Jason and Matt have interviewed experts on addiction and relationships. Now it's time to hear the stories of the damage their addictions have caused in their own marriages. These are painful stories, but they are also the stories of survival and love.

We asked Dave Friedentag why he works with troubled youth to help them move past their drug and alcohol abuse problems and find a better way forward. He explained that high school is when he started getting into trouble and began a journey that led to the death of his brother. When we experience trauma, we want to help others avoid the same life-altering pitfalls. And we are all glad Dave chose to have the impact he has on our kids.

Counseling couples to help them navigate challenges in their relationships often involves tackling the many issues surrounding addiction. In Ep6, our Untoxicated Podcast guest, Therapist Melissa Ryan, talks with us about the ways addiction effects our interactions with the ones we love. From open and communicative partners who are willing to work to improve their relationships, to quiet and closed partners who struggle to open up, Melissa is adept at working with even the most challenging relationship dynamics.

If you like Melissa as much as we do, check out her therapy practice, Cambium Counseling in Golden, Colorado. Melissa's office number is 970-235-0913.

Everyone knows addiction is a leading cause of divorce, but did you know sobriety destroys marriages, too? Sometimes - quite often, really - couples adapt their behaviors and reactions to manage heavy drinking in the marriage. It isn't until one or both people in the relationship get sober, and the marriage dynamics change so drastically, that the bond cannot survive. Getting healthy can poison a marriage.

Matt's good friend and outspoken recovery warrior, Simone Meyer, bravely and openly discusses her alcoholism and the damage it inflicted on her family. Her relationships with her children suffered, and there is a lot of repair work ongoing in recovery. But her marriage didn't survive Simone's transformation in sobriety. Listen to her brutally honest account of the collateral damage of addiction.

Why do traditional addiction recovery programs have such terrible success rates? Talk therapy, group sessions, working the steps, etc. are key components to health in sobriety, but is something missing? The Addiction Nutritionist, Kelly Miller, explains that trying to recover without a nutrition plan designed to repair the damage done in addiction is like trying to build a house without a solid foundation.

Kelly explains the Recovery Diet and how eating the right foods restores our damaged neurotransmitter function. We discuss hypoglycemia, the bio types of alcoholism, gut health, the role of amino acids in recovery and the wrong advice that is so commonly given to people in early sobriety. The information Kelly shares is so fundamental it is astonishing how under-discussed nutrition is in the world of recovery.

Have a little fun with this episode - try to count how many times Jason and Matt say, "Fascinating!"

Kelly's website is TheAddictionNutritionist.com, her page is The Addiction Nutritionist on facebook, and she is @theaddictionnutritionist on Instagram. She can be contacted at [email protected].

Matt's love affair with alcohol began with sips of his dad's beer as a kid, continued with experimentation in high school and binge drinking in college, and developed into full-blown addiction with after work cocktails and beer filled weekends as a young adult. He struggled and fought his way through life as a high-functioning alcoholic somehow managing to conceal the extent of his disease while he clung to his marriage, raised children and maintained a career.

Matt's is a unique story. It's only been repeated millions upon millions of times. Maybe you've heard it before. Listen and see if it sounds familiar.

Jason's dance with addiction really was a journey from innocent alcohol experimentation to weed, hallucinogens, cocaine and, eventually, pornography. Jason felt incomplete until he found these different ways to escape. He fought to reconcile his addictions with his Zen practice in a 20 year quest for peace. Now, Jason seeks peace in recovery.

Shhh. Did you hear about my friend's divorce? I hear his wife told him to quit drinking or get out. Shhh. I bet my uncle will be drunk at Thanksgiving again this year. Shhh. Our neighbors canceled the trip they planned because they had to use their vacation money for their DUI lawyer. Shhh. My boss' daughter got kicked out of school for possession of heroine. Hard to believe in their neighborhood.

Addiction is everywhere. Addiction is killing us. Addiction is a growing epidemic, and no one is talking about it except in hushed whispers through looks of disappointment. It is long past time to start the conversation, and Jason Polk and Matt Salis are doing just that. Through our Untoxicated Podcast, we hope to answer our many question about addiction and recovery, and bring an end to the stigma...and the whispers.

Jason's dance with addiction really was a journey from innocent alcohol experimentation to weed, hallucinogens, cocaine and, eventually, pornography. Jason felt incomplete until he found these different ways to escape. He fought to reconcile his addictions with his Zen practice in a 20 year quest for peace. Now, Jason seeks peace in recovery.