Get a Grip Podcast

In this intense and deeply personal episode of Get a Grip Podcast, Louis Essig and Aaron Garnes sit down with TJ Ice for an unfiltered conversation about childhood trauma, violence, addiction, military service, homelessness, unimaginable loss, and the difficult road to recovery. TJ opens up about growing up in a rough environment and enduring horrific experiences as a child, including his mother's boyfriend attempting to kill him on two separate occasions. His childhood struggles followed him into school, where his behavior eventually led to his expulsion from Whitehall City Schools. By just 12 years old, TJ was already experimenting with drugs, setting the stage for years of substance use and instability.
After graduating high school, TJ joined the Navy, but life after military service took a difficult turn. He became a severe alcoholic and eventually began experimenting with opioids. Despite the chaos in his life, he went on to earn an art degree, but his substance use continued to escalate. He became involved with LSD, cocaine, and eventually methamphetamine. At one point, TJ found himself homeless, living out of a car while using drugs and trying to navigate a life that seemed to be falling apart. When cocaine no longer gave him the effect he was looking for, meth entered the picture, pushing his addiction into another dangerous chapter.
TJ eventually met his wife and began turning his life around. He got married, bought a house, and started building the future he had always wanted. But just as things seemed to be moving in the right direction, tragedy struck. His child was born underdeveloped and passed away in the hospital, leaving him and his wife facing an unimaginable loss. Unable to cope with the grief, TJ relapsed heavily into cocaine, alcohol, and marijuana. His marriage became increasingly volatile, domestic violence incidents followed, and the relationship reached a breaking point. After a violent confrontation involving an ashtray, TJ realized he needed help and reached out to someone who could get him into detox.
In this episode, TJ also shares the devastating childhood memory of witnessing his father kill his grandfather, an experience that adds another layer to the trauma he has carried throughout his life. Today, after years of addiction, loss, and destructive decisions, TJ is working toward a different future. He opens up about getting sober at his mother's house and reaching 14 months of sobriety. His story is a difficult reminder of how unresolved trauma and grief can shape a person's life, but also how asking for help can become the beginning of something different.
🔥 Expect emotion. Expect truth. Expect hope.
🔔 Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more powerful stories about addiction, recovery, resilience, and redemption.
Get a Grip Podcast Social Media:
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#GetAGripPodcast #TJIce #AddictionRecovery #ChildhoodTrauma #Alcoholism #CocaineAddiction #MethAddiction #OpioidAddiction #MilitaryVeteran #Homelessness #DomesticViolence #Grief #MentalHealth #RecoveryJourney #14MonthsSober #SoberLife #WeDoRecover #RedemptionStory

In this powerful and unfiltered episode of Get a Grip Podcast, Louis Essig and Aaron Garnes sit down with Shawna Nelson for a raw conversation about growing up around alcoholism and addiction, becoming caught in the cycle of substance abuse at a young age, losing custody of her children, and ultimately serving nearly nine years in prison. Shawna takes us back to her childhood, growing up with an alcoholic father and watching her mother’s addiction take hold. When her mother became sick and her father was involved in an accident, painkillers became a major part of the family’s life. By just 12 years old, what should have been childhood had turned into a constant party, and before long, Shawna was experimenting with pills herself.
At only 15, Shawna met a man through a hotline and ran away with him, becoming a missing person. As her addiction progressed, losing her daughter pushed her further into the world of pain pills. She later became pregnant with twins, married the man supplying her drugs, and was introduced to heroin. Even after getting some clean time and experiencing another pregnancy, relapse pulled her back into addiction. When her ex gained custody of the children, Shawna's life spiraled further out of control. She began smoking crack, eventually progressed to shooting heroin, and found herself injecting both heroin and crack every day. The consequences were becoming impossible to escape, and legal trouble was closing in.
After an intervention and pressure from her family to get treatment, Shawna finally entered rehab, but she didn't stay. She left treatment and was arrested at Cashland, setting off a chain of events that would change the rest of her life. Facing a possible lengthy sentence, she accepted a plea deal for nine years and ended up serving almost every day of it. Shawna opens up about what life was like behind bars, witnessing addiction inside prison, and what it took to finally make a different choice when she came home. Today, she has nine years sober, and her life looks completely different. This is a story about addiction, motherhood, consequences, incarceration, second chances, and the strength it takes to rebuild a life after years of destruction. Shawna's journey is a reminder that even after years of pain and seemingly impossible setbacks, recovery is possible.
🔥 Expect emotion. Expect truth. Expect hope.
🔔 Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more powerful stories on addiction, recovery, and resilience.
Get a Grip Podcast Social Media: Find our TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio links, and more on our Linktree below!
Get a Grip Social Media Links: https://linktr.ee/officialgetagrippodcast
👇 Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
#getagrip #redemptionstory #mentalhealth #mentalhealthawareness #addictionrecovery #recoveryjourney #trauma #childhood #oxy #dealer #soberlife #wedorecover #childhoodtrauma #healing #inspiration #awareness #kingpin #trafficking #hustle #opioidcrisis #neardeathexperience #fyp #prison #bar #mistake #change #survivor #survival #tv #television #inspire #parole #officer #school #teacher #students #study #student #changinglivesdaily

In this episode of Get a Grip Podcast, Louis Essig and Aaron Garnes sit down with Andy Diggs for an intense, unfiltered conversation about 45 years of addiction, alcoholism, crack cocaine, homelessness, suicide, and the fight to reclaim his life. Andy’s story is a powerful look at how addiction can consume decades of someone's life, taking them through unimaginable highs and lows before they finally find a way out.
Andy opens up about growing up without a father while his mother raised five children on her own. His relationship with alcohol began incredibly young, starting at just 10 years old. He shares stories from his childhood, his early drinking days, and eventually joining the military. But even as he entered adulthood, the path ahead was already being shaped by addiction.
In the 1980s, Andy was introduced to cocaine and crack, and by 1986, smoking crack had become part of his life. What followed was a devastating cycle of alcohol and drug use, multiple DUIs, treatment attempts, homelessness, and repeated relapses. He describes getting arrested with a blood alcohol level five times the legal limit, entering treatment for the first time in 1992, and struggling to stay sober after separating from his wife.
Andy also shares some of the darkest moments of his addiction, including a suicide attempt, being robbed while trying to buy crack, and the lengths he went to just to keep using. At one point, he was walking two hours to work every day so he could afford more crack. As the years passed, painkillers became another major part of his addiction, and despite periods of sobriety, he continued battling crack, alcohol, and prescription drugs.
After decades of trying to escape the cycle, Andy finally reached his breaking point in 2019. Following 23 years of crack, alcohol, and painkiller addiction, he made his way to Maryhaven and began the work of rebuilding his life. Today, he reflects on what recovery looks like, how he survived 45 years of substance use, and what he wants others who are struggling to understand.
This is a story about survival, perseverance, and the possibility of change no matter how long someone has been caught in addiction. Andy’s journey is a reminder that it is never too late to ask for help and start over.
🔥 Expect emotion. Expect truth. Expect hope.
🔔 Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more powerful stories on addiction, recovery, and resilience.
Get a Grip Podcast Social Media: Find our TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio links, and more on our Linktree below!
Get a Grip Social Media Links:
https://linktr.ee/officialgetagrippodcast
👇 Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
#getagrip #redemptionstory #mentalhealth #mentalhealthawareness #addictionrecovery #recoveryjourney #trauma #childhood #oxy #dealer #soberlife #wedorecover #childhoodtrauma #healing #inspiration #awareness #kingpin #trafficking #hustle #opioidcrisis #neardeathexperience #fyp #prison #bar #mistake #change #survivor #survival #tv #television #inspire #parole #officer #school #teacher #students #study #student #changinglivesdaily

In this episode of Get a Grip Podcast, Louis Essig and Aaron Garnes sit down with Carrie Ann for a raw and eye-opening conversation about opioid addiction, heroin, crime, motherhood, and the difficult road to recovery. Carrie Ann’s story reveals just how quickly prescription painkillers can take over someone’s life and how far addiction can push a person when getting high becomes the only thing that matters.
Carrie Ann opens up about growing up with an alcoholic father and how her life began to change after leaving a healthy relationship and getting involved with someone she describes as the “bad boy.” Her introduction to opiates eventually turned into a serious addiction, made even more complicated when she was prescribed Lortab and Percocet for severe period cramps. What started with prescription medication quickly spiraled out of control.
As her addiction progressed, Carrie Ann began stealing money from work, including taking insurance copays to support her daily pill habit. After losing her job and cashing out her 401(k), she moved from prescription painkillers to heroin and eventually began injecting drugs. She also shares how she was introduced to speedballing and just how dangerous and chaotic her addiction became.
Her story takes an even darker turn as she describes the crimes she committed to support her habit, including burglarizing a woman's home, getting followed by police, and being caught at GameStop. After spending a night in the Pike County Jail and facing a felony burglary charge, Carrie Ann went right back to using. She also opens up about robbing a store while under the influence of Xanax and the destructive decisions that continued to follow her.
Carrie Ann eventually became pregnant and managed to stay clean throughout her pregnancy, but the battle with addiction was far from over. One of the most difficult moments came when her daughter discovered that she was getting high. That experience became part of a much bigger turning point, as Carrie Ann began to recognize what addiction had taken from her and what she needed to do to change.
Today, Carrie Ann shares what finally started clicking, what recovery looks like in her life, and the lessons she hopes others can take from her experiences. This is an honest conversation about the consequences of addiction, the impact it has on families, and the possibility of finding a way out even after years of destructive choices.
🔥 Expect emotion. Expect truth. Expect hope.
🔔 Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more powerful stories on addiction, recovery, and resilience.
Get a Grip Podcast Social Media: Find our TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio links, and more on our Linktree below!
Get a Grip Social Media Links:
https://linktr.ee/officialgetagrippodcast
👇 Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
#getagrip #redemptionstory #mentalhealth #mentalhealthawareness #addictionrecovery #recoveryjourney

In this episode of Get a Grip Podcast, Louis Essig and Aaron Garnes sit down with Amber Ray for an intense and deeply personal conversation about childhood abuse, addiction, alcoholism, toxic relationships, and the long road to recovery. Amber’s story is a powerful look at how childhood trauma can follow someone into adulthood, shaping their decisions, relationships, and struggles with addiction.
Amber opens up about growing up with an abusive mother, the painful experiences she endured as a child, and the lasting impact those experiences had on her life. She also reflects on her high school years, when experimenting with ecstasy became part of her everyday world. As she got older, alcohol and Xanax became her drugs of choice, and by the age of 18, substance use had begun taking control of her life.
What followed was a devastating 16-year battle with alcohol. Amber shares stories about drinking every day, the people and situations that fueled her addiction, and even a shocking experience involving what she describes as a literal “Get Out of Jail Free Card.” Eventually, the drinking began catching up with her, and the life she had built started to fall apart.
Amber also discusses marrying someone who struggled with alcoholism, the complicated and sometimes dangerous dynamics of that relationship, and how her experiences led her down an unexpected path. Through years of pain, unhealthy relationships, and destructive choices, she eventually began finding her way toward recovery.
Today, Amber reflects on what it took to change her life and offers advice to anyone who may be struggling with addiction, trauma, or the feeling that they are trapped in a cycle they cannot escape. Her story is a reminder that the past does not have to define the future and that recovery can begin even after years of struggle.
🔥 Expect emotion. Expect truth. Expect hope.
🔔 Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more powerful stories about addiction, recovery, resilience, and redemption.
Get a Grip Podcast Social Media: Find our TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio links, and more on our Linktree below!
Get a Grip Social Media Links:
https://linktr.ee/officialgetagrippodcast
📩 Collaboration & Business Inquiries: getagrippodcast614@gmail.com
👇 Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
#getagrippodcast #addictionrecovery #alcoholism #alcoholaddiction #recoveryjourney #childhoodtrauma #childhoodabuse #mentalhealth #sobriety #xanaxaddiction #addiction #recovery #healing #trauma #toxicrelationships #wedorecover #soberlife #secondchances #inspiration #hope