Episode Sixty
Episode Sixty

Bob Forrest's Don't Die Podcast

Bob Forrest and Mike Mart mix music memories, punk-era drug stories and modern harm reduction talk while questioning how treatment and families respond to addiction. Their conversation focuses on community care, changing dangerous habits, and what really keeps people from dying in today’s overdose crisis.

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1:00:31•31 Aug 2018

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Music, Meth and "Don’t Die": Bob Forrest and Mike Mart on Staying Alive

Episode Overview

Music groups in rehab can give people in early recovery a way to express feelings and share their stories without relying solely on talk.
Peer-led communities like Don’t Die Wisconsin focus on harm reduction, local action and mutual support rather than waiting for government or industry solutions.
The AIDS crisis once pushed injecting users to change their behaviour for survival, and Bob argues today’s fentanyl era demands the same level of caution and self-protection.
Throwing many different recovery ideas at people, rather than one rigid model, may increase the chance that something sparks a personal shift.
Parents are urged to set clear boundaries and reduce long-term financial dependence, allowing adult children to grow up rather than stay stuck in extended adolescence.

“It's not the government that's going to save us addicts. It's not the pharmaceutical industry. It's not doctors. It's not rehabs. It's us encouraging and supporting and educating each other.”

Curious about how others turn chaos, music, and relapse into hard-earned wisdom? This chat between addiction counsellor Bob Forrest and musician Mike Mart leans heavily into music, punk history, and brutally honest talk about staying alive in the middle of an overdose crisis. The tone is loose and funny, but the stakes are serious.

Bob shares how rehab music groups became a powerful tool in the 90s, from kids rapping slur hip hop and producing EDM tracks to someone quietly playing Frank Sinatra on an acoustic guitar. He links that straight to his own love of music, including a surreal moment at the Hollywood Bowl when Father John Misty pointed at him after playing a song called "Don’t Die".

You’ll also hear about the Don’t Die Wisconsin crew, who are organising festivals, harm reduction meet-ups, radio spots and rehab visits. Bob jokes that these volunteers are “lapping” the original Los Angeles team, but underneath the humour is a clear message: other addicts and ex-addicts might be the only ones who can actually turn the tide.

Things get darker and more reflective when Bob revisits the 1980s AIDS crisis and how junkies changed their behaviour to protect each other, contrasting that with today’s fentanyl deaths. He questions whether current treatment approaches work at all, especially rehabs that kick people out at night for relapsing or breaking rules.

Mike’s story of a “sudden and dramatic psychic change” on Christmas Day shows one path to sobriety, but Bob keeps reminding everyone that most people won’t get that lightning-bolt moment. Parents of younger users might lean in during the section on boundaries, economic dependence, and why letting adult children stay at home indefinitely can quietly keep them stuck.

If you like recovery talk mixed with punk folklore, dark humour, and straight-talking about death, relapse and community care, this one’s worth your time—what role could you play in helping someone else “not die” today?

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