In this episode of Brokenish, we sit down with a clinician who was helping people recover from addiction… while quietly struggling with his own.

This is the reality most people never see.

We talk about:

• What it actually feels like to be a “wounded healer”
• The pressure of helping others while falling apart internally
• Why some therapists shouldn’t be practicing
• The truth about masking, people-pleasing, and childhood trauma
• Addiction as a way to disappear
• And what it really takes to come back and reappear

One of the most powerful moments in this episode:

“I used heroin because it worked the fastest… I just wanted to disappear.”

If you’ve ever struggled, felt like you had to hide who you are, or wondered if the people helping you actually understand… this conversation will hit.

Recovery isn’t about perfection. It’s about honesty.

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If you or someone you love is struggling with mental health or addiction, you’re not alone.

What if everything you’ve been told about marketing in behavioral health is wrong?

In this episode of Inside Ava Health, we break down how we launched a treatment program in a community that didn’t trust providers… without relying on ads, big budgets, or traditional marketing strategies.

No Google campaigns. No massive ad spend. No shortcuts.

Instead, we focused on something most organizations ignore: real community engagement and trust.

And the results speak for themselves: • 168 qualified referrals in the first 90 days • 47 employees hired with no hiring struggles • Near-perfect early retention • Clients and staff who felt connected before ever walking through the door

This episode dives into:

• Why “marketing” in behavioral health is broken
• How authenticity and content outperform paid ads
• The power of embedding into a community before opening
• Building trust with both clients and employees at the same time
• Why most treatment centers feel “beige” and how to stand out

If you’re in behavioral health, business, or building anything that requires trust… this conversation will change how you think about growth.

This isn’t theory. This is what actually worked.

🎙️ Inside Ava Health is a behind-the-scenes look at building one of the most innovative behavioral health programs in the country.

Subscribe for real conversations on mental health, addiction, recovery, and what it actually takes to build something that works.

“I went hard for a life that destroyed… now I go hard for a life that creates.”

This episode of Broken-ish is raw, unfiltered, and real.

Hectik shares his story of growing up surrounded by addiction, getting his first charge at just 8 years old, and spending 17 years behind bars. What started as something that looked “cool” quickly turned into a cycle of destruction, prison, and losing the people who mattered most.

But this isn’t just a story about addiction.

It’s a story about choice. About rock bottom. About what happens when you finally ask yourself… “what do I actually want?”

Now 5 years sober, Hectik is using music, events, and community to normalize sobriety and prove that life after addiction isn’t just possible… it can be powerful.

In this episode, we talk about:

• How addiction gets normalized early
• The truth about “rock bottom” (and why it’s different for everyone)
• Losing family, identity, and self-worth
• The moment everything finally changed
• Building a life rooted in purpose, not destruction
• Why connection is the cure

If you or someone you love is struggling, this conversation could change everything.

👇 Drop a comment: What did YOU take away from this episode?

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🎙️ Broken-ish Podcast Real stories. Real recovery. Real people.

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