Grieving Out Loud: A Mother Coping with Loss in the Opioid Epidemic
Angela Kennecke is a journalist who lost her 21-year-old daughter Emily to fentanyl poisoning on May 16, 2018. Angela is "grieving out loud" to try to put an end to this epidemic by stopping the stigma and promoting the treatment of substance use disorder as the disease it is. Anyone coping with loss and looking for inspiration can benefit from listening to this podcast.
Episodes
182 episodes since 2019
A family’s battle for justice in the fentanyl crisis
Hans Arwine choked back tears as he recalled the moment he had to tell his wife that their son was gone. ”That was the hardest thing I’ve ever done–tell his mother that he was no longer with us,” he said.The heartbreaking scene is tragic...
September 18, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 182
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29:20
Family invited to the State of the Union to raise fentanyl awareness
An Iowa couple was invited to the State of the Union address for a reason they could have never imagined just a few years ago. Deric and Kathy Kidd were unaware of how lethal the illicit drug supply had become until the day they found their tee...
September 11, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 181
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36:59
Former Purdue Pharma sales rep turns whistleblower
Opioid deaths started skyrocketing when the powerful prescription painkiller OxyContin hit the market. Purdue Pharma, the company behind the drug, has been found guilty of numerous charges. It is now featured in a new Netflix original, "Painkil...
September 04, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 180
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28:31
A mother's journey through grief, addiction, and finding hope after losing her daughter
Your life dreams may include starting a business, building a dream home, or nurturing a healthy marriage. But for many, like Sandra Radford, the deepest dream is raising children—a dream she fought to achieve through IVF. Despite the heartbreak...
August 28, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 179
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32:58
From pediatrician to pill mill: The shocking case of Dr. Volkman
He’s one of the most notorious pill mill doctors: Dr. Paul Volkman. Sentenced to four consecutive life sentences for unlawfully prescribing pain medications that led to multiple deaths, his story is a shocking descent from a respected pediatric...
August 21, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 178
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40:26
ESPN reporter shares personal tragedy of losing both parents within hours to fentanyl
She’s known for her Sideline Shimmy. ESPN sports broadcaster Lauren Sisler is a sideline reporter for college football and gymnastics. But behind the camera, Lauren hid a family secret for a decade. Both of her parents struggled with opioid use...
August 14, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 177
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51:36
Expert insights on preventing substance abuse
Not only is the United States battling its deadliest drug epidemic in history, but an increasing number of Americans are also struggling with substance use disorder. According to survey data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services...
August 07, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 176
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36:53
Mother shares grief journey after losing two children to drug overdose
Grief—it's a heavy burden, a journey that changes us forever. Each person's path through it is uniquely painful. Today, nearly one in three Americans has felt the devastating loss of someone to a drug overdose. In this episode of Gr...
July 31, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 175
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27:39
Growing up in the shadow of addiction
Think back to your childhood—maybe you remember a classmate who misbehaved. Did you know what was happening at home? In Baleigh Cerv's case, she struggled with living with a father who suffered from alcohol addiction and was abusive.Unf...
July 24, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 174
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29:34
A grieving father's fight to bring deadly drug dealers to justice
Should drug dealers face prison time? It's a contentious issue with strong opinions on both sides. For years, law enforcement often treated drug overdose deaths as accidental or the fault of the victim. However, with a record surge in fentanyl-...
July 17, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 173
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31:41
Promising young entrepreneur dies after taking counterfeit percocet
At just 19 years old, Jack Nathan had a bright and promising future. He founded his own apparel company, Happy Jack, and generously donated some proceeds to support children struggling with mental health issues.However, a single decision...
July 10, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 172
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30:03
The silent crisis of alcohol and women's liver disease
Originally released on August 4th, 2022Deaths from alcohol-related liver disease are rising sharply among women. Today's guest...
July 03, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 171
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31:15
CEO launches passion project to educate others about grief
Grief—it's a heart-wrenching emotion that most of us will likely have to experience. Often, we're unprepared for the overwhelming pain and sorrow, and we struggle to know how to support friends who have lost loved ones.A Sioux Falls, Sou...
June 26, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 170
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36:32
A mother's urgent message on mental health and addiction
Have you ever wondered how deeply intertwined mental health and addiction can be? According to reports published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, around half of those with serious mental health issues also struggle with subst...
June 19, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 169
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36:41
One woman's path to overcome abuse and addiction
In this episode of Grieving Out Loud, Angela Kennecke talks with Elaine Mingus about her journey through severe challenges and eventual recovery. Elaine shares her story of surviving sexual abuse and battling depression, an eating diso...
June 12, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 168
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33:10
“Half my original family is gone” - Fentanyl’s deadly toll on families
After Heather Ruzic tragically lost her son to illicit fentanyl in 2015, she made it her mission to warn others about the danger. Yet, as time passed, she witnessed more parents suffering similar tragedies while the epidemic continued to impact...
June 05, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 167
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27:46
A middle-class family man's journey into homelessness and heroin
Tom Wolf embodied the quintessential image of a middle-class family man—married, with two children, living in the suburbs, and holding a steady job as a child support officer. However, his life took a drastic turn after a seemingly routine foot...
May 29, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 166
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44:15
A grieving mother's memoir about addiction inspires a screenplay
"Slow Dancing with the Devil"--that's the title of Susan Bartz Herrick's book that's now being turned into a screenplay. It's a story that the grieving mother never wanted to write--a heartbreaking memoir of her son's relentless 20-year battle ...
May 22, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 165
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29:58
Embracing hope after the loss of a daughter to suicide
The statistics are deeply troubling. Between 2007 and 2021, youth suicide rates surged by more than 60%. Data from t...
May 15, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 164
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33:12
A wake-up call for parents on Fentanyl Awareness Day
Fentanyl—dubbed by some as America's haunting "F" word—continues to carve a path of destruction across the nation. With the U.S. facing its deadliest drug epidemic in history, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says fentanyl is one ...
May 07, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 163
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45:19
Grieving father takes on Purdue Pharma after son dies from OxyContin
As the inspiration behind characters in the award-winning books "Dopesick" and "Raising Lazarus," Ed Bisch shares his journey of turning personal tragedy into a force for powerful change. Following the heart-wrenching loss of his high school so...
May 01, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 162
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35:52
Prince's cousin's efforts to expose the truth behind the musician's fentanyl death
Eight years have passed since the world lost Prince, an unparalleled musical force and one of America's most revered artists. During his life, the creative genius sold over 100 million records, ranking him among the best-selling musical artists...
April 21, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 161
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29:42
A mother-daughter journey from Hollywood to heroin to healing
From a young age, Sarah Spier seemed destined for success. At 18 years old, she landed a job as a film specialist for the Academy Award-winning movie No Country for Old Men. But her Hollywood dreams quickly turned into a nightmare of heroin add...
April 17, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 160
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49:15
A candid conversation with the real doctor who inspired Michael Keaton's 'Dopesick' character
World-renowned actor Michael Keaton has won several awards, including his first Emmy, for his performance in the Hulu series "Dopesick." The "Batman" actor portrays a hard-working doctor in a small mining town who gets addicted to the pain pill...
April 10, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 159
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55:22
Cancer patient uses his addiction battle to create a potentially life-saving device
Ever feel like you've hit a certain age, and your chance to impact the world has passed you by? In today's Grieving Out Loud episode, we'll introduce you to Neil Jackson, who proves that age is just a number. In his early 60s, Neil face...
April 03, 2024
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Season 6
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Episode 158
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27:16