Fortitude: Turning Tragedy into Action

A podcast by the Parent Action Network (PAN), a division of Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM), dedicated to amplifying the voices of parents whose lives have been devastated by the harmful effects of marijuana. Each episode features personal interviews with parents sharing their heart-wrenching stories of loss, addiction, and the impact on their families. Through these powerful narratives, PAN aims to educate, inspire, and mobilize listeners to take action against the widespread dangers of marijuana use.

Fortitude: Turning Tragedy into Action is a society podcast hosted by PAN & SAM, with 35 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

PAN & SAM hosts Fortitude: Turning Tragedy into Action, a society show with 35 episodes published.

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  Episode #10

  From Marijuana to Fentanyl-A South Dakota Mom Grieves Out Loud to Spread Awareness

  Aug 13, 202629 minS3

  One choice. One unknowable contaminant. One phone call that changes a family forever. We’re joined by Angela Kennecke, a journalist-turned-advocate and the founder of Emily’s Hope and the Grieving Out Loud Podcast, to share the life of her daughter Emily and the brutally real path that ended with fentanyl-laced heroin. Emily was smart, artistic, athletic, and loved deeply, which is exactly why this story lands so hard: addiction, marijuana, and fentanyl poisoning don’t wait for a “type” of kid, and they don’t care how much a parent tried to do everything right. We talk through the long arc many families recognize: early marijuana use, shifting friend groups, secrecy, a boyfriend’s influence, and the exhausting cycle of tactics that don’t work. Angela breaks down why punishment and constant policing pushed Emily further away, and how she tried to hold firm boundaries without cutting off connection. We also dig into what parents and professionals still underestimate, including high potency THC, the developing teen brain, cannabis use disorder, and the way today’s drug supply makes the "I thought it was just weed” or "just a pill” a dangerous assumption. From the wreckage of loss, Angela built action: Emily’s Hope treatment scholarships, a K–12 substance use prevention curriculum, youth-led education, post-overdose support, and naloxone access that meets people where they are. We also explore why she created the Grieving Out Loud podcast and what it means to speak about addiction and overdose grief without shame. If you care about teen drug education, substance use disorder resources, or how to talk to kids before the first high, this conversation gives you language, perspective, and a reason to start today. You can learn more about Emily's Hope and the Grieving Out Loud Podcast by clicking on the links. If you are interested in sharing your story on the Fortitude Podcast please get in touch with Crissy at crissy@learnaboutsam.org Follow PAN and SAM: PAN: https://parentaction.network/ https://x.com/parentactionSAM https://www.facebook.com/parentactionnetworkSAM SAM: https://learnaboutsam.org/ https://x.com/learnaboutsam https://www.facebook.com/learnaboutsam

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  Fortitude: Turning Tragedy into Action

  From Normalcy to Chaos: How "Legal" Marijuana Stole the Future of a Maryland Mom's Son

  Jul 22, 20261h 4m

  A teenager can look “fine” right up until the day everything isn’t. Sarah, a mom from Maryland, joins me to share how marijuana became the factor that reshaped her entire family system. Starting with subtle changes during COVID, hear from Sarah how internet access, the use of high-potency THC products and driving while under the influence, all converge to create the perfect storm. We talk candidly about what the early warning signs actually looked like in real life: pushing for more device freedom, growing defiance, turning off Life360, and repeating the talking points so many teens hear now like “it’s natural” and “it’s just a plant.” Sarah walks through the moment she discovered her son used marijuana, and how that first “normal” parenting response quickly turned into a much larger crisis as vaping, secrecy, other drug use and escalating risk came to life. From weekly drug testing and searching for paraphernalia to uncovering LSD, mushrooms, kratom, and even signs of dealing, the story exposes how teen substance use can be deeply dangerous. We also get practical about solutions, the barriers families hit when trying to find treatment for cannabis use disorder, why credible resources like Johnny’s Ambassadors and Smart Approaches to Marijuana helped Sarah name what was happening, and how curiosity-based questions can keep the door open without condoning use. We discuss the hardest parts too: sober-home boundaries, estrangement after age 18, and why parent self-care and therapy are not optional if you want to "survive" this rollercoaster of a crisis. Sarah also honestly shares that while she hopes for a good outcome, she remains cautious of hoping for a full return to what life used to be. Finally, we discuss how Sarah found PAN and gained the resources and tools to raise her voice by sharing her experience on Capitol Hill. While recognizing the emotional toll recounting your story can take, she stresses how empowering the Hill Day was and how important it was for her to share her experience and make a difference, hopefully preventing another family from experiencing what she had, but also impacting our nation's leaders, many of whom still don't understand the depths of the heartache and trauma so many of these families face. If you care about educating others about today's marijuana products and are interested in raising your voice to educate our leaders while advocating for policies that better protect your loved ones your communities and public health please contact us at pan@learnaboutsam.org. Follow PAN and SAM: PAN: https://parentaction.network/ https://x.com/parentactionSAM https://www.facebook.com/parentactionnetworkSAM SAM: https://learnaboutsam.org/ https://x.com/learnaboutsam https://www.facebook.com/learnaboutsam

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  Episode #8

  From D1 Baseball To Cannabis-Induced Psychosis-A Michigan Mom's Journey From Trauma to Hope and Advocacy

  Jun 15, 202627 minS3

  A D1 baseball scholarship. A happy, close family. A teenager with a future that looked set. Then marijuana shows up in college, and what seemed “not that serious” quickly becomes the start of a long, brutal spiral: lost academics, lost baseball, escalating substance use, arrests, homelessness, and years of grief for the whole family. I’m joined by Nancy, a Michigan mom who shares her son’s story with clarity and courage. We talk about how cannabis stayed the common thread across 16 years of substance use disorder, and how legalization didn’t make marijuana safer, it made high-THC products easier to get. Nancy also walks us through a heartbreaking pivot point during her son's cancer treatment, when marijuana was suggested for pain, leading to frequent high-potency use that ultimately fed cannabis use disorder. The most chilling moment comes when Nancy describes cannabis-induced psychosis and a house fire, with marijuana as the only substance in his system. From there, we shift to what helps: court-ordered treatment, therapy, medication, family boundaries, and rebuilding a life one stable day at a time. We also dig into mental health pressures for competitive athletes, why identity loss can be a trigger, and how parent-to-parent support can pull families out of isolation. Finally, Nancy explains how Hill Day training sparked real action back home, including building Michigan Families Affected by Marijuana and pursuing practical prevention efforts like using opioid settlement funds for school substance use education. If this conversation resonates with you and you would like to join PAN's efforts, please subscribe and share Fortitude and email us at PAN@learnaboutsam.org To contact Nancy about joining Michigan Families Affected by Marijuana (MIFAM) email her at Michiganfam2026@gmail.com If you need support or help in your recovery journey contact Parents of Addicted Loved Ones at https://palgroup.org/ Follow PAN and SAM: PAN: https://parentaction.network/ https://x.com/parentactionSAM https://www.facebook.com/parentactionnetworkSAM SAM: https://learnaboutsam.org/ https://x.com/learnaboutsam https://www.facebook.com/learnaboutsam

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  Episode #7

  The Backpack Find That Changed Everything: A New Jersey Dad's Account of Cannabis Induced Psychosis and Loss and How it Led Him to Advocacy

  May 21, 202638 minS3

  A straight-A kid with a huge friend group doesn’t fit most people’s picture of a cannabis crisis, which is exactly why Steve’s story will stop you in your tracks. Steve from New Jersey joins me to talk about his son, Nick, and how a backpack find, and what first looked like sudden college anxiety unfolded into cannabis-induced psychosis and, tragically, a suicide that could have been prevented. Nick wasn’t “checked out” of life. He was working, social, and trying to do the right things, which made the warning signs easier to dismiss and harder to connect. We walk through the timeline: the first anxiety at the end of Nick’s freshman semester, the pandemic disruption, a transfer to a better-fit school, and the moment Steve’s wife finds a backpack full of marijuana and paraphernalia. Steve shares what he didn’t know then about today’s high-THC marijuana, THC potency, and the potential mental health risks including paranoia, psychosis, and suicidality. We also talk about a brutal barrier families run into: when a young adult is legally an adult, treatment programs may not address cannabis use unless the patient names it, even when parents see clear patterns. After Nick’s death, Steve explains how his family found information after hearing SAM's CEO, Kevin Sabet speak, and support through Laura Stack and Johnny’s Ambassadors, and why he now advocates with the Parent Action Network, showing up for Hill Days to meet with lawmakers and staffers educating on the harms of today's high potency products and advocating for public policies that protect our youth and communities from today's highly potent products. If you’re a parent, educator, clinician, or policymaker trying to understand cannabis-induced psychosis, teen mental health, and prevention, this conversation is honest, specific, and painfully instructive. If this hits close to home, please subscribe, share this with someone who needs it, and leave a review so more families can find these stories. If you're interested in sharing your story on Fortitude, or advocating with Parent Action Network, please reach out to Crissy@learnaboutsam.org or pan@learnaboutsam.org Follow PAN and SAM: PAN: https://parentaction.network/ https://x.com/parentactionSAM https://www.facebook.com/parentactionnetworkSAM SAM: https://learnaboutsam.org/ https://x.com/learnaboutsam https://www.facebook.com/learnaboutsam

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  Fortitude: Turning Tragedy into Action

  Parent Action Network: A Conversation with Dr. Kevin Sabet on Bringing His Vision To Life

  Apr 20, 202626 min

  Four years ago, Parent Action Network (PAN) starts with a simple realization: facts matter, but stories change minds. Crissy sits down with SAM CEO, Dr. Kevin Sabet, to unpack why organizing parents becomes the missing force in the marijuana legalization debate and why the human toll keeps showing up in our inbox every week. We talk about the loneliness of prevention work, the attacks advocates face, and the way one family’s loss can become a lasting purpose for policy change. Kevin shares the story that still stops him in his tracks, Sally Schindel’s son Andy and the note he left behind. We dig into why those words cut through talking points, and how today’s high-potency cannabis, youth mental health concerns, and normalization collide in real homes and schools. If you’ve ever heard “it’s just marijuana,” we explain why that line falls apart when impairment affects other people, from bus drivers to pilots to public safety. We also go deep on the New York Times and what it means when a legacy outlet finally admits “America has a marijuana problem” while still clinging to regulation. From there, we zoom out to Kevin’s book One Nation Under the Influence and the wider drug crisis, including fentanyl, safe supply drug substitution debates, psychedelics, and the prevention strategies that actually show results. If you care about smart drug policy, youth prevention, and advocacy that moves the needle, hit play, share this with a friend, and leave us a review. To learn more about the myths of marijuana and the drug policy crisis in this country you can find Dr. Sabet's books here: Reefer Sanity Smokescreen One Nation Under the Influence If you have a story to share please reach out to us at PAN@learnaboutsam.org Follow PAN and SAM: PAN: https://parentaction.network/ https://x.com/parentactionSAM https://www.facebook.com/parentactionnetworkSAM SAM: https://learnaboutsam.org/ https://x.com/learnaboutsam https://www.facebook.com/learnaboutsam

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