244 Odyssey House Journals - Ramsey

244 Odyssey House Journals - Ramsey

How do people find strength in their journey to sobriety? This conversation on Odyssey House Journals sits down with Ramsey, a man who spent over 25 years in addiction and three terrifying years tied to pure fentanyl powder. Hosted by TV news veteran Randall Carlisle, the chat keeps things straight-talking and unpolished.

Ramsey traces his substance use back to smoking weed at 13, moving through ecstasy, cocaine and heroin, before fentanyl “turned me into a monster like I’d never seen before.” He describes being stabbed, shot at, run over, and overdosing three times, needing naloxone to survive. One of the most chilling moments is when he admits he was angry at a friend for saving his life because it stopped him getting high.

The episode also speaks directly to families of people with addiction. Ramsey explains how his mum and younger brother finally cut him off, moved to Florida with his children, and even told neighbours to call the police if he came around. As painful as it was, he now sees that hard boundary as “really the only way” to stop feeding his habit.

Underneath the chaos sits a story about grief and trauma: his dad leaving when he was 13, early gang involvement, and years of homelessness, pneumonia and shoplifting just to fund fentanyl. Now six to seven months into a treatment programme, he talks about rebuilding trust with his adult daughter, hoping one day to repair things with his mum and younger children, and aiming to work in the treatment field rather than return to triggering construction work.

This one’s for anyone curious about just how dangerous fentanyl can be, and for loved ones torn between helping and enabling. It might leave you asking: what boundaries would you set to protect yourself and the person you care about?