddiction #SoberCommunity #HealingJourney #TraumaHealing #MentalHealthPodcast #RecoverySupport #Intervention #Boundaries #12Steps #EmotionalRecovery #HopeAfterAddiction

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support recovery in style with SBR Cartel — 10% of every purchase helps struggling addicts and alcoholics find hope. Get 15% off with code RISEABOVE at sbrcartel.com

In this powerful episode of Rise Above, Dr. Jason Rudolph — a psychologist with 28 years of sobriety — opens up about his daily cocaine addiction, massive consequences, failed attempts at school, gambling, lying, shame, and the moment he finally surrendered.

Jason shares how he went from doing cocaine every day for two years, destroying relationships, losing opportunities, and spiraling into secrecy — to becoming a respected psychologist who has helped thousands of addicts recover.

We walk through:

Whether you’re new to recovery, long-term sober, or trying to help a loved one, this conversation will hit home. Jason’s humility, clarity, and brutal honesty make this one of the most powerful episodes of Rise Above.

Follow Dr. Jason Rudolph:

If this episode helps you — please like, comment, subscribe, and share it with someone who needs hope today.

You never have to recover alone.

#addiction #recovery #sober #sobriety #cocaineaddiction #rehab #12step #mentalhealth #psychologist #inspiration #risenabove #kevinlanning #addictionrecovery #drugaddiction #soberlife #sobercommunity #overcomingaddiction #recoveryispossible #miracleofsobriety #intervention #hope

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today on Rise Above, Kevin sits down with Spencer Chamberlain, the legendary frontman of Underoath, for one of the rawest and most vulnerable interviews he’s ever done.

Spencer opens up about:

Joining Underoath at 23

The early days playing in front of 10 people

Breaking away from the Christian-rock label

His secret addiction to pills, cocaine, and the nightlife

How fame, pressure, and identity spirals nearly destroyed him

Navigating the collapse of the band in 2013

His journey to self-worth, therapy, recovery, and rebuilding his life

Finding real love, becoming a father, and finally learning to love himself

The moment he knew he had to completely change his life

This episode is filled with redemption, honesty, and powerful insight into the world behind the music industry’s curtain. Whether you're a fan of Underoath, rock music, or stories of recovery—this interview will hit you hard.

If this conversation helps you, please LIKE & SUBSCRIBE.

To join Kevin’s Monday night Rise Above Recovery Meeting, email: [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this deeply emotional episode, Heidi shares the story she’s never fully told—growing up in an ultra-strict宗 Lutheran community comparable to Amish rules, where makeup, music, and even friendships outside the church were forbidden.

After being married at 18 and becoming a mother of six, her life spiraled into emotional abuse, fear, and eventually alcoholism. But nothing prepared her for the darkest chapter: watching her teenage daughter fall into heroin addiction, spiraling into the streets, jail, and repeated overdoses.

At just 18 years old, Heidi’s daughter tragically passed away from fentanyl.

Heidi opens up about:

If you are a parent of a child struggling with addiction, or you’re battling addiction yourself, this episode is for you. Heidi’s story shows that even through the darkest pain, there is still hope.

🙏 If this episode impacts you, please subscribe and share to help someone who needs it.

#AddictionStory #FentanylCrisis #Motherhood #RecoveryJourney #RiseAbovePodcast #Sobriety #OverdoseAwareness #TraumaHealing #AddictionRecovery #SurvivorStory

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Russell’s story is one of the darkest descents ever shared on Rise Above — and one of the most inspiring comebacks.After years trapped in chronic pain, opiate prescriptions, crippling anxiety, and undiagnosed Bipolar II, Russell’s world fell apart:• his marriage crumbled• his career collapsed• his father was dying• he couldn’t sleep for months• he spiraled into heavy drinking + painkillers• and eventually… he planned his own suicideWhat followed is shocking:Russell was admitted twice to a psychiatric hospital, diagnosed bipolar, and eventually underwent electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) — the same “shock therapy” most people fear.But instead of ending his life…He rebuilt it from scratch.Today Russell is sober, mentally stable, and runs a successful pressure-washing business with his two sons — the very people he almost left behind.This interview is raw, emotional, and brutally honest. If you’re struggling with addiction, depression, anxiety, or feel like you’re at the end… Russell’s story will show you that there is ALWAYS a way out.🙏 If you need recovery support:Email me to join our weekly Rise Above Recovery Meeting📧 [email protected]👇 Drop a comment if Russell’s honesty helped you today.#RiseAbove#AddictionRecovery#MentalHealthMatters#BipolarDisorder

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices