In the episode: In this week's podcast episode, we talk with Dr. Stephen Lloyd, Chief Medical Officer at Cedar Recovery and advising doctor for the Hulu miniseries, Dopesick. As an internal medicine physician and addict in recovery since 2004, Dr. Lloyd has a deep understanding of addiction giving him a unique approach to patient care that includes quality treatment and compassionate care.  Episode Highlights: Behind the scenes of the series Dopesick. His work with Cedar Recovery and as a panel member for the Tennessee Drug Court. Remembering the first time he didn’t use and realizing tha ..read more

In the episode: In this week's episode, we talk to author Ray Vance, author of A Road Through Hell. Many of us in recovery know about the hell we put ourselves through while in active addiction. We've experienced our lives in chaos, legal problems, broken relationships, relapse after relapse, and defeat. But what do we do when our child has watched us go through all this and decides to follow that road anyway? Ray Vance knows because he's been through it. After years of drug and alcohol abuse, a prison sentence, and finally recovery, Ray had to face the fact that his own son was following in h ..read more

In the episode: We talk to Josh and Hollie, authors of Bang Head Here about the self-destructive behaviors that result from emotional pain. Much of how people are conditioned to deal with pain mirrors the way their caretakers dealt with pain. When a loved one acts out destructively it is easy for the caretaker to place blame on their loved one, instead of reflecting on how their own pain management skills have been passed onto those they love. In order to help those struggling at home survive, it’s important to understand the way pain, fantasy, and avoidance is keeping people in a cycle of de ..read more

In this Episode: In this episode of Back Porch Chats, we talk to Janet Gourand who struggled with alcohol for many years. She tells how she finally got sober in 2015 when she found her "people." She used her 25 years of experience in training and development to design and facilitate workshops to help people quit drinking. Her membership program, Tribe Sober, provides workshops, coaching, and connection. Her work has helped hundreds of people go on to live alcohol-free lives. She believes that "getting sober is just the beginning - once we've stopped drinking we need to create a life we don't ..read more

In this Episode: Charlene Madden joins this episode of Back Porch Chats to share her story of childhood sexual violence, domestic abuse, mental illness, and suicide ideation in an open and authentic discussion to help remove some of the stigmas that surround those topics.  Charlene is a mother of 3 children, wife, daughter, and reiki practitioner. She is the creator of the Ignite Your Life BC Women's Workshop, speaker, author, and women's empowerment coach. Charlene has spent most of her life living in a state of darkness.  After experiencing over 9 years of sexualized trauma at the ..read more

In this episode: Stephan Neff is an anesthetist, bestselling author, speaker and show host, and alcoholic in recovery. Stephan knows the challenges of trauma, depression, anxiety, and PTSD firsthand. As a man trying to drown his sorrows, he found out the hard way that the critters can swim. But the past does not equal the future. In this episode, Stephan and Vince dive deep into masculine ideas of anger and shame, where it originates as well as how they have dealt with it in the past. Today Stephan is an expert in living a life so fantastic, that alcohol has simply no role to play. He is the ..read more

In this Episode: In this episode of Back Porch Chats, we talk to the author of seven books, Paul Trammell about living sober as a solo sailor. Paul talks about how his decision to stop drinking alcohol led to living a nomadic life on the sea and the completion of his book Alcoholics Not Anonymous, A Modern Way to Quit Drinking. His book focuses on how he designed his own method of sobriety without the help of AA. Paul is the author of several other books including, The Joy of Living Clean and Sober, Becoming a Sailor, Journey to the Ragged Island, and Dead Flowers on Wednesday. Episode Highlig ..read more

In this Episode: Listen in as Vince and Jeanna talk to Theo Fleury, best known as an Olympic Hockey gold medalist and Stanly Cup winner, Theo Fleury now takes his story of abuse and addiction recovery public. His best-selling books, Playing with Fire and Conversations with a Rattlesnake, offer tools that help people who have experienced trauma learn to live healthy lives. In this episode of Back Porch Chats, Theo tells his story and encourages others to talk too. Episode Highlights: Childhood trauma as a worldwide epidemic. How abuse affects the survivors. Living a spiritual life as a key to ..read more

In this Episode: On November 20, 2019, Laura Stack's 19-year-old son, Johnny, died by suicide after becoming psychotic from dabbing high-THC marijuana concentrates. Laura responded by forming the nonprofit, Johnny’s Ambassadors, to educate parents and teens about the dangers of today’s high-THC marijuana on adolescent brain development, mental illness, and suicide.  In this episode of Back Porch Chats, Laura talks about the dangers of dabbing and her son's experience with it. If you don't know what dabbing is, check out this episode.  Episode Highlights: The dangers of marijuana and ..read more

In this Episode: In this episode of Back Porch Chats, Vince and Jeanna talk to Tamlin Allbritten who has worked for 40 years with families, children, and people in rehab using art to help them understand each other, their feeling, and recovery.  During the month of January, Tamlin will be working with the Drug Education Council in Mobile, Alabama to celebrate Art in Recovery. They will have a booth at the art center in Fairhope on January 7th and the following week at the Mobile Art walk in Mobile Alabama.   Episode Highlights: How art helps with recovery. Specific Art projects ..read more