the lopriore podcast

Explore "the lopriore podcast" with insightful episodes like "The Stages of Addiction and Sobriety with Michael LoPriore", "Self-Defense, C-PTSD and Survival with Terra Newell", "Life After Reality TV with Hannah Berner", "The Mental Game with Andrew Jensen" and "Destigmatizing Therapy for Teens with Dr. Justin Puder" from podcasts like ""Off The Cuff with Danny LoPriore", "Off The Cuff with Danny LoPriore", "Off The Cuff with Danny LoPriore", "Off The Cuff with Danny LoPriore" and "Off The Cuff with Danny LoPriore"" and more!

Episodes (5)

The Stages of Addiction and Sobriety with Michael LoPriore

In this episode of Off the Cuff with Danny LoPriore, I’m joined by my very own brother and co-host of The LoPriore Podcast, Michael LoPriore! We’ve walked through a range of intimate struggles and victories together, in both childhood and adulthood, and today he’s sitting down with me to discuss his struggle with alcoholism, the catalysts that prompted him to make a change, and what it’s like to be in the throes of addiction.

“You’re always thinking about drinking, and also, it’s just dark. It’s like a weird dark, like, fuckin’ gravity-sucking feeling. It’s weird… I can’t explain it, but when you’re finally done and you take like two months, you just feel smooth. You feel like reborn or something.” – Michael (16:59)

We also explore the reality of sobriety in the early stages, how we each get through the day, Michael’s development as a content creator in the darkest season of his addiction, balancing control and moderation, his hope for the future, and how we’re supporting each other in sobriety. As Michael shares pieces of our early childhood and how those years impacted his perspective on the world, you’ll get intimate insight into the bond we’ve built over the years and how his love for comedy has carried him through difficult moments.

“I’m thankful it was a little bit easier for me to get through it in the beginning right now because I’ve gone through so much mental anguish as a kid. Like, just not liking myself for my Tourette’s and all of that stuff… It fucked me up, but I was still so confident in myself… Making people laugh has always been the weird savior of all my fuckin’ weird shit that I’ve gone through.” – Michael (46:32)

The journey to sobriety is a long and winding one, but Michael’s story is a great reminder that there is a light at the end of the tunnel if you can just reach out, ask for help, and take that first step toward changing your life.

“You have to fuckin’, keep walking and getting through it everyday. There’s always, always hope for light in there somewhere… I have so many good days that I’m thankful that I actually just remember and I always bring up in my head.” – Michael (50:31)

In This Episode:

(1:14) Michael LoPriore’s sober journey and getting back on Twitch
(5:22) Michael shares the turning point in his battle with addiction
(12:45) Unpacking how we understand marijuana abuse
(15:25) Why moderation and control can be hard to maintain
(17:56) Combatting the stress of everyday life and the peace that can come with sobriety
(22:22) The ways that we justify our addiction
(24:02) How substance abuse influenced who we are today and our experience as content creators
(30:32) Acknowledging the good and bad memories
(32:38) The physiological changes that come with sobriety
(33:34) Michael’s hope for the next few years
(38:24) Experiencing peace vs. despair
(46:06) Michael’s mental health struggles as a child
(49:51) There’s light at the end of the tunnel

Our Guest

Michael LoPriore is a Twitch streamer, comedian, co-host of The LoPriore Podcast, and the brother of Danny LoPriore. After struggling with alcohol addiction while sustaining a career in content creation, he’s two months into his sober journey. As he manages this sober lifestyle, he’s dedicated to growing his platform and bringing even more joy and prosperity to his life in the coming years.

Resources & Links

Off The Cuff

Michael LoPriore

https://www.instagram.com/thelopriorepodcast/?hl=en

Off The Cuff with Danny LoPriore

enDecember 14, 2022

Self-Defense, C-PTSD and Survival with Terra Newell

Today’s guest, Terra Newell, was only 25 when she survived a knife attack at the hands of serial predator and con man John, whom she killed in self-defense.

The shocking incident became the subject of 2018’s smash TV hit “Dirty John,” and Terra has gone on to share her story – and raise awareness for domestic abuse – on Dateline, Dr. Oz, KTLA, and more.

Six years after defending herself from John, Terra is still working through the trauma.

“[Everyone says], ‘Well, you know, we need everyone's stories because it's not just your story, you know, it's your mom's, it's this, that.’ I understand that they all have stories, but the reason why [John] isn't here today is because of me. And I have to hold onto that trauma and I have to live with that. And I am the only one that has to live with that.” – Terra (27:05)

Today, Terra joins me to share her story – including when she realized something wasn’t right about John, the “master manipulator” tactics she witnessed him using on her mother, and how her relationship with her mom has changed.

She also speaks candidly about being a trauma survivor, how C-PTSD has altered virtually every aspect of her life – from dating to physiological changes to getting through the day – and techniques she uses to cope.

“It's still like, I wish I didn't have to do that. Like I wish the cops could have handled it, but you know, everything happens for a reason. And I have to lean on that reason when those days come up because you know, I wanna be normal some days. I wanna be as normal as I can.” – Terra (44:06)

For Terra, something that helps her own journey to recovery is helping other trauma survivors, which she does through her trauma healing work.

“I get the people [who are at their] last resort. They're like, ‘I've gone to therapy. My therapist, I haven't learned anything from her.’ I'm like, ‘Well, I have been through a lot of stuff and I've gone through the process of it. So let me show you what has worked for me.’ … There's the commonality that everybody has been through. Something everybody has been hurt. And so I don't love to get to know people's hurt, but I love to bond with people over that, for sure. I know that we're all not alone.” – Terra

In This Episode

(01:51) Terra’s story: “My mom married a psychopath”
(03:59) The point that she knew something wasn’t right about ‘Dirty John’
(09:40) Love bombing, gaslighting, and other tactics of a master manipulator
(21:05) Being triggered as a trauma survivor
(23:38) America’s obsession with sociopaths
(28:21) A day in the life: How Terra copes with C-PTSD
(38:07) The healing role of animals in a trauma survivor’s recovery
(42:19) How Terra’s relationship with her mom has changed
(48:14) Dating with C-PTSD
(55:39) EMDR therapy and coping techniques
(1:03:03) The physiological effects of trauma
(1:06:27) Terra’s work as a trauma life coach
(1:10:45) “I know this is my purpose”

Our Guest

Terra Newell helps other survivors cope through her work as a trauma life coach and is the host of her own podcast, Time Out with Terra, and true crime podcast The Survivor Squad.

Currently, Terra is working with criminal behavior analyst Laura Richards to help pass laws against coercive control in the United States. With her help, one such law has already passed in California.

Resources & Links

Off The Cuff

Terra Newell

Off The Cuff with Danny LoPriore

enAugust 24, 2022

Life After Reality TV with Hannah Berner

Comedian Hannah Berner, who spent three seasons as a member of the Bravo show “Summer House,” isn’t someone whose big personality lends itself easily to the ultra-manipulated and overcut nature of reality TV – even though, she says, they tried.

“Imagine people who don't like you narrating your life to America. You're just like, f*ck it. That's how it happened. That's not how it happened. And it's hard ’cuz you're also oversimplified to these characters. Like there's the hot girl. There's the messy girl. There's the truth teller. There's the hot guy. There's the whatever. And like we're as humans so much more complex than that. … Then like six months [after production], [you’re] watching like a show that sometimes you don't really even recognize. And sometimes you even recognize yourself.” – Hannah (32:53)

On today’s episode, Hannah talks about the funhouse mirror of reality TV, leaving pro tennis for comedy after college, the identity politics of being Italian and Jewish, and why she prefers being standup-anxious to being tennis-pro anxious.

“I don't have that much fear and I'm not holding it too close to my ego. So I actually like don't really get nervous. The only time I get nervous is if like it's an audition for something or like I know someone's watching and I'll be like nervous for like the first five seconds. And then I'll kind of calm down. But also deep down, I like a little nerves. I like the high of it all, but I don't have the sick, horrible anxiety in my stomach that I used to have when I [played tennis]. I say it's like surfing – when you find the right thing, when you find the right wave, you just go.” – Hannah (45:26)

And how do you go from being a straight-edge tennis star to making it big in comedy, anyway? Hannah shares what the transition was like – and why she’s so much happier these days.

“I feel like I'm doing what I'm meant to do now. Even though I do love to play tennis, just ‘cuz you're really good at something doesn't always mean it's what you're meant to do. Or maybe for that time, it's what I was meant to do. But at this time in my life I found what makes me happy.” – Hannah (46:16)

In This Episode

(02:45) Leaving pro tennis for comedy
(08:13) Being a “bagel”: Hannah’s identity as a half-Jewish, half-Italian woman
(16:08) Why comics have insecurities, and getting canceled for controversial jokes
(22:16) Hannah’s whirlwind romance with her now-husband
(25:43) Men vs women in love
(31:08) How Hannah came to be on Bravo’s “Summer House”
(36:01) How reality TV impacted her mental health
(41:30) The courage it takes to leave relationships
(44:01) Hannah’s performance anxiety during standup
(50:03) Are you happy today?

Our Guest

Hannah Berner is a comedian, podcast host and mental health advocate. Hannah was a cohost on Bravo’s “Chat Room” and was a member of Bravo’s “Summer House” for three seasons.

Her podcasts, “Giggly Squad” and “Berning in Hell,” have more than 20 million downloads, and she has over 1.2 million followers on social media.

Hannah performs standup across the country.

Resources & Links

Off The Cuff

https://www.offthecuff.fm/
https://www.youtube.com/c/OffTheCuffwithDannyLoPriore
https://www.instagram.com/1and1otc/
https://www.instagram.com/dannylopriore/

Hannah Berner

Off The Cuff with Danny LoPriore

enAugust 03, 2022

The Mental Game with Andrew Jensen

Andrew Jensen started golfing at seven years old and went professional around 23.

His first suicide attempt happened at 16, with others between tours in his mid-twenties.

In this episode, Andrew joins us to talk about his journey as an athlete, how intergenerational toxic masculinity shaped his golf game, and the mental health struggles that contributed to his suicide attempts as a young adult.

“It was like trying to make it quick and painless as opposed to something that consciously hurt, I think, because if I look back, I really dive into it. It was much more the emotional pain that I wanted to continue to inflict, and have the physical be quick and make all of the pain end as opposed to some people who cut … want the physical pain to kind of take away from the mental pain. Whereas I was hurting myself so much internally that I just wanted to stop hurting period.” (30:30)

Andrew also shares how his struggles eventually led him to become a mental health advocate and YouTuber, where he uses his channel to not only help other golf enthusiasts with their game, but to continue to work through the long-lasting mental hurdles in his own.

“I think that's where it's like all those years of being a professional golfer and associating that identity now and like on YouTube. And if I have to stop at [that], you know, my knee jerk to that is like, f*ck I failed. ‘Cause I didn't achieve my goal. ‘Cause that was my need. That's how I felt. I feel as a golfer, I still feel like I'm a failed professional golfer, but whatever. And people on the internet love to tell me that too, but I don't f*cking care anymore.” (1:00:09)

In This Episode

(01:24) What makes golf so tough
(05:01) How Andrew started golfing
(12:47) Intergenerational toxic masculinity
(21:16) Andrew’s first struggles with mental health
(29:01) Andrew’s suicide attempts
(32:42) Recovering from the first attempt while still dealing with depression
(40:38) The intense pressure of pro sports and its effect on Andrew’s mental health
(53:02) How Andrew focuses on his mental health currently
(57:52) Andrew’s relationship with his wife, Kelly
(1:03:01) Will he let his son play golf?

Our Guest

Andrew Jensen competed around the world as a professional golfer for over a decade.

After breaking his arm forced him to leave pro golf, Andrew started a YouTube channel to document his journey as an athlete, share behind the scenes looks at tours, equipment and training, share about fatherhood and talk openly about sports and mental health.

Resources & Links

Off The Cuff

https://www.offthecuff.fm/
https://www.youtube.com/c/OffTheCuffwithDannyLoPriore
https://www.instagram.com/1and1otc/
https://www.instagram.com/dannylopriore/

Andrew Jensen

Off The Cuff with Danny LoPriore

enJuly 27, 2022

Destigmatizing Therapy for Teens with Dr. Justin Puder

“Crazy,” “heart attack kid,” “nuts.”

This week’s Off The Cuff guest, Dr. Justin Puder, heard it all as a kid who grew up struggling with mental health in small-town Ohio. That struggle, as well as the early loss of his father and brother from cancer and drug addiction respectively, introduced young Dr. J to therapy for the first time.

“[The therapist] didn't call it meditation. She didn't call it mindfulness. She's literally like, ‘We're just gonna do something together here.’ And she had me lay down and essentially she did a guided meditation. … I remember within minutes, like just two minutes into it, like I had opened my eyes because I was so excited. It was the first time I experienced peace in months.”

The experience inspired him to become a licensed psychologist himself. Now, Dr. J primarily works with teens at his Florida practice, where he specializes in mindfulness-based approaches to anxiety and stress reduction.

In this episode, Dr. J discusses growing up around mental health stigma at home and at school, the life-saving importance of destigmatizing therapy, the dangers of self-diagnosis, and how social media can both help and harm mental health.

“We've gone from like, again, never talking about mental health to sort of swinging. I feel like the pendulum swung far the other way, where it's just like, everybody wants to have the sticker label of some diagnosis. [But] clinging to a label isn't actually going to help you, in the long run, understand how to get better.”

If you’re unsure whether therapy is right for you, Dr. J shares some tips:

Work through a mental health workbook written by a licensed expert. You’ll learn more about the psychological principles that make therapy work, and gain a better understanding of yourself in the process.
Journal. You’ll become more comfortable putting your thoughts, fears and struggles into words, which can help you when you decide to talk to a therapist.
Remember that your well-being and mental health are worth the effort.

“For so many people out there, like if you're going through something mental health-wise and you're in that state [of panic and despair], I hope you can hear me and Danny that it can and does get better.”

In This Episode

The real-life childhood trauma that inspired Dr. J to become a therapist (04:30)
Dr. J’s first panic attack and the stigma of mental health in the Midwest (08:18)
The “breaking point” that led to Dr. J’s first therapy session (13:25)
Overcoming the stigma of therapy for teens (15:24)
The cultural and regional differences that contribute to stigmatization (18:48)
Social media and its impact on mental health (23:32)
The future of neuroscience in mental health treatment (26:35)
“Dr. Google” and the dangers of self-diagnosis (33:25)
Starting the therapy process (39:19)
The relationship between therapy and psychotropic medication (58:39)
The progress of mental health destigmatization in schools (01:09:33)

Our Guest

Dr. Justin Puder is a Florida-based licensed psychologist who earned degrees in psychology from Kent State University, Florida Atlantic University and Auburn University. He specializes in anxiety and stress reduction using mindfulness-based approaches.

Dr. Puder especially enjoys working with teens. As a mental health influencer, he uses social media (@amodertherapist on Instagram) to crush mental health stigma, and has worked with outlets including Vice, The DailyDot and LA Mag.

Resources & Links

Off The Cuff

Dr. Justin Puder