What happens when an idea turns into something real? When comfort disappears and growth takes its place?

In this end-of-year episode of Broken-ish, we sit down to reflect on everything 2025 brought, both personally and professionally.

We start light with a surprisingly passionate debate about The Nightmare Before Christmas, then move into deeper conversations about fantasy vs realism, creativity, and how those same themes show up in real life.

From there, we unpack what it actually looked like to build Ava Health from the ground up in one year. The wins, the chaos, the late nights, the lessons, and the moments where everything felt uncertain.

In this episode, we talk about: • Going from an idea to a fully functioning organization • Building culture, trust, and alignment without traditional recruiting • Leadership, identity, and learning to stay present • Fatherhood, relationships, sobriety, and personal growth • Letting go of routine and learning how to adapt in real time

This isn’t a highlight reel or a motivational speech. It’s an honest reflection on building while becoming, and what growth actually costs when you’re in it.

If you’re building something, navigating change, or trying to figure out your next chapter, this conversation will resonate.

Drop a comment and tell us if you’re more Tim Burton or Christopher Nolan. Like, subscribe, and share if this episode hit for you.

What happens when the spotlight fades—and purpose shows up?

In this unforgettable episode of Broken-ish, we sit down with a man whose life reads like a movie script: from touring as a rapper inspired by 8 Mile, to jail, to rebuilding his life—and now leading frontline outreach for the unhoused.

This isn’t a “feel-good” story. It’s a real one.

You’ll hear what the music industry doesn’t prepare you for. What jail can take from you—and what it can give you. And why listening might be the most powerful tool we have to change lives.

Our guest shares how losing everything forced him to ask one honest question: “If there’s more to life than this… show me.” What happened next changed not only his life—but the lives of hundreds of others.

This episode will challenge how you think about:

• Homelessness
• Recovery
• Success
• And what it actually means to make a difference

If you’ve ever felt broken, stuck, or unsure if change is possible—this conversation is for you.

Most people look away from homelessness. This episode looks straight at it—with honesty, compassion, and lived experience.

You’ll walk away with:

• A deeper understanding
• A shifted perspective
• And a reminder that hope isn’t abstract—it’s built through people

Guest info: Philip Masters (Homeless Outreach Coordinator), United Way Mesa County

In this powerful and brutally honest episode of Broken-ish, we dive into the silent crisis shaping an entire generation of men. From abandonment to emotional abuse, from addiction to incarceration, from chasing approval to losing ourselves completely, we speak the truth that so many men live but never talk about.

🎙 In this episode: • What really happens to boys who grow up without strong male role models • How distorted masculinity forms and destroys lives • The deep need for approval that can never be filled • Why gangs, addiction, and crime feel like masculinity to fatherless boys • Generational trauma and the men who choose to break the cycle • Redefining manhood with strength that looks nothing like what we were taught

This is not a pity party. This is a wake up call and a roadmap for men who want to do better, be better, and raise better.

If you grew up fatherless, If you are a father trying to get it right, Or if you are healing from what you never received, This episode will hit deep.

👉 Like, comment, and share your story below. Let’s open the conversation men have avoided for far too long.

Subscribe for more real, unfiltered conversations on growth, healing, and becoming the man you were meant to be.

Families don’t come to treatment looking for education — they come looking for answers.

But what if the most ethical thing we can say is: there is no single answer?

In this episode of Inside Ava Health, a panel of experienced therapeutic consultants challenges long-held assumptions about treatment, cost, outcomes, and control. From private-pay vs. community care to data transparency and long-term wellness, this conversation asks the harder questions the industry often avoids.

You’ll hear real insights on:

• Why expectations often become premeditated resentments
• How rigidity and “the way it’s always been done” are failing families
• The limits of outcome data and completion rates
• Why collaboration beats competition in behavioral health
• What true long-term care should actually optimize for

This episode is not about selling certainty — it’s about building sustainable, human-centered care in an uncertain system.

Meet Our Guests

Joanna Lilley, M.A., NCC (She/Hers), Lilley Consulting Website: www.lilleyconsulting.com Email: joanna@lilleyconsulting.com Phone: 970-218-9958

Shayna Abraham, M.A. (She/Her), Prepare To Bloom, LLC Website: PrepareToBloom.com Cell: 650-888-4575 Conference: 925-291-7007

John Conway, LCSW, CADC (He/Him/His), Conway Therapeutic Consulting Website: www.conwaytherapeuticconsulting.com Email: john@conwaytherapeuticconsulting.com Office: 847-242-1978 Cell: 815-814-1469

The holidays are supposed to be about gratitude, family, and togetherness — but for a lot of people, they’re the hardest time of the year.

In this episode of Broken-ish, we strip away the Hallmark version of Thanksgiving and talk about the reality no one wants to post about: loneliness, addiction, incarceration, homelessness, and the quiet pain that spikes when the days get shorter and the world gets louder.

We share personal stories from foster care, jail cells, solitary confinement, and moments so small they almost get missed — moments that literally changed lives. This is a conversation about holding two truths at once: deep gratitude and deep suffering.

If you’ve ever felt alone during the holidays… this one’s for you.

The mental health system is broken-ish—and we’ve felt the weight of it for years. In this episode, we talk honestly about burnout, deaths of despair, and why fighting the system felt like swinging in a dream.

But we also share the shift that changed everything: choosing curiosity, partnering with communities, and building real solutions from within a fractured system.

From Western Colorado to the birth of Ava Health, this is a story of purpose, alignment, and the sparks of hope that are already catching fire.

Welcome to Broken-ish. Where we hold heartbreak and hope at the same time—and still take a swing.

From surfboards to boardrooms, he had it all — talent, drive, and the dream of going pro. But when addiction wiped out his surfing career, he found himself homeless on the streets of Colorado. What came next was a transformation no one saw coming: from panhandling for booze money to working in investment banking, earning an MBA, and building behavioral-health programs that change lives. This episode dives deep into resilience, purpose, and the wild detours that lead us exactly where we’re meant to be. The story of Ava Health's CFO David Purinton

In this solo episode of Broken-ish, Chris opens up about what it really means to lead with honesty — even when it’s uncomfortable. He shares how transparency can transform leadership, relationships, and entire organizations, especially in a behavioral health system built on facades. Chris reflects on his evolving friendship with Roman, the lessons learned through failure, and why “hitting rock bottom” isn’t the only path to change. From exploring what it means to be “broken-ish” to redefining fatherhood and love, this raw and reflective episode is a masterclass in vulnerability, purpose, and growth.