Surviving Lifes Pickles

About Surviving Lifes Pickles

Navigating Lifes Challenges Together! On our podcast we share our stories along with our guests stories to help the community with the everyday sweet and sour pickles (challenges) we go through in life. We want to connect with everyone on a very real and human level by turning our pain into purpose and sharing our knowledge we have gained along the way! scottrxperformance.substack.com (https://scottrxperformance.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast)

Publisher

Navigating Lifes Challenges Together

Category

health & fitness · society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

29 Jan 2025

Latest episode

11 Nov 2026

Latest episodes

99 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   11 Nov 2026

   Vulnerability, Gratitude, and the Stories We Share

   In the 100th episode of Surviving Life’s Pickles, Scott and Hillary look back on the guests, stories and lessons that have shaped the podcast. They reflect on gratitude, vulnerability, recovery, therapy, mental health and the power of encouragement—and share how the show has grown into community work, including mental health first aid and suicide prevention training and plans to provide naloxone education and access. Key takeaways Gratitude grows with practice: Pausing to notice everyday moments can deepen appreciation and connection. Vulnerability makes room for connection: Sharing hard experiences can help people feel less alone and open doors to support. Stories can turn into action: The hosts’ conversations have inspired community partnerships, mental health education and suicide prevention work. Therapy is a useful tool: It can help people understand themselves and navigate difficult periods without shame. Small acts of encouragement can spread: A positive message can inspire others and grow into a wider community movement. Keep learning from each other: The hosts invite listeners to revisit an episode that stayed with them and share it with someone who may benefit. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit scottrxperformance.substack.com (https://scottrxperformance.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)

2. 

   4 Nov 2026

   You Can Pretend to Care, But You Can’t Pretend to Show Up, w/ Brian Tease

   Scott and Hillary Martin of Surviving Life’s Pickles talk with Brian Tease, clinical director of Steps Recovery, which serves veterans and people coming out of incarceration or off the streets. He grew up in a violent, alcoholic home in Philadelphia. His twin brother Wayne died at 23, and Brian spent more than 25 years in addiction afterward. A visit from his brother in jail, then court-ordered treatment, set him on the path to nearly 19 years of sobriety. Serving meals to the homeless and a sponsor’s push to go to school led him to a career in social work. The conversation then turns to helping men open up, especially in blue-collar workplaces. It closes with a challenge to share the episode with someone who came to mind. Key takeaways: * Say their name. Talking about people we’ve lost keeps them alive and helps us heal. * Serve others. Purpose through service helps keep people sober. * Show up. “You can pretend to care, but you can’t pretend to show up.” * Check in simply. Try “I noticed a change, are you doing okay?” Sharing your own story first makes it easier for the other person to open up. * Men often fear being a burden. Holding it in turns into other harmful behaviors. * Compassion is strength. Believe in people before they believe in themselves, and stay teachable. * Reach out. If you’re struggling, tell someone. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit scottrxperformance.substack.com (https://scottrxperformance.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)

3. 

   28 Oct 2026

   Breaking Through the Ceilings: A Recovery Story w/ Jayson Sykes

   In this episode of Surviving Life’s Pickles, host Scott Martin and his wife Hillary sit down with their guest, Jayson Sykes. They open with the show’s usual gratitude round: * Scott is grateful for his morning meditation. * Hillary is grateful for being able to feel her emotions after years of numbing them. * Jayson is grateful for clean water, his connections with people, and his morning mindfulness practice. The rest of the episode is Jayson’s story. He grew up on a small farm in Pleasant Grove, Utah. His father was a brick mason and an alcoholic, and his mother was in and out of prison. He was molested around age nine, and that is also when he started sneaking beers. By his early teens he had been expelled from school and had gone through outpatient treatment, probation, and a wilderness program. His drug use escalated through meth, heroin, and pills, and he was in and out of jail.At 19, his father died by suicide. Jason says he was angry because his dad “took that option off the table” for him. He then spent roughly seven years trying to blot out his existence, through drugs and eventually alcohol.His turning point came in August 2012. After a seizure from detoxing alone, a hospitalization, and a blackout at a party, he woke up and admitted he was an alcoholic. He checked into inpatient treatment the next day. Over the next 14 years he: * Found a higher power. His sponsor Tony pointed out that he had been talking to his dad at the cemetery all along, and that was already a connection to something bigger than himself. * Found a path through Native American ceremony, including sweat lodges, vision quests, and Sundance. * Built a career helping others. He is now program director of a men’s mental health program, working with people in psychosis and with suicidality. * Had his criminal record expunged this past year. The conversation also covers: * The seasons and mental health, including Utah’s place in the “suicide belt.” * The idea that lost loved ones are still with us in spirit. * A friend’s hundred-mile ultramarathons as a spiritual experience. Near the end, Jayson turns the questions on the hosts. Scott shares his own story, including a suicide attempt and the morning-after realization that he needed help. The episode closes with a challenge to listeners to share it with someone who needs to hear it. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit scottrxperformance.substack.com (https://scottrxperformance.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)

Who has been a guest on Surviving Lifes Pickles

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Danny
• Danny Hurtig
• Amanda Hurst
• Mike Ramirez
• Jamie Ramirez

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

31,909

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.6 / 5

10 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 48 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

54

Social presence

0

YouTube

72

Engagement

32

Contact Surviving Lifes Pickles

Guest appearances

Does not typically book guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

Questions about Surviving Lifes Pickles