Get a Grip Podcast

In this unforgettable episode of Get a Grip Podcast, Louis Essig and Aaron Garnes sit down with Mickey Mills to share one of the most shocking and inspiring recovery stories ever featured on the show.
Born in St. Petersburg, Russia and adopted into the United States, Mickey's life was shaped by trauma from an early age. After losing a close friend to suicide and experiencing abuse, she spiraled into addiction, overdosing on benzodiazepines and experimenting with heroin by just 15 years old.
Mickey opens up about homelessness, toxic relationships, living under bridges, moving across the country, entering the sex industry, and becoming involved in criminal activity tied to addiction and human smuggling operations near the border. What began as substance abuse evolved into a life marked by exploitation, trafficking, violence, and survival.
She also provides powerful insight into the psychology of abusive relationships, addiction, methamphetamine use, dissociation, and the realities many never see behind trafficking and sex work.
Through overdoses, near-death experiences, dangerous situations, and devastating betrayals, Mickey somehow survived. Life-changing moments eventually led her toward recovery, motherhood, and a new purpose.
Today, she works with survivors of human trafficking and uses her experience to help others escape situations she once believed she would never survive herself.
This episode is a raw look at addiction, trauma, recovery, and redemption—and a reminder that transformation 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, iHeart Radio links, a more on our Link Tree below!
Get a Grip Social Media Links: ⁠https://linktr.ee/officialgetagrippodcast
For Collaboration and Business inquiries, please use the contact information below:
📩 Email: [email protected]
👇 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 #changinglives

In this episode of Get a Grip Podcast, Louis Essig and Aaron Garnes sit down with Isabella Hoover to share a story filled with addiction, betrayal, toxic relationships, family struggles, and ultimately recovery.Isabella's life started with challenges from day one. Born addicted and suffering a stroke as a baby, she faced obstacles long before she could understand them. As a teenager, she was dealt another devastating blow when her mother was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer, sending Isabella deeper into a lifestyle of partying and poor decisions.
What followed was a relationship that would completely change the course of her life.
Isabella opens up about meeting the father of her child, the shocking betrayals that followed, and the chaos that consumed their lives. From infidelity and addiction to increasingly bizarre and toxic situations, she shares the reality of being trapped in a relationship fueled by drugs, manipulation, and dysfunction.As opioid use escalated, Isabella found herself battling addiction while trying to navigate pregnancy, motherhood, and a crumbling relationship. She also tells the terrifying story of nearly dying from severe kidney abscesses and spending a month in the hospital, where powerful pain medications contributed to an even deeper dependence on fentanyl.
The situation only became more complicated after the birth of her child. Child protective services became involved, custody battles emerged, and Isabella was forced to make impossible decisions about her future and the future of her baby.Through it all, she eventually found the strength to break free from addiction, leave behind the chaos, and begin rebuilding her life.
This episode is a raw and emotional look at how addiction and toxic relationships can destroy lives—and how recovery can create a path forward even when everything seems lost.
🔥 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, iHeart Radio links, a more on our Link Tree below!
Get a Grip Social Media Links: ⁠https://linktr.ee/officialgetagrippodcast
For Collaboration and Business inquiries, please use the contact information below:
📩 Email: [email protected]
👇 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 #changinglives

In this episode of Get a Grip Podcast, Louis Essig and Aaron Garnes sit down with Kenny Maupin to talk about how addiction can happen to anyone — even someone who had a good childhood and loving family. Kenny opens up about growing up in a stable home before his parents divorced at a young age, something that quietly affected him more than he realized at the time.
What started with marijuana and alcohol eventually progressed into harder drugs and ultimately IV heroin use. Kenny shares how addiction slowly took over his life, changing the way he thought, lived, and viewed himself. He talks honestly about the emotional pain, the progression of substance abuse, and how quickly recreational use turned into full-blown dependency.
Throughout the conversation, Kenny reflects on the choices he made, the people he hurt, and the moments that forced him to confront the reality of his addiction. But this episode is also about hope, transformation, and purpose. Today, Kenny is sober and dedicating his life to helping other people break free from addiction and rebuild their lives.
This is a powerful reminder that addiction does not discriminate. No matter your upbringing, background, or circumstances, anyone can fall into the cycle — and anyone can recover with the right help, honesty, and support.
If you or someone you love is struggling with addiction, this episode offers real insight, encouragement, and proof that 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, iHeart Radio links, a more on our Link Tree below!
Get a Grip Social Media Links: ⁠https://linktr.ee/officialgetagrippodcast
For Collaboration and Business inquiries, please use the contact information below:
📩 Email: [email protected]
👇 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 #changinglives

In this episode of Get a Grip Podcast, Louis Essig and Aaron Garnes sit down with Tree Burns for one of the rawest conversations yet. Raised in chaos with a mother addicted to cr4ck and a father constantly in and out of prison, Tree’s childhood spiraled fast. By just 9 years old he was already getting high, running the streets, robbing convenience stores, and getting lit at school while trying to survive a life with no real stability.
As the violence, partying, and addiction escalated, Tree found himself in and out of trouble, spending years in DYS and later bouncing from house to house, couch to couch, and relationship to relationship just trying to make it. From drinking and fighting constantly to becoming homeless after a police encounter, his life only kept getting darker.
Things took an even harder turn when he was introduced to m3th and eventually started selling f3ntanyl throughout southeastern Ohio. Tree opens up about the paranoia, daily drug use, chasing people down in a U-Haul after being robbed, and the criminal lifestyle that eventually led to direct indictments and serious consequences.
One of the most heartbreaking moments of the interview comes when Tree talks about smoking cr4ck with his own father for the first time — a cycle of addiction passed down from generation to generation. What started as a broken childhood turned into years of destruction, benders, arrests, lies, and losing himself completely.
But this episode is more than just addiction and crime. Tree reflects deeply on becoming a father, losing relationships, hitting rock bottom, and finally realizing that the life he was living was built on lies. He shares how honesty with his probation officer became the first real step toward getting clean and how reflection changed the way he sees himself and the world around him today.
This is a powerful story about generational trauma, survival, addiction, consequences, and redemption. If you’ve ever struggled, loved someone battling addiction, or wondered how people end up trapped in these cycles, this episode gives an unfiltered look into that reality.
🔥 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, iHeart Radio links, a more on our Link Tree below!
Get a Grip Social Media Links: ⁠https://linktr.ee/officialgetagrippodcast
For Collaboration and Business inquiries, please use the contact information below:
📩 Email: [email protected]
👇 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 #changinglives

In this intense and brutally honest episode of Get A Grip, Louis Essig and Aaron Garnes sit down with Carl Wilson for one of the most chaotic and emotional conversations the podcast has ever had. Carl takes listeners deep into his past, opening up about a rough childhood filled with instability, violence, and early exposure to addiction. From getting hooked on painkillers in high school to spiraling into harder drugs later in life, Carl tells his story with raw honesty and zero filters.
What starts as stories about growing up in a small town quickly turns into unbelievable tales of addiction, bad decisions, heartbreak, and survival. Carl talks about the wild side of his younger years, including reckless partying, cow tipping adventures, and the toxic relationships that followed him through adulthood. He also shares painful moments from his personal life, including getting caught cheating by his wife and how those choices impacted everyone around him.
The conversation gets even heavier when Carl opens up about the abuse he suffered at the hands of his stepfather, including a violent incident involving a 2x4 that left lasting emotional scars. He explains how trauma and untreated mental health issues shaped many of the decisions he made later in life, eventually leading to a stay in a mental hospital. Louis and Aaron guide the conversation through some dark territory as Carl explains the paranoia, breakdowns, and psychosis he experienced during years of heavy drug use.
Carl also shares the stories behind trying cocaine and meth for the first time, describing how quickly things escalated once those substances entered his life. One of the craziest moments of the episode comes when he tells the full story of a terrifying car accident while high on coke, Jack Daniels, and weed — a moment that could have easily ended his life or someone else’s.
Despite all the darkness, the episode also has moments of humor, reflection, and honesty that make it impossible to stop listening. Carl speaks openly about regret, survival, relationships, and trying to find meaning after years of destruction. The episode closes with an absolutely unbelievable psychosis story that leaves Louis and Aaron speechless and perfectly captures just how insane Carl’s journey has been.
This is one of the rawest and most unforgettable episodes of Get A Grip yet.
🔥 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, iHeart Radio links, a more on our Link Tree below!
Get a Grip Social Media Links: ⁠https://linktr.ee/officialgetagrippodcast
For Collaboration and Business inquiries, please use the contact information below:📩 Email: [email protected]
👇 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 #changinglives