Kratom Deaths, Ozempic and Drinking, the End of Housing FirstKratom Deaths, Ozempic and Drinking, the End of Housing First
Recovery in the Middle Ages - Two Middle-Aged Suburban Dads Talk About Recovering From Addiction to Drugs & Alcohol.
Two middle-aged dads talk through kratom-related student deaths, GLP-1 medications and drinking, changing ideas of ‘safe’ alcohol use, and the move from Housing First to treatment-first policies. Their mix of news, policy chat and personal stories keeps the focus on what all this might mean for people trying to stay sober in everyday life.
1:07:00•24 Oct 2026
Kratom Panic, Ozempic Buzz and Housing First: Two Dads Question ‘Safe’ in Sobriety
Episode Overview
- A product linked to two Ole Miss student deaths, Smax Pseudo-DHM, contains three semi-synthetic kratom-related compounds that were already scheduled by the DEA, raising questions about enforcement and shop responsibility.
- Survey data on GLP-1 drugs such as Ozempic suggests many people, especially heavier drinkers, report drinking less after starting these medications, though a small group report drinking more.
- Self-reported ‘safe’ drinking guided by national limits may be misleading, as newer research suggests measurable harm begins at far lower weekly amounts than many guidelines state.
- Protective behavioural strategies like drinking more slowly, alternating with water and using designated drivers may do little to reduce heavy drinking or related harm.
- US federal policy is shifting from a Housing First approach to treatment-first models that tie housing support to engagement in treatment, prompting debate over human rights, disability law and harm reduction.
“If you could distil the message of this show down to one sentence: don't do drugs, ya monkeys.”
How do people cope with the challenges of staying sober while the rules around drugs and alcohol keep shifting? This chatty, news-heavy episode of *Recovery in the Middle Ages* has Mike and Nat trying to make sense of it all, with their usual mix of humour, scepticism and suburban dad chaos.
You’ll hear them break down the much-publicised University of Mississippi student deaths, where a product sold as a kratom-style supplement, Smax Pseudo-DHM, is now known to contain three lab-made compounds that the DEA had already banned. They question who’s really at fault when “legal” shop-bought products turn out to be anything but safe: the shops, the regulators, or our endless drive to find the next high.
The conversation then swings to Ozempic and other GLP-1 drugs, with Mike sharing new data showing that many people report drinking less after starting these medications, especially those already drinking at risky levels. That leads to a candid comparison with naltrexone and Vivitrol, as Nat shares what it actually felt like to drink and smoke while on those meds, and how cravings changed.
They also take a hard look at national drinking guidelines, pointing out that so-called “safe” levels may sit well above where measurable harm begins. From there, it’s on to the shift from ‘housing first’ to ‘treatment first’ in US policy, and what that means for people with addiction who are also homeless. All this is wrapped in stories of mocktails at corporate dinners, drunk colleagues, escaped cats, and butt-plug finds on early-morning runs, keeping things human and oddly comforting.
If you like recovery talk that’s honest, slightly scruffy, and full of real-life messiness, this one’s for you. What does “safe” even mean in a culture that keeps moving the goalposts on alcohol and drugs?
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