Steppin' Out Radio

Patricia is a nurse who not only had to tend to patients, but to her family. She had to provide round the clock care for her husband, her sons and even her father. The workload was just too much for Patricia, and she found her escape not with drugs from the street but the pharmacy. She lost herself in Stadol, the pain medication. Patricia path to drug addictions is also detailed her book, "Impaired: A Nurse's Story of Addiction and Recovery."

Richard has spent many years under the influence of alcohol. His drinking began at age 12. He and his friends would grab a cheap six-pack of beer from a delicatessen, and drink in the park. At the time, Richard felt like he and his friends were having fun; a drink or two would relieve him of his cares of his pre-adolescent life. Richard now knows he would spend the next 20 years chasing that high. After high school, he attended college in Chicago and brought his dependency and abuse with him. Booze gave way to drug use, like marijuana, and he would up moving to Jamaica, working on pot farm, living a pseudo-Rasta lifestyle. Richard would spend years traveling and partying. One night in New Orleans while drinking, he was in a horrific car accident that left him in the hospital for nearly a year.

Joya is a recovering alcoholic who found herself part of another group suffering from a dysfunction involving relationships with other people. While in the beginning of her recovery, she began dating another person in her AA program despite her sponsor's warning against it. Her relationship was tumultuous, as her new-found partner himself was a multi-addict; while being sober from alcohol he was an active sex addict. Joya found herself often repulsed by him but unable to break off her relationship with him, seeking his affection constantly. She now knows she is a codependent.

Raquel eats and doesn't stop. She was overweight and physically unhealthy, and resigned to her life. She couldn't prevent herself from eating. Halloween was her favorite as she had access to seemingly endless amounts of sweet candy. But as an adult, she found herself taking Halloween candy from her own children.

Despite Teddy's 25 years of sobriety, he can't recall his first Filet Mignon dinner or his first ice cream cone. But he'll never forget his first beer at age thirteen. Drinking quickly morphed into hard drug use, and Teddy found himself running in gangs of 50 or 60 people, seeking heroin highs.

Joe Namath is a former American football quarterback and Hollywood actor. He played for the New York Jets for most of his professional football career and played his final season with the Los Angeles Rams. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985. When failing knees permanently derailed his career, he turned to Hollywood and endorsements, not to mention a tumultuous marriage and fleeting bouts of sobriety, to try and find purpose.

Roy Kearse, LCSW, CASAC is Vice President of Recovery Services and Community Partnerships at Samaritan Daytop Village, where he is leading the agency's efforts to create a recovery-oriented system of care and assist in our broader outreach efforts. Mr. Kearse has more than 30 years of experience in the field of human services, helping develop effective treatment in both substance use and mental health settings. Mr. Kearse is a staunch advocate of services for recovering individuals, often highlighting his own recovery as proof of the merits of the recovery process. He has worked extensively over the past ten years to advance services for veterans.

Deirdre Rice-Reese serves as Assistant Vice President of Residential Treatment for Samaritan Daytop Village, where she oversees the veteran and upstate residential treatment programs. Ms. Rice-Reese also coordinates outreach to community partners and other referral providers, and provides customer relations and related services to our referral base. She has nearly 25 years of experience in social services and management of substance use treatment programs and facilities. Before her career in social services, Ms. Rice-Reese served in the U.S. Air Force for six years.

With two #1 Comedy Central specials to his credit, comedian and transformational speaker Kyle Cease is a keynote speaker, igniting audiences through his unique blend of comedy and personal evolution. He has been a guest speaker at colleges, summits, and Fortune 500 conferences, including Agape International, GATE, Revelations, the Sun Valley Wellness Festival, Sedona World Wisdom Days, and the Longevity Now Conference. In addition to leading his own live events, he has spoken with renowned teachers like Eckhart Tolle, Jim Carrey, Michael Beckwith, Louis C.K., Tony Robbins, Deepak Chopra, Marianne Williamson, Louie Anderson, and David Wolfe. In 2009, he earned a #1 ranking on Comedy Central's Stand-up Showdown. He has made more than 100 different TV and movie appearances, including 10 Things I Hate About You, Not Another Teen Movie, Jimmy Kimmel Live, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, Chelsea Lately, The Martin Short Show, Comics Unleashed, and numerous VH1 shows.