Boy Problems Podcast

Special episode! Listen in as Alex and her dad, Fred, discuss her stepmom’s active addiction and the challenges he’s faced navigating the chaos. Fred also shares his relationship with alcohol while he and Alex discuss if it’s a healthy one for him. Most of all though, they weigh the all important question - how long do we wait? We love this conversation and hope the telling of his story helps you...

Lizzie is back! Hear the latest from Lizzie, Elise and Alex during this check-in episode. The girls discuss the idea of relapse behaviors without the actual relapse (mindblowing, right?!). Lizzie shares some challenges she and her husband are facing and how to navigate trust with your recovering partner.  Topics also discussed: Trust Recovery Relapse Alcohol Boundaries Relationships Addiction Foll...

Join us as we talk to We The Village Founder and CEO, Jane Macky. Her partner’s journey through addiction, then recovery, inspired her to offer more to the community of fellow family members going through the same things. She’s recently launched online courses with coaching. We discuss this and her philosophy on helping clients reach their goals. She’s a gem and we know you’ll love her! Topics als...

Meet Kat. She’s one of us - has a long story about a person she loved who struggled with addiction. Listen in to learn more about her road to recovery. She’s a badass - we can’t even believe how much she has accomplished through her journey. Topics also discussed: Recovery Divorce Addiction with young kids Drugs Addiction Substance abuse disorder Follow us at: Instagram: @boyproblemspod Twitter: @...

Even years into this recovery journey, triggers arise - for us and our recovering loved ones. Today we discuss some of the recent triggers that have challenged our trust recently and how we’re working to manage our expectations and boundaries. Topics also discussed: Recovery Marriage Trust Money management Drugs Addiction Substance abuse disorder Follow us at: Instagram: @boyproblemspod Twitter: @...

Join us as we talk to Overdose Lifeline Founder and Executive Director, Justin Phillips. Motivated by her son’s death from an overdose she formed Overdose Lifeline to provide resources she felt were missing while assisting her son through his substance abuse disorder diagnosis. Years later Overdose Lifeline provides critical services and education tools for loved ones and medical professionals wan...

Today's episode is a tough one, but sadly we know it's a reality many have had to experience. Our friend Ashlee shares about her husband's addiction, which ultimately led to his death from an overdose nearly 5 years ago. We are grateful to Ashlee for her willingness to be so open in order to help others. The best thing about this community is the support we gain from hearing others' stories.

Congrats on making it through 2020! We know the end of the year can be tough with holiday stressors, and all of us have had negative experiences during this time in the past. In today's episode, we share the challenges we faced and how we handled our triggers. 

By definition, codependency is excessive emotional or psychological reliance on a partner, typically one who requires support on account of an illness or addiction. In our partners’ early recovery we were introduced to this word, and it was a game changer. Today we are honored to speak with Jay Harpring, a Licensed Clinical Addictions Counselor (LCAC) who has been in the field of addiction for ove...

We’ve been talking about this for a year?! Today’s episode is a walk down memory lane. We discuss our favorite episodes, lessons learned and this crazy journey that is addiction. Thank you for joining us on this ride, we hope you keep coming back. Topics also discussed: Recovery Relapse Drugs Addiction Substance abuse disorder Opioid Use Disorder Follow us at: Instagram: @boyproblemspod Twitter: @...

Today we discuss the science of addiction with Dr. Greer, a physician trained in addiction medicine who serves as the director and physician for Bowen Recovery Center, an opioid recovery center. She sheds light on how addiction impacts the brain, medical assisted treatments and how we can help change the stigma around addiction. Topics also discussed: Medical assisted treatments Recovery Relapse D...

Alex recently started to see some familiar traits with one of her family members and Charlie. She shares about her experience on the other side of things and how it's affecting her. Topics also discussed: Trust, Group and Individual Therapy, Empowerment, Self-care, Recovery, Relapse, Drugs, Boundaries, Relationships, Medically Assisted Treatment. Follow us at: Instagram: @boyproblemspod Twitter: @...

As a mother, one of my worst fears is my children having to experience my partner high. Millions of children have parents who have substance abuse disorder, and it’s heartbreaking to think that they experience addiction every day. Today we talk to Al whose dad was addicted to crack cocaine and unfortunately died from the disease of addiction. Al shares stories from his childhood and reflects on ho...

While some of us have experienced physical separation from our partners, all of us experienced emotional separation which can be so difficult. Today we discuss the toll separation took on our relationships and our own mental health. Elise shares how she and Steve basically didn't talk for 2 years, Lizzie discusses the financial drain when Drew moved out and Liz remembers how painful even looking a...

Navigating early recovery with a loved one is TOUGH. Something we've learned over the years is writing out a contract with your loved one can help when so many things are new. Contracts can make really hard decisions a bit easier. Today we all share how we've used contracts with our partners and what that did for our relationships and ourselves. We also talk about how our contracts have changed ov...

Overdose is a scary reality for many of us dealing with an addicted loved one. While all of our partners have overdosed many times during active use, they have all lived to see another day and seek treatment. Today we share our experiences with finding our loved ones OD’ed and dealing with the consequences that follow. We also talk about naloxone, which rapidly reverse an opioid overdose, and Vivi...

Where does your loved one go when they can no longer live with you and needs support for their substance use disorder? Halfway houses / recovery houses are an option for those who are trying to get and stay clean. Today we speak with Elliott who works at a recovery facility and is in recovery himself. He shares about his addiction and about his role working for a recovery house.  Topics also discu...

Meet Justin, a recovering alcoholic. In this episode the girls and Justin discuss the ups and downs of recovery, how relationships are impacted and what life looks like one year sober. Topics also discussed: Trust Higher power Recovery Relapse Alcohol Boundaries Relationships Addiction Follow us at: Instagram: @boyproblemspod Twitter: @boyprobspodcast Facebook: @boyproblemspod Additional Resources...

After taking some time off after the birth of her son, Alex is back! She shares how taking care of a newborn during a pandemic has gone. We also get updates on how Alex and Charlie's relationship has gone over the past few months and how much energy she spends thinking about his addiction / relapses. Liz talks about Jake just being released from jail and what her feelings where before he went...

One of the toughest things in early recovery is triggers. Triggers not only for the addict but for the loved ones too. Even the simplest of things like a phone call or looking at your partners eyes can bring back so many painful memories of their use. Today we discuss some of our triggers we've had along the way as well as some of the milestones we've celebrated. We also share about how are able t...

After almost a year of recording we finally got to record with Steve. He shares about his recovery over these past five years and how his mindset around drugs has changed. "Do the kids keep you sober" is a question Steve and Elise hear often. Steve tells us about his motivation for staying sober and what the future might look like. They dive into Steve's relapses and how he didn't understand he wa...

"He's a heroin addict....yep, that's what I said. Isn't is a beautiful day outside?" HA For many of us telling friends, family, co-workers and basically anyone that our loved ones are addicts is SCARY! Today we dive into our coming out stories with the people around us. What we've found is almost every time we tell someone they reply back with "oh, yeah my X is an addict / alcoholic". Why if addic...

For many, sex is an important part of their relationship. Today we discuss how sex changed during our partners’ active addiction and in recovery. Liz shares about lingering insecurities after Jake showed no sexual interest in her during his active addiction. Elise talks about how she and Steve didn't have sex for two years. Lizzie shares about Drew's infidelity when she was pregnant. All three wom...

We are so thankful Kerri Leach and Lindsay Locasto took some time to share their stories with us. Both women lost their siblings to the disease of addiction. Through their grief they connected with one another and started a group called 7 Sisters. The work of 7 Sisters is so inspiring. Their mission is to bring opioid awareness to the community through education and informative opportunities to el...

Jake has agreeded to chat with us about his battle with addicition over the last 19 years. With over 100 days clean he opens up about his relapses, his relationship with Liz and some advice for family members. Follow us at: Instagram: @boyproblemspod Twitter: @boyprobspodcast Facebook: @boyproblemspod Additional Resources: Co-Dependents Anonymous: coda.org/ Al-Anon: al-anon.org/ Nar-Anon: www.nar-...