Marine K9 handler Alfred Bretner discusses surviving an IED blast, the loss of his dog, and his path to healing.

Alfred Bretner was deployed to Afghanistan during Operation Dragon Strike, where he worked alongside his dog, Grief. After surviving two IED blast incidents that changed his life forever, Alfred returned home facing severe physical injuries and the invisible weight of trauma. In this conversation, he opens up about the reality of veteran recovery, detailing how he navigated the dark periods of pain medication dependency and near-suicidal thoughts to reclaim his life.

His story is a testament to the power of routine, faith, and therapy. Alfred explains the difficult process of achieving sobriety journey success, rebuilding his marriage, and finding a new purpose after the military. We also discuss the lessons found in his book, Surviving Grief, which offers a raw look at processing loss and moving forward after the unthinkable.

Sexual abuse. Family betrayal. Meth, heroin, and fentanyl. Borderline personality disorder. Jail. Stevie survived all of it — and has been clean since August 2025. | Free Like Me Podcast with Clark Fredericks

Stevie grew up in small-town Maryland in a home full of heavy drinking and conflict. She was first abused around age 6 by an uncle by marriage. Then groomed and assaulted by her great-uncle. At 11 years old — terrified for her little sister's safety — she reported him. He served 18 months and landed on the sex offender registry. Her extended family blamed her anyway. Her school made it worse.

What followed was years of compounding pain — diagnoses of borderline personality disorder and bipolar disorder, addiction that escalated from alcohol at 15 to meth, heroin, and fentanyl, repeated suicidal crises, and a revolving door of psychiatric facilities. Then jail. That became her turning point.

Stevie opens up about how DBT and CBT therapy, music, movement, sleep, and mindset work pulled her out — and why she went back for maintenance help when cravings returned instead of staying silent. This is one of the most honest conversations about what early recovery actually looks like day to day.

Religious trauma. Coercive control. Addiction. Depression. Deanna survived all of it — and rebuilt her life on her own terms.

Deanna grew up inside a strict Fundamental Baptist home where shame replaced support and obedience replaced safety. When she finally left, she had no tools to recognize manipulation — which made her the perfect target. A man named Steve used love-bombing, ecstasy, and calculated coercive control to pull her into repeated sexual exploitation she identifies as rape.

When she told her family, they stayed silent.
What followed was a spiral into heavy drinking, multiple DUIs, and a depression she drowned in alcohol. Rock bottom came in a jail cell. From there — through Alcoholics Anonymous, treatment, and community — she built something no one handed her: long-term sobriety, a storytelling platform called Intrepid Storytelling, and a family of three kids she created by choice through IVF, foster care, and adoption.

This is what recovering from religion and trauma actually looks like.