About Recovery Unscripted

For today’s show, I’m joined by Dr. Manish Sheth, psychiatrist and expert in the practice of transcranial magnetic stimulation, which employs magnetic waves to non-invasively treat specific parts of the brain. He sat down with me at the Innovations in Recovery conference in San Diego to discuss how they use emerging technology at Achieve TMS to help patients with mental health issues and even substance use disorders when other remedies have failed. He also explains why these electrical pulses tuned to very specific frequencies delivered in very specific patterns can have such a profound effect on the world’s leading cause of disability: depression.

Today's guest is Wesley Geer, musician and founder of the music therapy non-profit Rock to Recovery. After getting sober and leaving the band lifestyle behind, he found an outlet for his creativity and his desire to help others by bringing the healing power of songwriting and musical expression to treatment centers across California. He sat down with me at the Innovations in Recovery conference in San Diego to share how he sees music change people's lives first-hand and to introduce us to their concert series, which honors famous musicians in recovery and proves that rock 'n' roll and alcohol don't have to go hand in hand.

Today I’m joined by Robyn Cruze, who serves as national recovery advocate for Eating Recovery Center. Her early career as an actress brought her from her native Australia to Los Angeles, all while she became more and more sick with her eating disorder. But as she began her own recovery journey, she formulated the ideas behind “the body conversation,” which shifts the focus off of dieting and emphasizes listening to your body’s signals. She sat down with me at the Innovations in Recovery conference in San Diego to discuss the overlap between eating disorders and addiction and to share how to spot red flags of disordered eating even as our culture’s unhealthy messages about body image make it harder than ever.

For today’s show, I’m joined by Adam Marion, CEO of Black Bear Lodge, a residential program for substance use and mental health disorders in north Georgia. An avid outdoorsman who started his career leading wilderness therapy programs, Adam shares why Black Bear’s tranquil mountain setting helps patients focus on what matters and how nature can serve as a valuable teacher during treatment. He also shares how the system of care at Black Bear helps patients walk through a non-judgmental stages of change approach based on where they are in their journey.

My guest today is Carol Rostucher, founder of the organization Angels in Motion, which began as she searched for her son who was living with addiction on the streets of Philadelphia. As her eyes were opened to the unique needs of the homeless population with substance use disorders, she set out to bring love and hope to them one by one, by offering everything from hugs and snacks to help navigating the process of getting an ID card. She sat down with me at the Innovations in Recovery conference in San Diego to explain how Angels in Motion has grown its reach across Philadelphia and to share how this mission has changed her and her relationship with her son.

Today’s guests are brothers Brandon and Ryan Stump from The Ohio House, a sober living community in Orange County, California. And even though they have several locations now, it all started out as just a single house where Brandon and two friends from Ohio lived after they moved to California to start fresh and figure out how to do recovery. They sat down with me at the Innovations in Recovery conference in San Diego to share how they’ve used what they’ve learned on their own journeys to build a culture of brotherhood and accountability that challenges residents to lead by example and how they’re growing and adapting to reach female clients with these same principles.

Today’s guest is Dr. Jordan Weisman, who serves as clinical manager with the Michael’s House treatment program in Palm Springs, California. He sat down with me at the Innovations in Recovery conference in San Diego to talk about how they take a deep dive into their outcomes data to look for trends that are hiding in the details and adjust accordingly. Also, he shares how Michael’s House integrates nicotine cessation resources right alongside addiction treatment and explains what the statistics say about how smoking and quitting can affect recovery from other substances.

My guests today are 180 Health Partners’ Justin Lanning and Angie Alexander who serve a critical need: helping pregnant women with addiction by filling the gaps in a healthcare system that’s often not built for meeting their needs on a practical level. But to do this well, 180 builds a health system around each mother by asking for their personal goals and literally meeting them where they are: at their doctor, at their home, even just connecting via text or for 10 minutes at their work during lunch break. And as you’ll hear them explain, reaching mothers-to-be presents a unique opportunity to make a huge impact in two lives in a short window of time, specifically related to neonatal abstinence syndrome and the lasting effect that can have on the life of a child.

As shifting cultural priorities and values leave America vulnerable to the opioid crisis, how can we do more to rebuild community and fight the preeminent health issue of our time?

We’ll answer this with former LA Times reporter and author of the best-selling book Dreamland, Sam Quinones, on this episode of Recovery Unscripted.