Nothing’s Off the Table with Louis Ruggiero

In this episode of Nothing’s Off the Table, I sit down with a gambling therapist who has never gambled… but understands addiction better than most people living it. We break down: * Why gambling addiction is different from drugs and alcohol * How the brain gets hooked on “fake wins” * Why you can lose everything… and still believe you’re about to win it back * The hidden psychological traps casino...

“I was talking to a plant… I lost my mind.” This is one of the craziest addiction stories we’ve ever told. In this episode, Louis sits down with his cousin Mike Mudd — a man who went from making serious money and living large… to complete isolation, cocaine psychosis, and nearly losing everything. Mike opens up about: * Spending $1,500 a day on cocaine * His nose collapsing from drug use * 14 days...

Nikki Bell had 9 years of sobriety. She was a mother. A wife. A leader helping other women escape addiction and exploitation. Then… she relapsed. What followed was a rapid descent into homelessness, prostitution, and living in trap houses — surrounded by the same life she once helped others escape. In this raw, unfiltered conversation, Nikki shares: * The exact moment everything fell apart * What...

"If someone else made it out, so can you." In this episode of Nothing's Off The Table, I sit down with my friend Brian De, a masters-level clinician and sober coach who has been in recovery for nine years from drugs, alcohol, and gambling. Brian shares his raw, honest journey—from the "moment of arrival" with his first drink in 9th grade to the high-stakes world of underground bookies at Sacred He...

“I had this vivid image… a beautiful blonde woman with two kids, and I killed them. Something hit me and said: if you continue to live like this, you are going to kill yourself, kill somebody else, or wind up in jail for the rest of your life.” In this episode of Nothing’s Off The Table, I sit down with Steven McCall, a man whose life was a series of bizarre headlines and near-death misses before...

In this powerful episode of Nothing’s Off the Table, Malik Keane shares his raw, unfiltered journey through addiction, gambling, drugs, alcohol, and ultimate redemption. From turning his college dorm into a full-blown casino to living days inside casinos with lines of credit, free rooms, and total delusion, Malik believed he had it all under control… until everything started to collapse. Multiple...

What happens when you have money, power, and success… but still lose everything? In this episode of Nothing’s Off The Table, I sit down with Anthony Acampora, chaplain at Banyan Treatment Centers, who shares one of the most powerful stories of addiction, betrayal, gambling, and redemption you’ll ever hear. After rising to the top of his career, everything fell apart—resentment, anger, alcohol, and...

In this powerful episode of Nothing’s Off The Table, John Luedke shares the raw truth behind growing up in a wealthy family while secretly battling anxiety, addiction, and self-destructive behavior. From childhood food addiction to heavy drug use, cocaine binges, and chaotic partying at college, John’s life spiraled despite appearing perfect from the outside. What looked like the dream life — mone...

Reality TV fame. Party culture. Alcohol. And the moment everything had to change. In this powerful episode of Nothing’s Off The Table, Louis Ruggiero sits down with Ashton Pienaar from Bravo’s hit show Below Deck to talk about the reality behind reality TV — the partying, the pressure, and the moment he realized he needed to change his life. Ashton opens up about his journey from the wild lifestyl...

In this episode, I sit down with Sam — a former compulsive gambler who started gambling at just 12 years old, won $10,000 on a slot machine in his 20s… and then spiraled into a decade of addiction. Publicly, he looked successful. Privately, he was betting on everything — slots, offshore crypto casinos, blackjack, anything that gave him a dopamine hit. He talks about: * Starting gambling at 12 year...

In this episode of Nothing’s Off the Table, I sit down with Shane — a Long Island native who survived multiple overdoses, a cocaine addiction, alcoholism, gambling insanity, and a life spiraling out of control… before finally surrendering in Alcoholics Anonymous. His father once told him: “God’s gonna put His hand on you and you’re gonna be the man He called you to be… or you’re gonna be dead.” Th...

In this episode of Nothing’s Off the Table, I sit down with former Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Anthony Peters — a man who spent over 20 years on the bench and saw firsthand that nearly 80% of criminal cases were rooted in addiction. He grew up in a home torn apart by alcoholism. He defended addicts as a public defender. Then he became a judge — and realized the system was failing them. So he...

Chris Kay was deep in the Florida pill mill era — Oxy, heroin, shooting cocaine, methadone clinics, jail, and over 15 treatment centers. He shot up in a clinic bathroom the day after having his arm cut open from infection. His brother died from an overdose on his mother’s couch. Nothing stopped him. Not jail. Not losing jobs. Not nearly losing his arm. The only thing that finally broke him… was wh...

David Manheim — founder of the legendary Dopey Podcast — joins me for a different kind of episode. This one’s lighter. Fun. Real. Two New York kids who got sober… talking about benzos, 900mg oxy habits, DopeyCon, family trauma, and how the hell recovery can actually be funny. David shares: * 10 years sober * Growing up in Chelsea * The early NYC addiction scene * Why Dopey became the first truly f...

At 12 years old, she blacked out on gin. At 17, she was introduced to heroin. By 18, she had abandoned film school in Manhattan and was fully consumed by addiction. And then one day, she says: “I finally connected the drink with the feeling.” In this powerful episode of Nothing’s Off the Table, I sit down with Maggie F., National Director of Strategic Development at Banyan Treatment Centers and a...

At one point, he was one of the top high school football recruits in the country, ranked alongside future NFL stars, with Division 1 offers and a clear path to greatness. From the outside, his life looked unstoppable. Behind the scenes, addiction was quietly taking hold. What started as experimentation turned into a full-blown descent into opioid addiction, crack cocaine, drug-induced psychosis, j...

Wade Houston’s story is one of the wildest transformations you’ll ever hear. In this raw, unfiltered episode of Nothing’s Off the Table, Wade takes us from selling drugs, multiple DUIs, jail time, overdoses, and total self-destruction… to sobriety, discipline, faith, and becoming President of 10X Health alongside Grant Cardone and Gary Brecka. This is not a highlight reel. This is the truth about...

“I wasn’t drinking for fun anymore — I was drinking to escape myself.” In this raw and brutally honest episode of Nothing’s Off the Table, Neva Coleman shares her unfiltered journey through alcoholism, blackout drinking, suicidal ideation, and the moment she realized alcohol was no longer optional — it was killing her. From growing up in a loving home in New Jersey, to losing her father on 9/11, t...

Gambling didn’t just cost Adam Lyons money — it nearly cost him his life. In this raw, unfiltered episode of Nothing’s Off the Table, Adam Lyons opens up about compulsive gambling, crushing debt, lying to everyone he loved, declaring bankruptcy in his 20s, and reaching a point where he simply didn’t want to live this life anymore. Adam worked inside casinos. He drove hours just to gamble. He maxed...

Elizabeth never drank in the morning. She never drank at work. And for years, she convinced herself she didn’t have a problem. Until the truth became impossible to ignore. “I was ready to take my own life because quitting drinking felt worse.” In this raw and deeply honest episode of Nothing’s Off the Table, Elizabeth opens up about her eight-year battle with alcohol addiction—how perfectionism, a...

Johnny didn’t just party — he was headed straight for the grave. By his late teens, Johnny was deep into Xanax, OxyContin, heroin, alcohol, arrests, and jail — surrounded by addiction on all sides and watching friends overdose and die. At just 20 years old, he made a decision that saved his life. In this raw episode of Nothing’s Off the Table, Johnny shares: Growing up around addiction Selling dru...

At 32 years old, Dan Brody was doing 10–15 oxy pills a day, hiding a full-blown addiction behind a successful career, relationships, and the illusion of having it all together. Then everything collapsed. Dan overdosed in his childhood bedroom. His mother found him barely breathing. Narcan saved his life. That moment became the line in the sand. In this raw, emotional, and brutally honest episode o...

Mordi didn’t just gamble — he destroyed his life in silence. In this raw episode of Nothing’s Off the Table, Mordi shares how a single scratch-off turned into a full-blown obsession: sports betting, secret bookies, and a constant need for “one more” — until he drained $150,000 of wedding money meant to build a future with his new wife. What makes this conversation hit so hard isn’t just the money....

In this powerful episode of Nothing’s Off the Table, LJ sits down with Riley, one of the fastest-growing sober creators on TikTok and Instagram- a young woman who went from blackouts, arrests, interventions, and losing everything… to building a new life through recovery. Riley opens up about: Growing up in Louisville feeling “different” Blackouts starting at age 14 Getting suspended, arrested, kic...

This is one of the most intense, emotional, and unbelievable interviews ever on Nothing’s Off the Table. Mike Zallie grew up in a loving Philly family… until the day his world shattered. At just 24 years old, he discovered his sister after she died by suicide — a moment that broke him and sent him into a 20-year spiral of addiction, crime, psychosis, and near death. In this raw conversation, Mike...