The Rollercoaster Podcast

What do you do when the person you love tells you “I love you,” and just minutes later, your entire world falls apart? On June 13, 2024, MaKela Allen lost her husband, Michael, to suicide. Just hours earlier, they were planning their future, preparing to move into a new home, and talking about having another child. There was no goodbye. No warning she could have recognized. Just a final text messa...

How do you keep going when the person who helped you survive losing your baby is suddenly gone too? I sit down with Britt Del Toro for a conversation about infant loss, suicide bereavement, and the grief that follows you into every corner of your life. Britt shares the heartbreaking loss of her 10-week-old son, Zeppelin, her own suicide attempt, and later losing her husband, Troy, to suicide. What...

What happens to your faith when you witness suffering so horrific that you begin asking God why He allows it? I sit down with Alex Barbir, founder of Building Zion, who has risked his life to stand alongside persecuted Christians in Nigeria, where families are being murdered, villages destroyed, and countless survivors left with nothing. Alex shares heartbreaking firsthand accounts of religious pe...

What happens when the person you've loved almost your entire life is suddenly taken from you? My guest today is Ashley Leatham, who lost her husband, Scott, a 39-year-old firefighter, to a rare and aggressive cancer called NUT carcinoma. What started as persistent headaches turned into a devastating diagnosis, and just five months later, Ashley was holding her husband's hand as he took his final b...

There’s a point where you can’t blame your past anymore. You have to look in the mirror and decide who you’re going to become. My guest, Shane Goodbar, has lived both sides of that truth. Shane was sexually abused as a child, learned to hide behind a mask, and eventually found escape through alcohol and drugs. What started as a way to numb the pain spiraled into addiction, broken relationships, mu...

There are some phone calls that divide your life into a before and an after. My guest, Kylie Hammonds, was just 26 when she received one of those calls. Her mom, Tabitha, had died suddenly, leaving Kylie and her brother searching for answers about what happened that night. Kylie takes me inside the events surrounding her mother’s death, the fentanyl discovered during the investigation, the questio...

In this episode, I sit down with Nick Rogers and his wife, Cassie, two people whose lives were shattered by the unimaginable loss of their spouses to cancer. Nick takes me through his wife Anna’s battle with aggressive breast cancer, the moment they thought she had beaten it, and the devastating reality of watching it return and spread. He also shares the impossible decisions he had to make as a f...

A few days before 16-year-old Landon took his own life, he spent what felt like one of the best weeks of his life with his cousin, Landon Ashworth. They ate way too much sushi, played golf, shot guns, laughed, talked about life, and dreamed about the future. When the week ended, Landon told him how much he needed it. He seemed happy. He seemed okay. Then came the phone call that changed everything...

When I called Mya Ludwig a few weeks ago, I expected a hard conversation. She had been diagnosed with breast cancer, undergone a double mastectomy, and was halfway through chemotherapy. Instead, I hung up feeling like Mya had somehow helped me. So I knew I needed to bring her back to the podcast. Mya opens up about the moment she discovered the lump, what treatment has really been like, and how lo...

In this episode, I sit down with Matthew Griffin, who spent 21 years serving in the military and law enforcement. During those years, Matt saw things most of us will never see. But one call would stay with him for decades. As a young police officer, Matt responded to the accidental death of two-and-a-half-year-old Benny Jr., the son of a friend. Matt was the first officer on scene and performed CP...

In this episode, I sit down with Olivia Burnett, who lost her dad, Kevin, to stage four colon cancer at just 24 years old. He was her Superman, the person who gave her confidence, made her feel unstoppable, and always reminded her that she was “golden.” Within months of his death, grief pulled Olivia into a darkness she never expected. She tried therapy. Medication. Exercise. Friends. Family. Ever...

There are some stories you hear that stay with you long after the conversation ends. This is one of them. In this episode, I sit down with Nathan Wieser, a husband, father and author of We Did It, to talk about a journey through pregnancy loss, infant loss, miscarriage, PTSD, grief and a fight to become a father that lasted more than a decade. Nathan and his wife Lucy endured loss after loss. But...

In this episode, I sit down with Jaclyn Rose, a mental health advocate whose life has been shaped by unimaginable loss. Jaclyn shares the heartbreaking story of losing her uncle to suicide, her father to addiction, and years later, her older brother to the very same battle. Rather than allowing grief to harden her heart, she chose to understand it. This conversation challenged the way I think abou...

As a parent, there are certain things you never think you’ll have to face. Watching your child fight for their life is one of them. In this episode, I sit down with Jheri South, a mother of seven whose story is filled with heartbreak, addiction, mental health struggles, suicide attempts, and an unbelievable determination to keep fighting. Jheri shares how her seemingly picture-perfect life unravel...

In this episode of the Roller Coaster Podcast, I sit down with Rebecca Doyle, who shares the heartbreaking story of losing her only brother, Edward, to an unexpected complication from cancer treatment at just 28 years old. What started as stomach pain quickly became a Stage 3 cancer diagnosis, months of chemotherapy, and a phone call that changed her life forever. Rebecca opens up about watching h...

Some stories leave you speechless. This is one of them. In this episode, I sit down with Kelle Bott for one of the most raw, emotional, and unforgettable conversations we've ever had on the Rollercoaster Podcast. At just 18 years old, Kelle watched her father take his final breath. In a matter of seconds, the person she believed was invincible was gone, and the grief that followed completely chang...

Some stories stay with you long after the conversation ends. This is one of them. In this episode, I sit down with Julie Garlock to hear the unimaginable story of losing her husband, Troy, and their young daughter, Elsie, in a devastating car accident that changed her life forever. What followed wasn't just overwhelming grief, it was a journey through trauma, addiction, healing, faith, survival, a...

Some stories leave you speechless, and this is one of them. In this episode, I sit down with Janairy Quintero, whose life changed forever after what should have been a simple family camping trip. When an ATV accident left her hand hanging by only a few veins, she made one split-second decision that likely saved her daughter's life. What followed was nearly two years of reconstructive surgeries, re...

What makes someone throw away everything they've spent 10 years rebuilding? In this episode of the Rollercoaster Podcast, I sit down with Corey Warren, a recovery advocate, business owner, and former addict whose life was shaped by addiction, prison, relapse, and ultimately redemption. Corey shares how a single decision at a high school party led to a 20-year battle with heroin and alcohol addicti...

Support the Show & Shop DayxDay Apparel Here: https://dayxdayapparel.com/ What happens when you've achieved everything the world tells you should make you happy but you still feel completely empty inside? In this episode of the Rollercoaster Podcast, I sit down with Keith Hale, entrepreneur, author, and men's mental health advocate, who shares the story of the day he attempted to take...

What happens when the very things you swore you'd never become are the things that slowly take over your life? In this episode of the Rollercoaster Podcast, I sit down with Natalie Stavola, a recovery coach, filmmaker, and survivor whose life was shaped by childhood trauma, abusive relationships, addiction, and years of self-destruction. Natalie shares the harrowing moments that changed her foreve...

What do you do when the person you've loved for 20 years decides they no longer want to live? In this episode of the Rollercoaster Podcast, I sit down with Tommy O'Mara to talk about the day that changed his life forever. After two decades together, Tommy came home expecting an ordinary morning with the woman he loved. Instead, he found Cynthia unconscious on the floor after she had intent...

Every morning at 6:45am, Baylee would get the same text from her fiancé, Jared. He would meet her in the parking garage before work, walk her inside, give her a hug, a kiss, and remind her that she was loved. It was a simple routine they never thought twice about. Until one morning, that text never came. In this episode of the Rollercoaster Podcast, I sit down with Baylee Barnes as she shares the...

What do you do when a doctor tells you that you have 15 months to live and less than a 10% chance of surviving the next two years? In this episode of the Rollercoaster Podcast, I sit down with Doug Cartwright, a sales coach, entrepreneur, and one of the most spiritually grounded people I've ever met, who was diagnosed with Grade 4 Glioblastoma, the deadliest, most aggressive form of brain cancer,...

What happens when the person trained to save lives loses someone they couldn’t save? In this episode of the Rollercoaster Podcast, I sit down with Dr. Marlon Rollins for one of the most powerful conversations we’ve ever had about suicide, grief, trauma, mental health, and healing. Dr. Rollins spent years working as a crisis director and mental health professional helping people through suicidal cr...