Thrive While Loving an Addict | Addiction | Sobriety | Recovery | Relapse

Healing from trauma rarely happens all at once. It unfolds over time, often in ways that are difficult to recognize while you're living through them. The journey beyond survival can be uncertain, filled with moments of growth, grief, and unexpected clarity. In Part 2 of this conversation, Jason Prokowiew returns to continue sharing his story. Building on the experiences explored in Part 1, he refl...

What does it take to understand a parent who hurt you? Not excuse them. Not justify what happened. Simply understand them in a way that helps make sense of wounds that have been carried for years. In this episode, KL Wells sits down with Jason Prokowiew, author of War Boys , to explore the lasting impact of addiction, generational trauma, and the possibility of finding healing through understandin...

For years, Sherry Ehrin grieved a sister who was still alive. When her sister eventually died after decades of addiction, that grief did not end. In many ways, it began again. This conversation explores the kind of loss that families often carry quietly: the grief that accumulates through years of relapse, hope, disappointment, and difficult choices. It is a story about love, capacity, boundaries,...

What does it mean to love someone through addiction when the addiction is almost completely invisible from the outside? In this episode, KL Wells sits down with Dr. Wanda Kay, a clinician, somatic therapist, and coach who spent twenty years married to someone struggling with sex addiction while raising children, building careers, and trying to hold together a life that appeared stable to everyone...

What does it look like to grow up inside the kind of environment many families are trying to help their loved ones escape? Bill Hoopes shares what it was like to take on adult responsibility at a young age in a home shaped by addiction and mental illness. His story offers a perspective that many listeners may recognize, especially those who learned early on to care for others before learning how t...

In this episode of Thrive While Loving an Addict , KL Wells sits down with Lauren Fay to explore the hidden emotional landscape of addiction, particularly when it is shaped by perfectionism, secrecy, and the pressure to maintain an image. Lauren shares her experience of appearing put together on the outside while quietly struggling with alcohol and mental health challenges behind closed doors. As...

Episode Summary In this episode of Thrive While Loving an Addict , KL Wells sits down with Dr. Robb Kelly, a neuroscientist and addiction specialist, to explore what it means to understand addiction as a disease rather than a moral failure. Dr. Kelly shares his personal journey from early exposure to alcohol in childhood to losing his family, home, and stability, and eventually living on the stree...

Episode Summary In this episode of Thrive While Loving an Addict , KL Wells sits down with Dawn Jackson, a nurse, grief recovery specialist, and author, to explore what happens when grief goes unnamed for years. Dawn shares her experience growing up with both a biological father and a stepfather struggling with alcoholism, and how those early environments shaped what felt normal, safe, and familia...

Episode Summary In this episode of Thrive While Loving an Addict , producer Steve Cary joins host KL Wells to explore how deeply rooted patterns shape the way we think, respond, and relate to others. Many of these patterns begin in childhood as survival strategies within family systems affected by addiction, chaos, or emotional unpredictability. KL reflects on how growing up with a mother struggli...

Episode Summary In this powerful conversation, host KL Wells sits down with Paul Simard, a death doula, TED Talk speaker, and men’s wellness coach, to explore how our relationship with grief, loss, and mortality shapes the way we love. Drawing from his personal journey through crisis and transformation, Paul shares how facing life’s hardest realities can open the door to deeper compassion, connect...

Episode Summary In this episode, podcast producer Steve Cary joins host KL Wells for an honest and reflective conversation about what it means to thrive while loving someone in active addiction. KL shares lessons from her 20-year journey with her son Sam, including his nearly three years of sustained recovery. Together, they explore the perspective that shaped KL’s healing path: the belief that li...

Episode Summary In Part 2 of this compassionate conversation, host KL Wells continues her dialogue with Denise Frenette on what it truly means to heal while loving someone with addiction. Together, they explore how forgiveness, boundaries, and emotional honesty can exist without minimizing harm or excusing destructive behavior. Denise reflects on her own journey of reconciling love for her father...

Episode Summary In this powerful episode, host KL Wells sits down with Denise Frenette , a Canadian spiritual synergist, life coach, and author of the newly released book, More . Denise opens up about the birthing process of her book and the profound realization that she could not teach others about manifestation and habit-breaking without first confronting her own origin story. Denise shares the...

In this deeply moving and honest episode, host KL Wells is joined by Jim Horton, a father who tragically lost his 19-year-old son, Zach, to an opiate addiction. Recorded during the holiday season, a particularly challenging time for many, this conversation offers a raw and authentic look at the rollercoaster ride of grief. Jim shares his personal story, from the initial shock and all-consuming pai...

In this episode, host KL Wells welcomes Pamela Tosh, an energy healer and yoga teacher joining us from Cape Town, South Africa. Pamela shares her incredible story of resilience and transformation, from a childhood marked by emotional abuse and early struggles with addiction to a profound spiritual awakening in the Himalayas. She recounts how her journey to India for yoga teacher training became th...

In this powerful episode, host KL Wells welcomes the extraordinary Mike Pierce, also known as "Antarctic Mike." Mike shares his incredible life story, from conquering the Antarctic Ice Marathon to navigating the profound challenges of his late wife Angela's 36-year battle with chronic pain and opioid addiction. This episode is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit, offering a raw and h...

In this powerful and deeply personal episode, host KL Wells sits down with fellow podcaster Krista Zaft to explore the generational cycles of addiction and the profound healing that comes from breaking them. Krista shares her story of growing up with an alcoholic father, unconsciously repeating familiar patterns in her own marriage, and facing one of the biggest challenges of her life: her son's a...

In this deeply moving episode, host KL Wells is joined by Dr. Janelle Martin, a functional medicine doctor and counselor from Houston. Dr. Martin shares the raw and transformative story of her daughter's journey through addiction and her own parallel path to recovery. She opens up about the hidden family traumas—divorce, parental alienation, and abuse—that served as the backdrop for her daughter's...

In this powerful and deeply personal episode of Thrive While Loving an Addict , host KL Wells welcomes author and cycle-breaker Wendy B. Correa to discuss her extraordinary journey from childhood trauma to profound healing. Wendy shares the genesis of her complex PTSD and anxiety, starting with the traumatic death of her father and the subsequent years spent walking on eggshells with an alcoholic...

In this episode of Thrive , host KL Wells sits down with Ian Vassilaros—a licensed therapist, business consultant, and coach—to explore the destructive power of shame and its hidden role in addiction and disconnection. Ian shares his professional journey into the heart of shame, unpacking how this often-overlooked emotion corrodes self-worth and drives human suffering. Listeners will learn the cri...

In this powerful third installment of our series with KL Wells , host Steve Cary explores KL’s deeply personal 20-year journey of loving her son, Sam, through the grips of addiction. Timed with National Sobriety Month , this conversation includes a moving update on Sam’s recovery and a heartfelt message of hope he recently wrote. KL shares her emotional transformation—from trying to “fix” her son...

In this powerful and deeply personal episode of Voices InCourage: Thrive While Loving an Addict , host KL Wells sits down with Amanda Bourque—certified addiction recovery coach and author of Living in My Sister's Shadow . Amanda opens up about her harrowing experience as the sister of an addict, navigating the emotional turmoil of watching her younger sister Jenna battle heroin and fentanyl addict...

Episode Summary: In this insightful episode, host KL Wells sits down with Dr. Amy Swift , Deputy Chief Medical Officer at Silver Hill Hospital in New Canaan, Connecticut. A leading addiction specialist, Dr. Swift brings a holistic approach to mental health, addiction, and trauma care. Together, they discuss the realities of addiction treatment, the critical role of families, and how emerging appro...

In this powerful episode, host KL Wells sits down with Leslie Johansen Nack —award-winning author and advocate—as she prepares to launch her third book on addiction and recovery. Leslie opens up about her deeply personal journey, from a childhood marked by abuse and family dysfunction to overcoming addiction and creating a life rooted in purpose and advocacy. Together, they explore the importance...

Host KL Wells welcomes Elicia Ybarra, founder of Pretty Hands Hard Punches, for a powerful conversation about resilience, healing, and empowerment. Drawing from her upbringing in a family affected by addiction, Elicia shares how martial arts became her refuge and ultimately her life’s passion. She opens up about navigating postpartum depression, ADHD, and trauma, and how therapy, boundary-setting,...