223 - Listener's E-mail: I'm newly sober, can I take Kratom?223 - Listener's E-mail: I'm newly sober, can I take Kratom?
Real Recovery Talk
Tom Conrad and Ben respond to a newly sober listener asking if taking kratom is okay, explaining what kratom is, how it works, and why they ultimately favour full abstinence. The conversation balances harm reduction realities with a strong focus on identifying a personal why for living substance‑free.
21:41•5 Oct 2022
Kratom, Sobriety and the Big Question: What’s Your Why?
Episode Overview
- Kratom acts on opioid receptors and can cause dependence, withdrawal, and significant health issues despite being legal in many places.
- Tom and Ben stress that their preferred end goal is total abstinence from mood and mind‑altering substances.
- They acknowledge harm reduction approaches but question long‑term kratom use by asking people to get clear on their personal why.
- Kratom use has become common enough that insurance companies now recognise and fund medical detox for it.
- The hosts encourage people in recovery to ask questions, seek guidance, and avoid justifying risky substances based only on friends’ or doctors’ opinions.
“"Cognitively speaking, when it comes to performing in life, being happy, joyous, and free, I believe the best way to go about that is to eventually be off of everything."”
Curious about how others navigate their sobriety journey? This Real Recovery Talk episode centres on a raw email from a listener who’s newly sober, off heroin and Suboxone, and now wondering, "Is it okay to take kratom while getting sober?" Host Tom Conrad and co-host Ben (Benjamin B.) read and unpack her question, sharing their experiences from both personal recovery and their day-to-day work in treatment.
They explain what kratom actually is – an extract that binds to opioid receptors much like oxycodone, heroin or fentanyl – and why its legal status and easy availability in places like Florida can make it a hidden trap for people trying to stay clean. You’ll hear them talk about the uncomfortable truth that kratom can cause real physical dependence, full-on withdrawals, and serious digestive and health issues.
Ben mentions that insurance companies now approve medical detox for kratom, and that consumption at its peak "can be the equivalent to being on 16 milligrams of Suboxone." That’s a wake-up call for anyone thinking it’s a harmless herbal shortcut. Tom is very clear about his stance: the goal is total abstinence and a life "happy, joyous, and free" without any mood or mind‑altering substances.
He challenges the idea of using kratom for life and keeps coming back to one key question: why. Why keep taking something that still alters your state when your end goal is freedom? At the same time, both hosts acknowledge that people use things like Suboxone or kratom as part of a harm reduction path, especially when they’re trying to stay alive long enough to reach abstinence.
They don’t shame the listener; instead, they praise her for asking the question and encourage others to reach out for guidance too. If you’re wrestling with "grey area" substances in early recovery, this honest chat might help you ask yourself the same hard question: what’s your why?
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