The Payoff - Stories of Sobriety

Jean McCarthy is an award-winning blogger and podcaster who is best-known as a voice of recovery advocacy. She's a light and she's got experience on what it's like to stop drinking when your outsides look great but inside you're falling apart. Jean has another book coming out and is just a joy to talk with. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad cho...

Clint was one of the people who unknowingly laid the groundwork for this podcast. He's had an influence on Pete for decades, as a stalwart in the Southeastern Pennsylvania recovery community. In recovery you'll often hear "promotion by attraction" and if you don't understand the concept you certainly will by the end of this podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Le...

Tony Mandarich was drafted second in the 1989 NFL Draft. Around that same time, he appeared on Late Night with David Letterman and almost fought Mike Tyson. As time moved on, his name became synonymous with steroids and his NFL career was over before it really ever got going. But while people focused on steroid use as the reason for his downfall, he was actually mainlining pain killers in the mids...

Mark Suppelsa was a fixture in the Chicago scene for more than 25 years in a time when everyone turned to and trusted TV News for information. But in 2012, as an anchor at WGN in the Windy City, he entered rehab to battle his alcohol addiction. Mark says he had no clue about the great life that awaited him on the other side of addiction when he entered rehab one May afternoon almost 10 years ago....

Pete guests on the Megna Method podcast. Today’s guest on the show is Pete Sousa. Pete is currently a news anchor and journalist for KWTX in Waco, TX and has an extensive history in public relations work with most of the major professional sports organizations such as the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL and the NCAA. He is also the host of the entertaining and motivational podcast, The Payoff with Pete, where...

Tami Berry was a distinguished surgeon before the wheels came off because of her addiction to alcohol and drugs; primarily speed. Consuming an exorbitant amount of Adderall daily, each morning she’d wake up and swear off the drug only to find any reason to start back up by noon. The madness carried over into her career, where pressure and burnout share plenty of real estate. Today, sober for nearl...

Ryan Leaf might be synonymous with the term 'Bust' but today he's redefining the word 'comeback'. The former No. 2 overall pick in the NFL Draft ended up in prison thanks to an insatiable addiction to opioids. But long before his drug abuse put him behind bars, an inability to cope with success and life in general, something most addicts struggle with, prematurely ended his NFL career. Today he's...

Dr. Dick Chopp’s ability to market his brand as a urologist performing vasectomies earned him incredible success and national recognition, including an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel. His credentials as a doctor span 37 years of practicing as a urologist proceeded by education at USC & Sloane Kettering. But it’s not his decorated career in medicine he’s most proud of, it’s his 15 years of sobriety...

Col. Dan flew 159 combat missions in Vietnam, where he cheated death almost every day. However, a decorated career as a fighter pilot didn’t excuse him from the grips of alcoholism. Sober today more than 30 years, his legacy is flying higher than ever, in the history books and through his work with other alcoholics. This is an amazing story for any addict looking to put down a drink or a drug or f...

Courtney Friel spent six years working at FOX News Channel before becoming an anchor at KTLA in Los Angeles. But it's the more than 11 years of sobriety she likes to talk about the most. She's also very open about the 15 years before she got sober, including cocaine-fueled college days and living fast in New York City while at FOX News. Her book “Tonight at 10: Kicking Booze and Breaking News” det...

Gerry Cooney was 28-3 as a heavyweight fighter and spent time ranked No. 1 in the world. But his biggest victory has come over alcohol, a battle which he still fights every day in the rooms of recovery, helping himself and others. Pete and Gerry cover it all, from the incredible hype surrounding his title fight against Larry Holmes to how addiction hampered his chances against Michael Spinks. “Gen...

Scott Silverman is a Crisis Coach, and behavioral health advisor, and leads the team at Confidential Recovery—an intensive substance abuse recovery program for adults, 18 years and older. He's written two best-selling books on addiction, has a TED Talk, and has been featured on CNN and many other news outlets across the country as he works to help families dealing with addiction and people who suf...

On the road to recovery from his drug & alcohol addiction, Scott Strode found self-confidence and a new identity in sports. Today, he's not only a triathlete and mountaineer, he’s the Founder and National Executive Director of The Phoenix: A free sober active community that helps individuals rise, recover, and live through the power of fitness and community. The Phoenix is based on Scott's own...

Laure Redmond's high-octane life as a fitness coach began in New York City, where she ran a gym and trained stars like Tom Cruise, Madonna and Mary Tyler Moore. As her career progressed so did her dependence on alcohol. Laure is a self-described Type A personality, who achieved great success and had earned pretty much everything she'd ever wanted but says she felt mounting shame as it related to h...

Calvin Schiraldi reached the major leagues on talent and will. But no amount of natural ability or desire could help him defeat alcoholism. His career with the Mets, Red Sox, Cubs, and Padres featured incredible highs and serious lows. Some of the depths on the field led to self-medication and the darkest of times in the grips of alcohol. Today he’s winning off the field, helping others with his s...

Dave is a rockstar. His career involves selling out arenas in some of the world’s biggest bands, winning a Grammy, and being nominated for an Emmy. Lucky for us, he’s a sober guy working a program, which makes him totally relatable. Dave grew up in Hollywood and ran with some of the biggest musicians ever. But before he was able to shine himself – he had to get sober. Buckle up for a wild ride int...

Dr. Nishant P. is an accomplished surgeon and was an accomplished alcoholic. Speaking with years of experience in sobriety, he talks with Pete about the high-wire act he endured juggling addiction and more than 15-years of education, en route to becoming a doctor Nishant's story includes brushes with death, failed attempts at starting his career, and a DUI where he was nearly six times the legal l...

Marin Nelson is more than 15-years sober and her story is one of hope and inspiration...and it's also very funny. Aside from changing her life and getting sober, she's become an agent of change, starting a recovery group serving employees at her Fortune 500 Company. She carries the message of recovery with grace and humility and sometimes hilarity. https://www.linkedin.com/in/marinenelson/ Learn m...

Karolina Rzadkowolska is a certified alcohol-free life coach who helps powerful women make alcohol insignificant in their lives. This podcast answers a lot of the questions about drinking and whether or not you might be drinking too much, She’s worked with thousands of clients through her online courses and coaching to change their drinking habits and unleash a new level of health, happiness, and...

Tim Brooks was one of the nation's top high school lacrosse recruits, from a great family, living in one of America's most affluent suburbs. But when he showed up on Good Morning America, it wasn't because he'd won a college lacrosse title, it was because he was likely headed to prison for being the No. 2 man in a drug ring who's takedown made national headlines. Seven years sober, Tim talks with...

Leigh Steinberg is probably the most notable agent in the history of sports. He's often credited with being the real-life inspiration for the movie Jerry Maguire. But he really doesn't really want to talk about movies or his star-studded roster of clients over the years - from Troy Aikman to Pat Mahomes. What he wants to talk about is being sober for more than a decade and how he did it. It's an i...

Debra Olson spent more than 25 years working as a hairdresser in the film industry so it's no surprise her story is ripped from a Hollywood script. She moved to LA as a teen and the party was just getting started. Her run in movies and TV was legendary in and out of the studio and her collapse was just as epic. Now almost 20-years sober, she describes how she got through to the other side and shar...

Amy Liz Harrison has eight kids and 10-years sober, I could stop right there. She had four children when she ended up in jail for driving drunk with them all in the car. At that point, her “perfect” public and wasn’t even put together on the surface anymore and the masquerade was over. She’s recently written a book and her honesty about her journey in recovery is contagious, it’s also eye-opening...

Thomas “Hollywood” Henderson was one of the best young players in the NFL. By the time he was 25-years old, he’d made the Pro Bowl and played in three Super Bowls (winning one) on America’s Team the Dallas Cowboys. But as his career evolved so did his addiction to cocaine. It started hanging out in Los Angeles with Richard Pryor and Marvin Gaye and ended with a love for crack and finally big troub...

Erika is a fixture at 12-step meetings in the Austin area but she'll tell you that her work in recovery and on herself doesn't stop there. You'll hear from her today because she's one of those people that has what a recovering alcoholic wants and if you want to understand what that is, just take a listen. Drunk, sober, or trying to get just one day clean: this podcast is for everyone, as she drops...