221. Ryan Rogers: Gas Station Opioids, Faith-Based Recovery, and Honest Therapy

My friend Ryan Rogers returns to the podcast for our third conversation. He's an addictions counselor in Texas, host of Reality Therapy, and now the author of two books — The Woke Mind and his new release, The Carpenter's Recovery, a Christian guide to 12-step recovery.

We start with what's being called "gas station heroin": a chemical called 7-OH, extracted from kratom, that's roughly thirteen times stronger than morphine and sold legally next to the 5-Hour Energy drinks at the checkout counter. Ryan walks me through how legal loopholes have produced a generation of accidental addicts, including church kids and high-conscientiousness adults who'd never touch illegal drugs. I share my own "little old lady" story — how my elderly mom was given a 10mg THC gummy by her stoner massage therapist — as a warning to anyone navigating this new landscape with vulnerable elders.

From there we go into cannabis-induced psychosis, cannabis use hyperemesis disorder, fentanyl displacing heroin, and what's actually working in addiction treatment. Ryan explains why he wrote a Christian recovery book and why naming Jesus in AA meetings still gets people shut down. We close on the state of the therapy field: woke ideology, AI psychosis, the rise of niche experts over licensed therapists, and why "live your truth, king" is the worst possible response to a client telling you they're about to relapse.

Follow Reality Therapy podcast | Follow Ryan on X @ryanmcrogers

[00:00:00] Start

[00:02:06] Gas Station Heroin: What Is 7-OH?

[00:05:55] Kava, Feel Free, and Designer Drugs

[00:11:25] How 7-OH Hits the Opioid System

[00:14:30] The Little Old Lady THC Gummy Story

[00:25:30] Methadone vs. Suboxone for Detox

[00:35:56] The Carpenter's Recovery: A Christian Approach

[00:40:32] Why AA Pushes Back on Christianity