Buckle up for a compelling 50-minute discussion on Falling to Freedom,

where host Chad LaComb, recounting his own gritty road to restoration,

talks with Dr. Ricky Bluthenthal.

This USC powerhouse, with a UC Berkeley PhD and 200+ papers in top

journals like The Lancet, knows addiction inside out: from HIV fights in

the '80s in Oakland (even getting busted running a needle exchange

program as a grad student) to unpacking booze's uneven toll on

communities.

Chad asks: Why pump tax dollars into needle exchange programs, Narcan

kits, and Housing First if they just keep folks hooked? I’d rather see

that cash fuel abstinence programs, ones that teach real skills for a

substance-free life.

Dr. Bluthenthal counters with: "You can't recover if you're dead." He

suggests that data on how harm reduction, fentanyl strips and safe use

sites—cuts deaths, HIV rates, and even nudges people toward quitting,

all while tapping our brain's soft spot for positive reinforcement.

Topics such as California's vetoed AB 255 for sober housing, LA's

Measure J and CalAIM's low-barrier care push are among the topics; raw,

real talk that challenges the narratives surrounding addiction's real

fight.

Watch on YouTube or stream it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever

you listen to podcasts. #HarmReduction #AddictionRecovery #SoberLife #OpioidCrisis#MentalHealthAwareness #OpioidCrisis #MentalHealthMatters#SoberOctober

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sparking these real talks in recovery. Let's keep building