Voices In Recovery Podcast

We are honoured to have Don join us this week. Don is a Veteran of the Canadian Military, after leaving the military he decided to head back to school and get some education to help him do what he wanted, which was to help other veterans.  Don now works for Homes for Hero's whose mission is to provide a caring, innovative and comprehensive solution to homelessness among our veterans. Not only do we have a great conversation about the important work that Homes for Hero's is doing and what they have planned for the future. He opens up about deployment overseas and some of the incredible difficulties faced by our Canadian men and women when they serve in other countries. Thank you Don for your service and for sitting down to share it with us.

Martina's story begins in an orphanage in Egypt, which turned into a strange journey to Canada. She found the world of substance abuse at a young age, which showed her a life in and out of jail where she eventually began her recovery journey. Through the use of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy she has maintained her recovery and is now trying to focus on her own healing and understanding life without the fog of substances.

After a loss in her family, Jessica set out to start an organization called Change the Face of Addiction. Jessica talks about her own learning and working towards a better understanding of addiction, harm reduction, the politics of non profit funding, and the best way in which to help. To Find out more about her organization click HERE

We are so happy to have Bronwyn join us to talk about how she started down the path of substance use. With an early intervention from a friend and family, as well as her realizations about who she wanted to be. She was able to begin her life of recovery and loving life. Today Bronwyn is a life coach, helping others come through their darkness, whatever that may look like. She enjoys her life today, spending more time on the things she loves. Thank you Bronwyn!

We are joined by Logan, an aspiring local, Calgarian musician and university student. We have a great conversation about his music, inspirations, university life during covid and the challenges it presents. I hope you all will look for his music and check him out. I think his music is awesome and his message is a damn good one.

Vanisha joins us to talk about youth addiction, the Terminator Foundation and how things went through the Covid lock down. How the organization is recovering from the pandemic. She also now hosts her own podcast called Ordinary Courage. Listen to the podcast here and to find the registration or for more information about the Terminator Run go here.

We are happy to have Nicque join us to talk about the joy she finds and the things she does to create joy in her life. Struggling early on with substances fed her depression, self harm, and disordered eating. She talks about how she built a life that she thought was expected of her and how it all looked wonderful from the outside, but on the inside it wasn't her and it wasn't the life she really wanted. After trying new activities she was able to find some peace and connection. She has since completely changed her life, travelled, and is still trying as many new things as possible. Her mood and spirit is contagious and infectious, thank you Nicque!

Taylor sits down with us and talks about her experiences and how she feels being in recovery. Taylor faced racism and bullying in school; she quickly found out she fit in with older kids where she had access to substances and people who understood her. After a very personal and painful loss, Taylor began to increase her substance use. Despite moving across the country her addiction got worse until she attempted to overdose. She has been on the path of recovery ever since her overdose attempt. We want to thank Taylor for being open and sharing her courage, strength and hope with us.

We were honoured to sit down with Renee and hear her amazing story. Renee remembers her first abusers and from there we are taken to a life of masking pain at a very young age. She was in several abusive relationships sending her deeper into addiction. Today, in recovery, Renee is enjoying life as much as possible with her children and focuses daily on choosing to do the right next thing. Thank you Renee for sharing your story.

We are joined by Jin today. He takes us through the last few years of his life where he has had to find a way to cope with and live with the loss of his brother and his fiancé to suicide. This enormous loss has not only shaped his outlook on family, health and wellness, career, and his life. It has forever altered how he interacts and can empathize with people. It is an incredible story that we are honoured to share with you all. As he spoke, the love he has for his brother, family and anyone who might be suffering is so very evident. Thank you Jin, you are one special human.