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A podcast about addiction, recovery, and mental health — with a focus on gambling, alcohol, and substance use.
Hosted by Adam Lyons, a compulsive gambler in recovery, The Modern Meeting shares real stories, support, and strategies for anyone impacted by addiction.
🎧 New episodes every Tuesday.
If you’re struggling, supporting someone who is, or just looking for connection, this is for you.
97 Episodes
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Oklahoma was the last place I ever gambled in a casino. WinStar. January 31st, 2022. This is my first time back. We cover a lot of ground this week — bad flights, great food, a statewide conference on problem gambling, and a number that stopped me in my tracks: 143 casinos in a state of 4 million people. What does that landscape mean for people trying to get out? And is it ever a valid excuse? We also celebrate Christina Cook — the person who changed the trajectory of my life — as she marks f...
Adam sits down with Meagan Dunham, a licensed master social worker and Gambling Program Monitor for Louisiana's Metropolitan Human Services District (MHSD) serving the Greater New Orleans area. Meagan didn't come to this work through lived experience — she came through public health. What she found when she arrived at gambling was familiar: a population going unseen and underserved. In this conversation she breaks down what gambling harm actually looks like on the ground in New Orleans, how M...
I'm taking a break from talking about meetings and connection. We know that's important. But this week I want to talk about something different. The cold hard truth that most people struggling with gambling don't want to hear: wanting to stop and being ready to stop are two very different things. Close your eyes, clear your head, and answer three questions. Your answers might tell you more than you're ready to admit. If you’re struggling right now, you’re not alone. Email me anytime a...
Adam sits down with Sal Guarino, co-founder of The Recovery Partners, an online coaching program for gambling recovery. In a conversation that covers nearly 40 years of living with a gambling addiction, Sal and Adam dig into what keeps people gambling for decades even when they know better, why the same mind that justifies "one more bet" is the same mind that says the meeting wasn't welcoming enough, and what it really means to build a life in recovery instead of just defending against the ne...
In this episode, I talk about finally sending the Venmo for a gambling debt that had been sitting in my head for seven years, why procrastination still shows up in my recovery, the anxiety that creeps in when life starts going well, and how I’m learning to sit with stability instead of chaos. Also...who wants to come to Chris Stapleton with me?! If you’re struggling right now, you’re not alone. Email me anytime at modernmeetingpod@gmail.com The Modern Meeting is supported by Evive! Evive ...
Adam sits down with Australian recovery advocate and founder of The Hope Project Australia, Kate Seselja. Kate shares her lived experience with gambling addiction — from early wins that pulled her in, to years of secrecy, shame, and financial loss while raising a family. Kate challenges the traditional “disease model” of gambling addiction, arguing that many gambling products — especially electronic gaming machines in Australia — are deliberately designed to maximize engagement and loss...
After 91 episodes, we made it to February 8, 2022. Adam has his first viral clip and recaps Noah's wedding weekend, what inspired him to start the Friday episodes, and how he's never going to stop telling his story. If you’re struggling right now, you’re not alone. Email me anytime at modernmeetingpod@gmail.com The Modern Meeting is supported by Evive! Evive meets you exactly where you are. Download Evive today or visit www.getevive.com
Malik Keene’s addiction story spans decades — from gambling on card games as a teenager to casino markers, alcohol abuse, drug addiction, and multiple DUIs. What began as bullying and insecurity turned into a lifelong search for validation through money, gambling, and substances. Malik describes running a “casino” out of his college dorm, countless nights driving hours to Atlantic City, blacking out outside casinos, and nearly losing everything — including his life. After years of addi...
It's a matter of weeks before Adam surrenders in Texas. Adam sits down with Ted Hartwell, Director of Storytelling at the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling and someone approaching 19 years away from his last bet. Ted’s relationship with gambling began early—normalized through family trips, childhood poker games, and growing up around it—but didn’t become a problem until much later in life. Living and working in Las Vegas, Ted shares how gambling slowly shifted from nostalgia to escape, espe...
Adam and the Botelho family discuss a variety of topics while snowed in. Danny Funt is an investigative journalist and the author of Everybody Loses: The Tumultuous Rise of American Sports Betting. In this episode, we talk about how sports betting went from illegal and taboo to completely normalized — and what that shift has meant for fans, gamblers, and the people behind the scenes. We dig into VIP programs, league partnerships, media influence, and why this industry exploded so fast with so...
Adam sits down with Andrew Schreier — a counselor, public speaker, and podcaster with over 20 years of experience in addiction and mental health. Andrew shares how his work in counseling, gambling recovery, and education has shaped the way he thinks about language — and why the words we use around addiction matter more than we realize. From stigmatizing labels to well-meaning advice that misses the mark, this conversation explores how language can either create distance or build connection. A...
Adam makes it to Texas. Todd F is approaching two years in recovery from compulsive gambling, but his journey to get here wasn't linear. In this raw and honest conversation, Todd opens up about the intersection of bipolar disorder and gambling addiction—how manic episodes fueled his gambling, how two relapses tested his resolve, and how gambling ultimately cost him his marriage. Todd talks about what it's like to battle low self-worth even in recovery, why he leans on his GA family to get thr...
Adam sits down with Pedro Romero — a psychologist, safer gambling expert, and former Head of Gambling Therapy — to explore what’s actually driving gambling addiction beneath the surface. From the evolution of safer gambling inside the industry to the emerging research around psychedelic-assisted therapy, Pedro offers a rare perspective that blends clinical psychology, lived experience, and real-world impact. If you’re struggling right now, you’re not alone. Email me anytime at modernmeeting...
In this special collaboration episode, Adam Lyons of The Modern Meeting and Christina Cook of The Broke Girl Society, sit down for a reflective and forward-looking conversation on recovery, growth, and intention. Together, they look back on their biggest wins from 2025, unpack the difference between goals and resolutions, and share how they’re approaching 2026 with clarity instead of pressure. Adam names Consistency as his word for the year ahead, while Christina chooses Conversation, reflect...
Adam makes a decision on his future at National Harbor. Adam sits down with Kiki Marriott, who shares her story of trauma, addiction, and recovery. Kiki grew up in London in a chaotic and abusive environment and was introduced to drugs at a young age. She spent over 20 years addicted to cocaine before compulsive gambling entered her life during the final years of her addiction. Having never set foot in a casino, she still "lost her soul" due to gambling on her phone. Now 18 months...
Adam is waiting for the other shoe to drop at National Harbor. Stephen Matos shares his story of growing up around gambling and addiction, and how his father’s lifestyle quietly shaped his own. Stephen first found recovery through Alcoholics Anonymous, but for years didn’t recognize that gambling had become part of his daily routine — spending his days at the OTB while staying sober through AA at night. It wasn’t until someone pointed out the pattern that Stephen walked into his first GA meet...
After 20 years of compulsive gambling, bankruptcy, lies, constant moves, and living a double life, everything changed on February 8th, 2022. That night — my first GA meeting — was the beginning of a life I didn’t think was possible. In this episode, I walk through the exact steps I took early on: an honest breakdown of the first 10 things I did in my first 60 days of recovery. None of this is a blueprint — every path is different — but this is what helped me stay away from a bet. If you’re st...
Adam's "Winter Routine," in 2021 is not productive. Ken Feldstein joins to talk about his unique path of recovery from substance abuse. Growing up in 1960's Long Island as a teenager caught up in heroin use and the legal trouble that followed, Ken was sent to an 18-month therapeutic program that would end up changing the direction of his entire life. He’s been clean for more than fifty years — without ever returning to any "traditional" recovery work. And now, after retiring, and being ...
Mike Sciandra didn’t fall into gambling — he was brought up in it. He placed his first bet at 9 years old, growing up in a family marked by addiction, chaos, and incarceration. What felt normal as a kid turned into decades of hustling, secrecy, and living a double life through his 20's and 30's. Keno bars. Casino nights. Pull Tabs. Whatever he could find. Today, Mike hasn’t placed a bet since December 2020, and he now serves as the Executive Director of the Nebraska Council on Problem Gamblin...
Adam has his work cut out for him at his new job. Adam sits down with Janice Pierce, a financial planner who specializes in helping people rebuild their relationship with money — especially after chaos, addiction, and life transitions. Janice breaks down the behavioral side of finances: why we spend the way we do, how old habits follow us into recovery, and what it really takes to create a healthy plan that lasts. She also answers common questions about budgeting, debt, savings, and financial...
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