What does it really mean to love someone through addiction — and how do we move beyond the idea that rehab is the only way forward?
The answer is rarely simple. We want to show up, to help, to protect — but sometimes our love feels heavy, confusing, or not enough.
Joanna and I talk about the complicated love of siblings — the guilt, the hope, the heartbreak — and how stories like hers and mine can remind us that none of us are alone in this.
In The Opioid Trilogy, Joanna brings these stories to life with unflinching honesty: Brother captures her intimate phone calls with her brother as he navigates the fragile cycle of recovery; Do No Harm follows Raina McMahan’s 17-year struggle with heroin and the healing power of connection over punishment; and Coming Home traces Tahira Malik’s journey of rebuilding after addiction and incarceration, and her creation of a safe space for women reentering society.
Together we dig into:
The complicated love of siblings — the guilt, the hope, the heartbreak
Paths to recovery beyond rehab
The failures of the rehab industry
How to help and support a loved one in early recovery, or sober curious
And what it means to love someone through addiction, even when you don’t have the answers
If you’ve ever wrestled with the idea of tough love, or questioned, “Am I loving them the right way?” this conversation is for you.
📘Download our FREE, sibling e-book: 6 actions to help navigate a sibling’s substance use journey
🤝Join our FREE and PRIVATE sibling-focused community: Siblings For Love of Recovery
📲Connect with FLOR: Instagram and TikTok
🎙Guest speaker: Joanna Rudnick
Watch The Opioid Trilogy’s short films:
Ep 1: Brother
Ep 2: Do No Harm
Ep 3: Coming Home
“Rat Park,” explained: