🚨 Trigger Warning:

This episode includes frank and emotional discussion of childhood sexual abuse, addiction, relapse, hospitalization, and incarceration. It’s raw, real, and may be triggering for listeners with past trauma. We don’t hold back—because healing doesn’t either. Listener discretion is strongly advised.

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Who this episode is for:

– Anyone who’s ever looked in the mirror and thought, “What the actual f*ck am I doing with my life?”

– People buried in addiction or dragging themselves out of it with broken fingernails.

– Survivors of trauma who are sick of pretending they’re fine.

– The families still standing by, hoping for a miracle that doesn’t come in a straight line.

– And those not in recovery who can’t look away from a comeback story that punches you in the gut and somehow still makes you laugh.

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🎙️ Episode Title: Kelly, Kevin & the Magic of Mayhem

Chris and Jakob sit down with Kelly and Kevin—two beautifully wrecked humans with a love story that starts in relapse, crashes through jail cells and hospital beds, and somehow circles back to spiritual magic.

Kelly was 9 years sober… and then wasn’t. Kevin was the “do-not-call” guy she called anyway. There’s vape smoke, ER visits, dead grandmas, addiction-fueled lies, and somehow, still… hope. This one’s rawer than a sunburn, funnier than it should be, and way too real to be fiction.

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⏱️ Timestamp Breakdown:

0:00 – 5:27

Chris kicks it off with a warning: this one’s gonna hit hard. Jakob’s smiling like he knows we’re all about to cry. Kelly and Kevin introduce themselves and the chaos begins.

5:28 – 14:12

Kelly talks about relapsing after nearly a decade sober. Kevin’s the guy from her past who walks right into the storm. Jakob asks the questions we’re all too afraid to ask.

14:13 – 24:37

Hospitalizations. Jail. A Vegas wedding that shouldn't have worked but somehow did. Kevin shows up when Kelly’s at rock bottom, and the story shifts.

24:38 – 32:00

Grandma’s jewelry box becomes a full-blown spiritual metaphor. Chris gets choked up. Kevin didn’t plan on being anyone’s savior—he just wanted to get laid.

32:01 – 44:55

Vape pens and half-truths. Jakob introduces the word “magic.” Everyone tries to laugh through the pain. Kelly's in and out of consciousness. Kevin’s showing up even though he’s not all there himself.

44:56 – 1:00:33

Kelly wakes up in the hospital and Kevin is by her side. Jakob calls it divine. Chris just yells “That’s God!” a few times. Everyone agrees it’s something.

1:00:34 – 1:19:45

Kevin talks about his past—dealing, stealing, manipulating—and how recovery didn’t start until the lies stopped. Kelly opens up about the real reason she relapsed: buried trauma, including childhood sexual abuse, that she had never fully faced.

1:19:46 – 1:34:10

They break the cycle. Or try to. Kevin starts meditating. Kelly glows. Chris throws down a sermon about grace. Jakob drops mystical wisdom bombs.

1:34:11 – 1:52:18

Listener questions come in hot. Kelly: “I thought if I got sober again, I’d have to feel.” Kevin talks about rebuilding trust brick by painful brick.

1:52:19 – END (2:13:45)

Final reflections. Jakob says something that makes everyone pause. Kelly and Kevin are raw, redeemed, and still healing. The room is wrecked. But nobody’s alone.

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🎤 Guest Titles:

Kelly – Recovery Queen with Battle Scars & Spiritual Bling

Kevin – Ex-Dealer Turned Meditating Miracle-Man with Vape Breath

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📌 Mentioned in the Episode:

📚 Magic Is Real – Jakob’s spiritual holy grail, a book that dives into spirituality through the lens of addiction and mental illness:

https://www.amazon.com/Magic-is-Real-1-book-series/dp/B087JM8W38

💰 Sponsored by:

🛏️ Illinois Recovery Center – https://illinoisrecoverycenter.com/

🛡️ McKelvey Insurance – http://mckelveyins.com/

• Those addicted to drugs and/or alcohol
• Anyone who's ever woke up not knowing what city they're in (or why there's a meth pipe under their pillow)
• People who thought Goldberg from The Mighty Ducks just "fell off"
• Fans of 90s nostalgia with a side of real-life wreckage
• Anyone who's ever made a mess of their life (and wants a way out)

You think you know Goldberg? Think again. Shaun Weiss joins the pod and rips the mask off the chaos, the meth, the mugshots, and what it really took to crawl out of hell. In this raw and unflinching episode, Chris, Jeff, and Jakob sit down with actor, comedian, and walking resurrection story Shaun Weiss—aka Goldberg the goalie from The Mighty Ducks franchise. You probably saw his mugshot a few years back and thought, "Damn, what the hell happened to Goldberg?" Well, he's here to tell you.

Shaun dives into his brutal addiction spiral, shady rehab scams, and rock bottom moments that nearly killed him—meth binges, jail cells, and stolen needles. This isn't a Lifetime movie; it's gritty truth with a shot of hope.

But there's redemption, too. Shaun breaks down how he got sober, the spiritual tools that actually worked for him (spoiler: not rehab horses), and how he's now turning that wreckage into a new life—including stand-up comedy, public speaking, and a whole new mindset powered by joy, not just survival. He even plugs Isha Kriya meditation from Sadhguru: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwQkfoKxRvo.

From Ducks memories and Dawson's Creek near-misses to hiding AA meetings inside bullshit treatment centers, this episode is equal parts hilarious, horrifying, and healing.

Oh, and yeah, Goldberg had the hots for Julie the Cat. We said what we said.

• 0:00 – Egyptian Workspace Partners ad
• 1:03 – Shaun drops bars, Pondoff fanboys out
• 2:37 – The Mighty Ducks legacy + Shaun's hockey conversion
• 5:45 – Duck teammates and NHL connections
• 6:38 – Dawson's Creek almost-casting and 90s commercials
• 7:42 – Royalty checks and childhood acting perks
• 8:45 – The real start of addiction
• 11:01 – Body brokering and how rehab became a racket
• 13:02 – Scholarship to rehab via Ducks nostalgia
• 14:01 – Mugshots, surrender, jailhouse awakening
• 17:01 – What really flips the switch in recovery
• 19:03 – Shaun's spiritual moment
• 22:28 – Booze and a 12-pack-a-day hellscape
• 25:40 – Opioid spiral + Vicodin chemistry
• 28:45 – CVS scavenger hunts
• 30:42 – Meth benders and shadow people
• 34:06 – Losing everything ($20K in 3 months)
• 35:13 – Shoplifting + Disney star fails
• 36:58 – Stand-up comedy and speaking truth
• 38:20 – Why addicts chase 1200s in a world of 100s
• 41:45 – Sadhguru + Isha Kriya meditation
• 44:03 – Joy in the small stuff
• 46:42 – Letting go of trauma
• 47:16 – Sobriety date and Kobe
• 49:13 – Rehab centers that don’t want the truth
• 51:36 – Underground AA meetings
• 53:58 – Why 90 days in sober living matters
• 56:36 – Meth addict to miracle
• 58:01 – Why this work beats any high
• 59:16 – Healing the whole family
• 1:00:13 – Losing his father, his fiancé, and his will to live
• 1:01:16 – Sharing needles and rock bottom
• 1:02:15 – What are we really numbing?
• 1:03:03 – Bringing Shaun to St. Louis
• 1:03:48 – NHL trades + Ducks nostalgia

Sponsored by:
Illinois Recovery Center
Egyptian Workspace Partners
McKelvey Insurance

Who this episode is for:

• Anyone who feels like they were an alcoholic before their first drink
• Parents secretly hating the newborn phase
• Therapists who drink alone and pretend it’s fine
• People who nurse a beer until it becomes a personality trait
• Anyone who’s ever made a mess of their life

Episode 22: Therapist, Addict, Jesus-Lover — Jeff Brenneman Uncensored

Strap in, degenerates. This one veers from Bible college to blackout whiskey nights, with a surprise stop for tea with the Taliban.

Chris, Jeff, and Jakob welcome Jeff Brenneman, Clinical Director at Illinois Recovery Center. Once on track to be a preacher, Jeff’s life swerved through addiction, fatherhood breakdowns, and some very questionable DIY detoxing (do not recommend). This dude was an alcoholic before his first drink—and you’ll hear exactly why.

They hit everything: Borderline Personality Disorder, perfectionism, fear of failure, therapy myths, Enneagrams, hiding from your own family, the dangers of being “the smart kid,” and what sobriety really takes.

Also: Jeff’s kid visited Afghanistan. For fun. That’s not a metaphor.

And while the Bible and recovery stuff run deep, there’s still plenty of chaos, Chris’s sex life, shame jokes, and Trader Joe’s tears to go around.

Timestamps include:

• 00:00 — Marco Bertorelli of Bertarelli Cutlery
• 03:17 — Meet Jeff: therapist, ex-drunk, accidental pastor
• 10:29 — Becoming a drunk despite a "perfect" life
• 25:07 — “I was an alcoholic before I took a drink”
• 30:43 — Borderline Personality Disorder gets real
• 41:17 — His son visits Afghanistan... because why not?
• 48:38 — Met wife in third grade. Cute, until the drinking.
• 53:07 — DIY detoxing while mom’s in the guest room
• 56:41 — The fifth of whiskey night
• 58:59 — Half-assing AA doesn't work (duh)
• 1:03:12 — Sponsorship & brutal honesty
• 1:14:15 — God, guilt, and post-bottle faith
• 1:23:01 — Jakob cries in Trader Joe’s
• 1:32:03 — Accountability: the real rehab
• 1:39:07 — Doing the work even when it sucks
• 1:47:11 — Why Jeff stays at IRC

Sponsored by Illinois Recovery Center and Bertarelli Cutlery

• Anyone who woke up with a Great Dane puppy and no memory of ordering it
• The families still trying to love a tornado in human form
• Addicts who’ve checked into rehab more times than they can count (Angela’s got you beat)
• People in recovery, people out of recovery, people still circling the drain
• Folks not in recovery but who’ve ever made a mess of their life and are wondering, “Now what?”

Chris and Jeff wrangle the now-married madness that is Angela and Dr. Chris Schenewerk—back for Round 3, but this time in the same damn room. And buckle up, because it gets unhinged in the best way.

There’s a five-grand Great Dane bought during a blackout. Jellyfish revelations. Dead ducks. Rehab round twelve. Boobs paid for by Angela (not her husband, thank you very much). Grief, laughter, rage, and a recovery meeting started in a damn bowling alley.

This episode’s a cocktail of chaos, clarity, and hard-won perspective. Recovery ain't a straight line—and this couple proves it’s still worth crawling the damn thing.

• 0:00 – Knife talk and sponsor shoutouts
• 2:00 – Angela and Dr. Chris together: Zeus the blackout puppy, John Wick the dog
• 5:00 – Angela’s animal kingdom: jellyfish, wood ducks, and regretful Amazon buys
• 10:00 – Clean Cause gets the spotlight (use code: PONDOFF for 20% off at cleancause.com)
• 15:00 – Dr. Chris opens up about losing his brother and not drinking through it
• 20:00 – Angela breaks down 12 rehabs, chaos, and what finally clicked
• 25:00 – Kids and the wreckage they witness—Angela owns her side of the street
• 30:00 – The “Three Amigos” Friday AA meeting is born in a bowling alley
• 35:00 – Dr. Chris’s recovery workbook—text him, he’ll mail you a copy
• 40:00 – Sobriety labels are dumb—just do the work
• 45:00 – Pandemic recovery meetings, muting drunk people on Zoom
• 55:00 – Rehab myths, boobs, and doing the next right thing
• 1:00:00 – Jersey trauma, 9/11 aftermath, and losing Jimmy
• 1:10:00 – Bridging recovery at Memorial Hospital—pamphlets, meetings, hope
• 1:20:00 – Bird jokes, orchid addiction, prostate talk—classic chaos
• 1:30:00 – Remembering Brian Schenewerk, prayer, and promising more babies

• Clean Cause Energy Drinks – 20% off with code PONDOFF
• Illinois Recovery Center
• Bertarelli Cutlery
• AA Meeting Finder
• Memorial Hospital Detox Bridge Program

This glorious mess brought to you by Illinois Recovery Center and Bertarelli Cutlery—because sharp knives and sharp minds save lives.

• Anyone who’s ever stared down their own addictions
• Families who don’t get why their loved one can’t “just stop”
• The “I’m not an addict, but I totally have addictive behaviors” crowd
• People obsessed with the science behind why their brains keep screwing them over
• Therapy nerds, recovery warriors, and dudes who need to get over being "too tough" to talk about emotions
• And of course — anyone who’s ever made a complete dumpster fire of their life

This one’s a little different. Jakob Miller from Pondoff’s Anonymous links up with Alex “Big Panda” Kaiser for a crossover between Pondoff’s Anonymous and No Lions Here. It’s raw, unfiltered, and exactly what you’d expect when two recovering addicts sit down and try to explain the brain science behind addiction without sounding like nerdy scientists.

Jakob breaks down his "Science of Addiction" class that he runs at Illinois Recovery Center — and finally records it for the masses. If you’ve ever sat in a treatment center, argued whether addiction is a disease, or wondered why you keep sabotaging your own life, this one’s for you.

They cover it all: trauma, dopamine, irrational thinking, relapse symptoms, why triggers are a scam, and how to hack your own brain before it tricks you back into using.

No sugarcoating. No bullshit. Just the real, uncomfortable truth about how addiction rewires your survival system and why emotional honesty might be the one thing that saves your life.

• Illinois Recovery Center — https://illinoisrecoverycenter.com
• No Lions Here Podcast — https://open.spotify.com/show/57389wCMh6z9aZgNqjgUSd?si=ffed6a42d19043c5

• 0:00 — Intro & Crossover Explained
• 1:25 — Jakob's Science of Addiction class: origins & goals
• 5:00 — Breaking down the “disease” model: treatable, not curable
• 8:15 — Trauma vs. addiction: Jakob's personal story
• 14:00 — The switch theory: when addiction gets "turned on"
• 19:00 — The 4 key symptoms that predict relapse
• 25:00 — Obsession, self-centeredness, irrational thinking, compulsion: deep dive
• 32:00 — Dopamine 101: how the brain wires addiction as survival
• 38:30 — Functional MRI studies: your cravings vs starvation
• 44:00 — Cravings, urges, triggers: why most coping advice is useless
• 48:00 — Hacking the brain with Navy SEAL tricks & cognitive exercises
• 54:00 — Practicing coping skills: the only way they actually start to work
• 59:00 — 90-in-90 meetings: how to taper off the right way
• 1:03:00 — Emotional intelligence: why men must feel their shit
• 1:09:00 — Jakob’s personal triggers and early relapse warning signs
• 1:15:00 — Drug choice is irrelevant: a dopamine problem is a dopamine problem
• 1:21:00 — How irrational thinking nearly killed Jakob
• 1:26:00 — Emotional honesty and real recovery work for men
• 1:32:00 — Wrapping it up: facing emotions head-on to stay alive

• Illinois Recovery Center
• Bertarelli Cutlery

Who this episode is for:
• Anyone battling booze, burnout, or both
• Moms hanging on by a thread with a wine glass in hand
• Those who think “functioning alcoholic” means everything’s fine
• Anyone who ever woke up and said, “How the hell did I get here?”
• People not in recovery who’ve ever run from themselves and called it “freedom”

Episode Title: "Closet Wine & Corporate Flights: Angela’s Fight for Herself"

Angela Schenewerk shows up and blows the roof off. From Cahokia childhood to hidden booze bottles in adulthood, she takes us through what it’s like to lose yourself in motherhood, wine, work trips, and bad relationships—and still come crawling back with a pulse. This one’s got fake arrests, rehab denial, blackouts, stalking boyfriends, air mattresses with wine underneath, and the dangerous myth of “having it together.” It’s wild. It’s heavy. It’s very Pondoff’s Anonymous.

Episode Timestamps:

• 00:00 - Bertarelli Cutlery shoutout & intro 🔪
• 01:26 - Angela enters the chat: Cahokia pride, first kisses & frozen rinks 🏒💋
• 05:01 - Bullied, broke & beloved: childhood chaos with JJ the underdog 👧💔
• 10:06 - Fake cops at a party, chipped teeth & her first wine cooler 🚓🍷
• 15:33 - Marriage, the bar biz, and wine as a coping strategy 🥂🏗️
• 20:48 - Work trips = escape hatch: hotel drinking begins 🏨🍾
• 25:57 - Freedom or isolation? India trip blurs the line 🇮🇳😶‍🌫️
• 30:39 - Skipping a wedding to drink alone: the addict’s choice 👰🚫
• 35:14 - Closet wine rituals, motherhood pressure & boxed denial 🧃🧠
• 39:58 - Bottles hidden everywhere, vodka refilled with water 💧🍸
• 44:15 - The trash bag moment: caught red-handed & broken 🗑️😵
• 45:41 - Rehab round one: denial, comparison & zero humility 🚫🏥
• 50:03 - Apartment after the split: air mattress, no furniture, lots of wine 🛏️🍷
• 54:17 - Trying to drink “normally” and failing fast 🌀📉
• 56:40 - Enter: the GPS-tracking boyfriend & Punta Cana chaos 📍🌴
• 01:01:19 - Alcohol over everything—even all-inclusives & love 💔🍺
• 01:03:33 - Stood him up for Cabo so she could drink freely at home ✈️🏠
• 01:06:08 - Hacked emails, blackmail & rock bottom behavior 💻🕳️
• 01:09:44 - Drinking before the kids woke up & donut-lie mornings 🍩🥃
• 01:14:27 - From motherhood to misery: drinking to function 👩‍👦‍👦💀
• 01:18:56 - Rehab roulette: detox, flights, and every excuse in the book 🎢✈️
• 01:22:35 - Still not ready to stop. Still not done breaking her own heart ⏳💣
• 01:26:47 - Final reflections: lost dreams, missed weddings & brutal truth 🪞🧨

Angela Schenewerk – Mom, ex-wife, closet drinker, blackout flyer, and survivor with a mic.
This is the kind of episode you share with someone who's still out there, hiding it all and thinking nobody sees them. Angela was that person. And she made it back.

Need help? Know someone who does?
Illinois Recovery Center

Keep your knives sharp (literally):
Bertarelli Cutlery

Pondoff’s Anonymous – where we call bullshit on silence, shame, and fake recovery stories.