Pondoff's Anonymous

Some people hit rock bottom in a single moment. For others, it's thousands of small decisions that slowly pull them further away from the life they were meant to live. On this episode of Pondoff's Anonymous , Cole Shea shares the winding road that led from a turbulent childhood and high school football dreams to heroin addiction, prison, and eventually a decade of sobriety. Growing up surr...

This week on Pondoff’s Anonymous, Tony Martin joins the show to share a recovery journey that starts in a small town in Jefferson County and winds through family trauma, addiction, divorce, jail cells, treatment centers, Oxford House, and ultimately a life dedicated to helping others find recovery. Growing up with a mother battling severe mental illness, Tony learned early what it felt like to liv...

On this episode of Pondoff's Anonymous, we sit down with Chrissy Shields and her sons, Arty Berreman and Jake Shields, to share the life and legacy of AJ Berreman. Through laughter, tears, and incredible honesty, the Berreman family opens up about AJ's battle with addiction, bipolar disorder, treatment, recovery attempts, and the difficult reality of loving someone through a disease that a...

On this episode of Pondoff’s Anonymous, Angie Isam sits down for one of the most unbelievable and emotionally raw conversations the show has had yet. What starts as stories about South City chaos, partying, and addiction quickly unfolds into a childhood filled with instability, abandonment, alcoholism, kidnapping, violence, and survival. Angie opens up about growing up in a deeply dysfunctional ho...

On this episode of Pondoff’s Anonymous, Chris and Zoe sit down with Matt Bauersachs for an honest and inspiring recovery story. Matt opens up about growing up feeling different, struggling with ADHD, lupus, self-esteem, and eventually finding himself caught in a spiral of alcohol, drugs, selling substances, and increasingly destructive behavior. What started as teenage experimentation quickly turn...

On this episode of Pondoff's Anonymous, Kira Andersen joins the crew for a conversation that is heartbreaking, inspiring, and deeply human all at the same time. Kira opens up about growing up with a mother who struggled with alcoholism, the complicated grief that followed her mother's death, and the loneliness that can come with loving someone through addiction. From there, the conversatio...

On this episode of Pondoff’s Anonymous, Chris, Zoë, and KG sit down with returning guest Michael Wellington—author of "Birdies, Bogeys, and Bipolar Disorder"—for an open, honest, and insightful conversation on bipolar disorder and mental health. Michael shares his journey from professional golf and devastating manic episodes to long-term stability, recovery, and helping others navigate b...

This episode of Pondoff's Anonymous is a wild ride in every possible way. Marcus “Buff” Bagwell joins the show and immediately drops the room into stunned silence with the story of the devastating car wreck that shattered his leg, the 41 surgeries that followed, and the emotional decision to ultimately amputate it. What starts as wrestling nostalgia quickly turns into something much deeper — addic...

This week on Pondoff’s Anonymous, Chris and Zoë sit down with Blake Wellen, case manager at Illinois Recovery Center, for a conversation about treatment, recovery, compassion fatigue, and what it looks like to care for people when they’re walking through one of the hardest seasons of their lives. Blake doesn’t identify as an alcoholic or addict, but he grew up around addiction and found himself pu...

Jakob Miller Is Back: Treatment, Harm Reduction, and the Hard Truth About Getting Clean Jakob Miller is back in the studio for a classic Pondoff’s Anonymous drive-by episode...which means the conversation starts somewhere ridiculous and somehow ends up getting very real. Chris, Zoë, Jeff, and Jakob talk through what’s new in Jakob’s life, the work happening at Illinois Recovery Center, and some of...

Content note: This episode contains discussion of addiction, overdose, assault, suicidal ideation, homelessness, and other traumatic experiences. Please take care while listening. Alyssa Jarvis joins us to talk about faith, rejection, trauma, addiction, recovery, forgiveness, and the long road to building a new life. This is a heavy one, but it’s also full of honesty, resilience, and hope. Special...

John Nettles joins Pondoff’s Anonymous for a real conversation about addiction, relapse, treatment, and what it actually takes to build a life that lasts. Originally from the St. Louis area and now living in California, John talks about growing up in Chesterfield, getting pulled into sports, nightlife, and the EDM scene, and how alcohol and drugs slowly took over everything. This episode gets into...

Never Lose Hope with Tennille Heitkamp Tennille Heitkamp joins Pondoff’s Anonymous to share the long, painful, and hopeful story of walking through addiction with her son, Jacob. What starts as a conversation about Underground and finding the right support community turns into a brutally honest look at what addiction does to an entire family. Tennille talks about Jacob’s childhood, ADHD, early str...

Content Note: This episode contains discussion of suicide, addiction, and mental health. Julie Wiseman with her friend (also) Julie Thanks to our sponsors: McKelvey Insurance Group http://mckelveyins.com LightSource http://FindYourLightSource.com In this episode of Pondoff’s Anonymous, Chris and Zoë sit down with Julie Wiseman, joined by her friend Dee, for a deeply honest conversation about grief...

In this episode of Pondoff’s Anonymous , Chris sits down with Lyndsey Jacob, Kyle Jacob, and Zoë for an honest conversation about addiction, recovery, trauma, ADHD, marriage, family, sobriety, and healing. Lyndsey shares what it was like to live in denial while knowing things could not keep going the way they were. She talks about cocaine use, alcohol, secrecy, survival mode, shame, and the fear o...

Fentanyl Killed My Son at a Sleepover | A Mother's Fight for Justice Tiffany Foster's son Zack was 13 when he died from fentanyl poisoning at a friend's sleepover. He wasn't an addict. It was his first time. Eight days after his birthday, he was gone. Tiffany shares Zack's story -- his childhood, the night of August 28th, four years of legal battles, and the advocacy work she does now. If you're a...

“We Is Stronger Than Me” with Ryan Canaday & Karie McMullen Pondoff’s Anonymous Ryan Canaday and Karie McMullen from FREE Recovery Community in Denver join us for a raw, thoughtful conversation about addiction, faith, grief, and the power of community. This episode explores what happens when recovery shifts from isolation to connection. We talk about shame, anger at God, burnout in minis...

🔥 Pondoff’s Anonymous – Show Notes 🎙️ Episode Title: Grief, Phish, Fentanyl & Truth 🎧 Guest: Theresa Solsten Who this episode is for: - Those addicted to drugs and/or alcohol - Families grieving someone lost to overdose — or what we’re calling it now: poisoning - Anyone carrying shame in silence - Men who’ve never been told they’re allowed to feel - Anyone who’s ever made a mess of their lif...

Pondoff’s Anonymous is on a one week break, but we didn’t want to leave you hanging… So today we’re sharing an episode of our newer show, *Needed to Hear That*. This one is a do not miss. If you’ve ever connected with what we try to do here, honest conversations, recovery, mental health, and the stuff people usually don’t say out loud, this podcast is absolutely for you. Subscribe to *Needed to He...

Who this episode is for: Those addicted to drugs and/or alcohol who still think they’re in control People living double lives and calling it “functional” Anyone carrying childhood trauma they’ve never dealt with Families trying to love someone who keeps self-destructing Anyone who’s ever made a mess of their life and told themselves it was ambition This episode is not clean. It’s not polished. And...

Who this episode is for: Those addicted to drugs and/or alcohol. Anyone rebuilding after wreckage—physical, emotional, legal. People whose guts are wrecked and spirits even worse. Ex-party people trying to become whole humans. Fitness freaks, trauma healers, and closet sugar junkies. Anyone who's ever made a mess of their life and needed to start over—again. Sam Lander has lived a few lifetimes in...

Who this episode is for: Anyone who’s ever been owned by their addiction Parents trying to fix what their kids won’t talk about Business bros who grind all day and snort all night People trying to outrun their past (good luck) Anyone who’s ever made a mess of their life and called it “fun” The quietly curious — not in recovery (yet), but wondering what all the wreckage is really about This week on...

Who this episode is for: - Bar owners who can’t stop drinking their own profits - Anyone who thinks boating and sobriety can’t mix - Those living with the secret shame of family dysfunction - People who think recovery means giving up fun - Old-school St. Louisans with a soft spot for Trainwreck Saloon - Anyone who’s ever made a mess of their life If you’ve ever built a life that looked good on pap...

Who this episode is for: - Anyone who’s ever woken up wondering how the hell they survived their 20s - Former party girls turned spiritual gangsters - People in recovery who still laugh at their darkest stories - Anyone with complicated daddy issues - Midwest transplants trying to make peace with the lack of decent tacos - And most importantly: the still-struggling, the not-yet-sober, the ones who...

This ain’t your tidy little self-help podcast. This is a molotov cocktail of truth, trauma, healing, heartbreak, and a whole lotta swearing. We’re cracking open some of the rawest, realest, and most *fuck-it-let’s-go-there* moments from Season Two. If you're not ready to get honest, bounce now. First up, Megan Gehrs and Bree Badgley are back after five years. These two come in hot—talking rela...