Episodes

  • I Overdosed, Lost My Leg & Died 3 Times | From Homeless Addict to 14 Years Sober

    I Overdosed, Lost My Leg & Died 3 Times | From Homeless Addict to 14 Years Sober
    May 15 2026
    Kevin Parker had everything stripped from him — his health, his freedom, his leg, and nearly his life. After a night that started with a family intervention and ended with him face-down in his own vomit, Kevin flatlined three times, spent three weeks in a coma, developed sepsis, gangrene in all four limbs, multi-organ failure, and woke up an amputee. The doctors said he'd be brain dead. They said he'd never walk. They said he'd never use his hand again. He proved every single one of them wrong. In this raw and powerful episode of Rise Above, Kevin shares: The morning of his overdose and what led up to it Waking from a coma to find out he'd lost his left leg How he went from atheist to finding God in that hospital bed Learning to walk again in 2 months (doctors said 2 years) How he regained nerve-damaged hand function through sheer will His journey from concrete laborer and drug dealer to certified recovery coach and motivational speaker Why he believes addiction is a spiritual search — not a moral failure If you're in your first 90 days, deep in it, or loving someone who is — this episode is for you. 🔔 Subscribe for new episodes every week 📲 Follow Kevin Parker: @thekevinjparker (Instagram) | Recovery Warrior 33 (TikTok) 📩 Email: truewarriorssuccess@gmail.com If you or someone you love is struggling with addiction or mental health, you don’t have to do it alone. Reach out to my partners at Compassion Behavioral Health. They offer individualized care and a full continuum of treatment. Call or Text: 844-443-5669 Visit: https: https://compassionbehavioralhealth.com/?utm_source=rise%20above%20with%20kevin%20lanning&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=may #RiseAbove #AddictionRecovery #SoberLife #RecoveryCoach #OverdoseSurvivor #14YearsSober #Amputee#SecondChance #SobrietyStory #HeroinRecovery #OpioidCrisis #TrueWarrior #RecoveryIsPossible#MentalHealth #SpiritualAwakening #PodcastInterview #RiseAbovePodcast #KevinLanning #KevinParker#OneMoreDay Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hr and 17 mins
  • From Eating Disorder to 30 Years in Recovery: Trauma, EMDR & Healing

    From Eating Disorder to 30 Years in Recovery: Trauma, EMDR & Healing
    May 15 2026
    In this powerful episode, I sit down with Rachel Pappert Docekal, a recovery advocate and executive at the Hanley Center in West Palm Beach. Rachel opens up about her own 30-year recovery journey — starting with an eating disorder in college, the friends who loved her enough to intervene, and the layers of childhood trauma she's worked through over decades of therapy, including EMDR. We also get into: Why addiction is a brain disease — and why removing the substance alone isn't enough How process addictions (gambling, food, phones) hijack the same dopamine system as drugs The danger of high-THC cannabis and marijuana-induced psychosis Medication-assisted treatment (MAT) — what it is, when it helps, and how to think about it Hanley's groundbreaking 5-day family program and why family support is the #1 relapse prevention tool Kratom, 7-OH, and the next addiction crisis coming for our kids What life in long-term recovery actually looks like Whether you're in recovery, supporting a loved one, or just curious — this one is not to be missed. If you or someone you love is struggling with addiction or mental health, you don’t have to do it alone. Reach out to my partners at Compassion Behavioral Health. They offer individualized care and a full continuum of treatment. Call or Text: 844-443-5669 Visit: https://compassionbehavioralhealth.com/?utm_source=rise%20above%20with%20kevin%20lanning&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=may #RecoveryPodcast #AddictionRecovery #RiseAbove #EatingDisorderRecovery #TraumaHealing #EMDR#HanleyCenter #MentalHealth #SubstanceUseDisorder #SoberLife #SoberCurious #FamilyRecovery#MATtreatment #AddictionAwareness #RecoveryIsPossible Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    58 mins
  • She Married a Drug Dealer in Vegas While Running From Cops | Cocaine Addiction, a Federal Raid & Getting Sober

    She Married a Drug Dealer in Vegas While Running From Cops | Cocaine Addiction, a Federal Raid & Getting Sober
    May 14 2026
    Courtney Janssen grew up in a farm town outside Chicago watching domestic abuse and drinking become "normal." By 12 she had her first drink. By her twenties she was doing cocaine daily to survive double shifts bartending in Nashville. Then she impulsively married a man she barely knew — in Vegas, hours after he fled an undercover detective — and woke up pregnant, broke, and trapped in a verbally abusive marriage while feds surveilled her house. The morning federal agents kicked in her door with guns drawn, her daughter was two months old and she was still breastfeeding. This is the story of how she climbed out of it all — postpartum psychosis, divorce lawyers weaponizing her past, years of sobriety — and is now building a sober nightlife concept in South Florida. If you or someone you love is struggling with addiction or mental health, you don’t have to do it alone. Reach out to my partners at Compassion Behavioral Health. They offer individualized care and a full continuum of treatment. Call or Text: 844-443-5669 Visit: https://compassionbehavioralhealth.com/?utm_source=rise%20above%20with%20kevin%20lanning&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=may #sobriety #recoveryispossible #addiction #soberlife #cocainerecovery #postpartumdepression#domesticabuse #survivorstory #mentalhealthmatters #sobercommunity #addictionrecovery #traumarecovery#truecrime #podcast #womeninsober Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    52 mins
  • Throwing Up Blood & Still Drinking | Stage 4 Cirrhosis, Liver Transplant & 19 Months Sober

    Throwing Up Blood & Still Drinking | Stage 4 Cirrhosis, Liver Transplant & 19 Months Sober
    May 12 2026
    Chelsea Garber was diagnosed with Stage 4 cirrhosis of the liver — and kept drinking for nine more months. After losing her son, battling drug addiction, surviving 50+ hospital admissions, and being given just three months to live, Chelsea made the hardest decision of her life: she poured out her last drink on September 29th, 2024. Just 80 days after a life-saving liver transplant, she sat down with Kevin Lanning to share the full story — the suicide note she wrote to her daughter, the moment everything changed, and what keeps her fighting every single day with 19 months sober. This is one of the most powerful episodes we've ever done on Rise Above. ⸻ 📲 Follow Chelsea: TikTok: @chelseablake1125 If you or someone you love is struggling with addiction or mental health, you don’t have to do it alone. Reach out to my partners at Compassion Behavioral Health. They offer individualized care and a full continuum of treatment. Call or Text: 844-443-5669 Visit: https://compassionbehavioralhealth.com/?utm_source=rise%20above%20with%20kevin%20lanning&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=may #addiction #recovery #sobriety #livercirrhosis #livertransplant #alcoholism #soberstories #riseabove #mentalhealth #soberlife #alcoholrecovery #cirrhosis #liverDisease #sober #drugsrecovery #recoveryispossible #addictionrecovery #sobertok #kevinlanning #podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hr and 7 mins
  • I Survived Iraq…Then Crystal Meth Nearly Destroyed My Life | 5 Felonies, Combat Trauma & Finding Sobriety

    I Survived Iraq…Then Crystal Meth Nearly Destroyed My Life | 5 Felonies, Combat Trauma & Finding Sobriety
    May 10 2026
    Marine Corps veteran Spencer Jones opens up about surviving combat deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan, battling trauma after leaving the military, and falling into a devastating crystal meth addiction that led to five felonies and complete chaos. After serving over 20 years in the Marines, Spencer struggled with the loss of structure, identity, and purpose once civilian life began. What started as partying quickly spiraled into addiction, arrests, and rock bottom. Today, Spencer is over 3 years sober and now helps others in recovery through his work at Compassion Behavioral Health. In this episode, Spencer shares: Combat trauma and surviving IED attacks in Iraq The mental health struggles veterans face after service How crystal meth addiction took over his life Getting arrested and facing 5 felonies Veterans Court and rebuilding his life Finding purpose through sobriety and helping others recover Spencer now works at Compassion Behavioral Health, the sponsor of Rise Above, where he helps veterans and others struggling with addiction and mental health challenges find recovery and purpose again. If you or someone you love is struggling with addiction or mental health, you don’t have to do it alone. Reach out to my partners at Compassion Behavioral Health. They offer individualized care and a full continuum of treatment. Call or Text: 844-443-5669 Visit: https://compassionbehavioralhealth.com/?utm_source=rise%20above%20with%20kevin%20lanning&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=may #AddictionRecovery #MarineVeteran #Sobriety #CrystalMeth #MentalHealth #RecoveryJourney #PTSD #Veterans #RiseAbovePodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hr and 7 mins
  • Inside a Heroin Addict’s BRUTAL Lifestyle | Joining a Gang, Attempted Murder, Prison & Sobriety

    Inside a Heroin Addict’s BRUTAL Lifestyle | Joining a Gang, Attempted Murder, Prison & Sobriety
    May 9 2026
    Robert Cruz shares his unbelievable story of addiction, gang violence, prison, armed robbery, and ultimately redemption. After losing his brother at 13, Robert turned to drugs and alcohol to numb the pain. What started with marijuana eventually spiraled into heroin addiction, gang life, violent crime, prison sentences, and multiple arrests. Robert opens up about being charged with attempted murder, serving years in prison, robbing people to feed his addiction, and hitting rock bottom after realizing how far heroin had taken him. He also shares the powerful moment that changed everything and how he’s now approaching 16 years sober. This is one of the rawest addiction and recovery stories ever shared on Rise Above. If you or someone you love is struggling with addiction or mental health, you don’t have to do it alone. Reach out to my partners at Compassion Behavioral Health. They offer individualized care and a full continuum of treatment. Call or Text: 844-443-5669 Visit: https: https://compassionbehavioralhealth.com/?utm_source=rise%20above%20with%20kevin%20lanning&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=may #addiction #heroinaddiction #sobriety #prisonstory #recovery #ganglife #mentalhealth #riseabovepodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    2 hrs and 4 mins
  • I Was Drinking a Bottle of Vodka a Day at 20 | Inside a Young Alcoholic’s DOUBLE Life

    I Was Drinking a Bottle of Vodka a Day at 20 | Inside a Young Alcoholic’s DOUBLE Life
    May 7 2026
    Alkhuzama Zaini shares her powerful story of alcoholism, blackouts, college addiction, mental health struggles, and finding sobriety at a young age. From moving to America from Saudi Arabia, to drinking a bottle of vodka a day at ASU, hiding her addiction from family, terrifying withdrawals, and ultimately rebuilding her life through recovery, this is a raw and honest conversation about Gen Z addiction, validation, isolation, and healing. This episode discusses alcoholism, mental health, blackouts, recovery, relapse, therapy, family dynamics, and the reality of getting sober young. Follow Alkhuzama: TikTok & Instagram: @alkhuzamazaini If you or someone you love is struggling with addiction or mental health, you don’t have to do it alone. Reach out to my partners at Compassion Behavioral Health. They offer individualized care and a full continuum of treatment. Call or Text: 844-443-5669 Visit: https://compassionbehavioralhealth.com/?utm_source=rise%20above%20with%20kevin%20lanning&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=may #addiction #sobriety #alcoholism #recovery #mentalhealth #sober #alcoholaddiction #genz #recoveryjourney #podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 hr and 4 mins
  • I Was an IV Fentanyl Addict | Heroin, Felonies & How I Finally Got Clean

    I Was an IV Fentanyl Addict | Heroin, Felonies & How I Finally Got Clean
    May 6 2026
    Kyle Caughman grew up in a small town with a great family, played sports, and had no trauma… but one decision changed everything. What started with pain pills quickly spiraled into shooting heroin, driving hours to buy drugs, and selling it back in his hometown. As addiction took over, Kyle lost control of his life, faced multiple felonies, lost custody of his son, and found himself trapped in the cycle of fentanyl. “I did a lot of drugs by myself… I’d take a shot and just wake up hours later.” After years of addiction, jail time, and hitting rock bottom, Kyle finally reached a breaking point and chose a different path. Today, he’s over 2 years sober, rebuilding his life, his family, and his future. This is a raw, unfiltered story about heroin, fentanyl, crime, and what it really takes to get clean. If you or someone you love is struggling, this episode could be the wake-up call. If you or someone you love is struggling with addiction or mental health, you don’t have to do it alone. Reach out to my partners at Compassion Behavioral Health. They offer individualized care and a full continuum of treatment. Call or Text: 844-443-5669 Visit: https://compassionbehavioralhealth.com/?utm_source=rise%20above%20with%20kevin%20lanning&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=may #heroinaddiction #fentanyl #addictionrecovery #sobrietyjourney #drugs #recovery #dopestory #cleanandsober #addictionhelp #mentalhealth Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    52 mins