Episode Details

Ten months after losing her 18-year-old son Jake to an overdose, Malisa Hepner returns to HME for a conversation neither of us could have imagined having the last time she was here.

Malisa shares who Jake was beyond the circumstances of his death, what happened after he unknowingly took a synthetic opioid, and why she’s chosen to speak publicly about his story despite the stigma surrounding addiction and overdose.

We also get raw and real about the reality of grief nearly a year later: the physical toll of trauma, how her family has learned to grieve differently, and what actually helps when you’re trying to show up for someone after a devastating loss. The big takeaway? Grief doesn’t disappear when everyone else stops bringing casseroles.

This is Jake’s story, but it’s also a conversation about addiction, shame, grief, and why we need to get a hell of a lot better at showing up for each other.