Out of the Blue - The Podcast: Finding the Way Forward

Dave Loiterstein's recovery story starts earlier than most, with a quiet belief he carried as a kid: if his own mother didn’t want him, nobody ever would. Alcohol and drugs showed up fast, and the “off switch” never really existed. Together we talk honestly about what craving feels like, why some brains chase blackout instead of “just one,” and the disease model of addiction.

Then we get into th...

We pick up part two of our conversation with Steve Thoma and get honest about what happens when a musician finally lands the dream gig and decides it is time to “relax” with alcohol and drugs. Steve traces the arc from steady ambition to “using with great purpose,” and why the post-show rush can become the most seductive drug of all.

We also get into the nuts and bolts of recovery in the real world: g...

At six years old, playing piano duets with his grandmother was the first step toward the music industry, Hollywood, and even Frank Sinatra for musician Steve Thoma. From Detroit roots to a life as a classically trained pianist, arranger, composer, and conductor, Steve serendipitously found himself in “right place, right skill, right attitude” moments you can’t plan.

Steve breaks down what musicianship reall...

In Part 2 of our conversation with Dr. Nicole Labor, we discuss practical healing from trauma and why the "survive, strive, arrive, and thrive" model can work for anybody, not just those who are recovering from addiction.

We get concrete about nervous system support: movement, breath work, cold exposure, and the “smallest possible win” approach when depression or shutdown makes everything feel impossible.

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Dr. Nicole Labor returns to Out Of The Blue The Podcast to talk about what “reconstruction” really means after addiction and why recovery is about building a life that can hold happiness, connection, and purpose.

Dr. Labor breaks down addiction neuroscience in plain language, including her unforgettable dopamine baseball field analogy that explains tolerance, anhedonia, and why “normal” pleasures stop...

Dr. George Ackerman lost his mother to Parkinson’s disease and refused to let her story end there. His promise became Together For Sharon, a family-driven platform for Parkinson’s awareness, caregiver support, and education that now reaches thousands of people searching for answers and community.

Advocacy is not optional when research depends on funding. George shares what it’s like to go to the Capitol as ...

Our conversation with Ashshahid Muhammad continues. One moment he’s describing the shock of walking into art college, the next he’s explaining why he refuses to “sugarcoat” what addiction, homelessness, rehab, and relapse actually feel like.

We follow the path that takes him from learning graphic design to turning his life story into comic books, with room to carry the stories of people who never make...

Ashshahid Muhammad lost his eye from a bullet, which also ripped away the life he thought he understood. Surrounded by crime and addiction, he built an identity in the streets, then watched it collapse into homelessness, relapse, and pain. His comeback story is not polished, but real.

We talk about addiction recovery, the humiliating loop of rehabs and shelters, and the sneaky danger of relapsing when nothing seems “wr...

Consciousness, comedy, and AI collide in a way we didn’t expect. The conversation continues with Wendy Liebman as we discuss the future of intelligence, from quantum consciousness theories and microtubules as memory storage to the provocative idea of the universe as a kind of eternal information system.

That spiritual curiosity quickly meets real-world stories and raises a common question: where does consciousness go, ...

Wendy Liebman returns to help kick off season two of Out Of The Blue, and the conversation moves from punchlines to lifelines – how care, coincidence, and commitment can rewire a creative life.

Wendy opens up about a sudden loss that pulled a community closer, reflecting on how grief rearranges our priorities and reconnects us to people who speak our language. We also wander through Boston comedy roots, the odd alchemy...

On the day her grandson was born, Donna Skora received a single text message that would end all contact and bring years of quiet grief. From that rupture, Donna created Surrogate Grandparents USA, a nationwide community where elders and families build trusted, intergenerational bonds. 

We unpack the human cost of grandparent alienation, why silence teaches the wrong lessons to kids, and how control, fear, and cultural trends to...

Give up medicine, stay a junkie. A freeing thought followed by the shock of conscience changed everything for Dr. Nicole Labor. Nicole takes us inside the real mechanics of addiction and recovery, from the double life of a high-achieving medical student using drugs to the slow, steady rebuild that turned a bottom into a calling.

Together we walk through the moments most people skip: how unprocessed trauma and genetic risk me...

Christopher "Life" Willars, author of "144: Prison, Pain, and the Pathway to Freedom", discusses how he rose from a 144-year prison sentence to becoming a national voice for redemption and justice system reform. His story reveals how systems harden people, how mentors and faith can redirect a life, and why real public safety starts with real rehabilitation.

Chris brings us inside the mechanics of surviving prison culture: wh...

A song can change a life, and sometimes it waits decades to do it. Sal Baglio, the lead vocalist and guitarist behind Boston legends The Stompers, traces his creative path shaped by family, grief, grit, and a Hollywood surprise that rewired his future.

Sal opens up about the way songs “hover” before landing, why he never writes by formula, and how honoring the mystery keeps the music honest. He shows how instinct, not in...

A man sits on a curb after three nights in the woods, ready to surrender. Then a familiar face appears and everything changes. That’s the spark that propels Rusty Nosser, “The Walking Man,” from rock bottom to a life driven by purpose, faith, and relentless motion.

We talk through the moments that shaped him: the hunting accident at 23 that left him blind in one eye, the bleeding ulcer that nearly ended his life, a...

A teenager gets dragged off the couch to volunteer, and a lifelong purpose begins. That’s the heartbeat of our conversation with Tom Rossignoll, a home-care physical therapist assistant with over 30 years of experience and a city councilor who leads with empathy, candor, and common sense. 

We dive into the unexpected origins of service, starting with a young Special Olympics athlete whose love for basketball flipped Tom&r...

A single moment at fifteen – an apology followed by a tragic loss – sent JJ Winston on a course that would reshape her life. We sit down with the award-winning author, licensed social worker, attorney, and post-degree magistrate to trace how one grief-forged decision became a lifelong mission: defend the voiceless, dismantle stigma, and turn hard-earned insight into fiction that heals.

Across a candid, story-rich...

Cenobio Rayos II, known in the music world as "The Hare Trigga," reveals his extraordinary journey of resilience that reads like a Hollywood screenplay. Cenobio's path took him through addiction, homelessness, and profound loss before a moment of terrifying clarity changed everything. Unable to stop using even with police lights shining directly on him, he realized he'd completely lost control. "I no longer had power over my own bo...

What happens when life knocks you down — literally — and leaves you bleeding and immobile on your kitchen floor? For Betsy Hammer, it became a profound lesson in composure, resilience, and gratitude. Betsy's fall from a stepladder could have ended tragically. Yet instead of panic, she exhibited remarkable presence of mind — reaching for her phone through sheer determination, coordinating her rescue, and even ensur...