Joe and Amy welcome back Sean Paul Mahoney, writer, recovery advocate and program manager for the Mental Health and Addiction Association of Oregon to talk about people addicted to fentanyl, why methadone is a better alternative than Suboxone for fentanyl users, relapses and death among recovery workers and the overlooked rise in alcohol deaths.

Joe and Amy chat with  Lt. Jeff Gauthier of the Milwaukee Fire Department, sober for 28 years. He talks to us about the mental health crisis and substance abuse among firefighters as well as his work in the Peer Support Team, breaking the stigma and shame and getting them the help they need. We also discuss his work with MORI, the Milwaukee Overdose Response Initiative and the frustrating cycle he sees but also the unique position he’s in as a person in recovery to elicit empathy in his fellow firefighters and connect with the people he goes to revive. Visit our sponsor for 20% off Clean Cause

Joe and Amy talk with Kevin F., who got clean from heroin 11 years ago by taking ibogaine. After a few years in traditional 12 step groups, feeling alienated by his ibogaine experience and continued interest in psychedelics, he formed “Psychedelics in Recovery”, a growing 12 step fellowship composed of people utilizing psychedelics as a recovery integration tool.  We ask him if psychedelics and 12 step really can co-exist, what his group considers “sobriety” and why people gloss over Bill Wilson’s own use of psychedelics. Visit our sponsor for 20% off Clean Cause

Joe and Amy sit down with Patrick Reilly, currently the Clinic Manager of a Medication Assisted Opioid Treatment Program in Milwaukee Wisconsin and one of the cohosts of the “Don’t Die Wisconsin” podcast.  We talk about his transition from working in residential treatment to  harm reduction,  why he feels it’s so important for abstinent people to support all pathways to recovery and specifically his appearance at the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety to legalize fentanyl testing strips. Visit our sponsor for 20% off Clean Cause

Joe and Amy sit down with Dr. Susan Pierce Thompson, Adjunct Associate Professor of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at the University of Rochester, a multiple New York Times bestselling author, and an expert in the psychology of eating. We talk food addiction, why it can be harder to beat than drugs or alcohol, what sugar does to the brain, and how to rewire your brain. Visit our sponsor for 20% off Clean Cause

Joe and Amy interview Carl Erik Fisher, addiction physician, bioethicist and assistant professor of clinical psychiatry at Columbia University. We talk about his own addiction journey during med school and his new book “The Urge:  Our History of Addiction”.

Joe and Amy sit down with Joanna Conti, a serial entrepreneur. After becoming frustrated with the lack of success rate data available as her daughter cycled in and out treatment programs, she started a research firm to independently collect data in order to answer the critical question “what are the outcomes of rehab?”

Joe and Amy sit down with Dr. Peter Grinspoon, primary care physician, cannabis specialist at Massachusetts General Hospital and  an Instructor at Harvard Medical School. He is also the author of the  memoir ‘Free Refills: A Doctor Confronts His Addiction’.  We discuss his own addiction, cannabis, his take on 12 step and why there aren’t earlier interventions and less punitive routes for doctors facing SUD.

Joe and Amy welcome back journalist and writer Duff McDonald to talk about his new book “Tickled: A Common Sense Guide to the Present Moment”, a radical departure from his 5 previous books. Duff describes his wild epiphany during the pandemic which taught him to live in the present moment.  We talk sobriety, why it’s so difficult to tolerate uncertainty, and his practical way of living in the now.

Joe and Amy sit down with Dr. Joseph Yi, a Board Certified Addiction Psychiatrist who specializes in Holistic Psychiatry and Detoxification.  He gives us the low down on the “4 pillars of wellness”, the role of nutrition in mental health and recovery, the rise of technology addiction and his personal take on psychedelics and cannabis.

Joe and Amy talk to Matt Escobas, the Director of Special Initiatives at Fors Marsh group (FMG) a research firm developing shame and stigma-free mental health and SUD programs for their employees. Matt explains how it all works, the personal reasons that led him to develop it and what a B Corp is.

Joe and Amy sit down with former undercover police officer Neil Woods from the UK. He discusses the prevalence of PTSD and suicide among cops and explains what UK harm reduction looks like. As part of the global Law Enforcement Action Partnership, (LEAP) he speaks around the world to politicians, policy makers and the general public to tell the dark truths about the War on Drugs.

Joe and Amy talk to Vermont State Representative, Marybeth Redmond about her career in journalism, teaching, and now politics. Redmond discusses her writing program with incarcerated women, including the book of their work entitled “Hear me, See me”. She explains how much trauma informed women ending in prison.

Joe and Amy welcome rock and roll legend, Simon Kirke. Simon talks about his history in the business, being the drummer for Free and Bad Company and relays stories on some of the biggest names in rock. We also talk about his recovery advocacy work with Road Recovery.

Joe and Amy sit down with Damon West, a college professor with a M.S. in criminal justice as well as a nationally known keynote speaker and best-selling author. Damon spent 7 years in a maximum security prison after getting hooked on meth, following a career ending injury when he was Division 1 starting quarterback at the University of Texas.. They discuss about his story, his recovery, the coffee bean analogy and his incredible work in prison reform and re-entry including his program to help men of color become elementary school teachers.

Joe and Amy sit down with Dr. Anna Lembke, professor of psychiatry at Stanford University of Medicine and chief of the Addiction Medicine Dual Diagnosis Clinic.  They discuss her new book “Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence”, delving into the pain pleasure trap, the importance of radical honesty in recovery, a scarcity vs plenty mindset and disclosure porn.

Joe and Amy sit down with Dr. Jeeshan Chowdhury, an MD/PhD who studied at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar.  He is a seasoned entrepreneur who is trained in psychedelic-assisted therapy through CIIS and is now bringing his expertise to Journey Colab as Founder and CEO.   We talk about his own personal journey that brought him to psychedelics, his work with FDA and how we overcome the stigma and propaganda of the war on drugs.

Joe and Amy sit down with Dr. Houman Farzin to talk about his work with indigenous people struggling with trauma and addiction. Dr. Farzin is an expert in all psychedelic assisted therapy including ketamine, psilocybin and MDMA. They discuss addiction, PTSD, depression and how psychedelic therapy can be helpful with many types of mental health disorders as well as its pending commercialization.

Joe and Amy sit down with TJ Woodward, revolutionary recovery expert, bestselling author, inspirational speaker, and addiction treatment specialist. He has created a new treatment modality called Conscious Recovery which focuses on the underlying root causes that drive destructive patterns, while providing clear steps for letting go of core false beliefs that lead to addictive tendencies.

Joe and Amy sit down with Zack Gray, Co-Founder and CEO of Ophelia, a telemedicine company providing treatment for opioid dependence. He started Ophelia after losing a loved one to an overdose. We talk about the stigma of MAT in the recovery community, the difference between Suboxone and Subutex, and why so many doctors can’t legally prescribe Suboxone.