A childhood of abuse, a 15-year battle with addiction, and the loss of both parents within six months — Piere Ingram turns all of it into poetry, purpose, and a roadmap for recovery. If you need proof that your hardest chapter can become your greatest gift, this conversation will meet you right where you are.

Dave Roberts sits down with poet, author, and recovery advocate Piere Ingram to trace the moments that changed everything: early trauma, an overdose scare, and the quiet decision to stop going backward. What follows is a raw, hopeful story of transformation, where Dr. Seuss, scripture, and spoken word all become tools for healing.

You’ll discover:

• Why Piere says “transparency leads to transformation”
• How he replaced destructive habits with simple, repeatable actions like water, walking, and writing
• The mindset shift that helped him see relapse as a setback, not an identity
• How sobriety unlocked his creativity and led him to write seven books
• Why motion, faith, and rhythm are central to his creative process

Dave and Piere also break down the deeper idea behind addiction recovery, the stigma that labels people by their worst choices, and why the real breakthrough often starts inside long before it shows up outside. Piere’s “It’sy Bissy Spider” moment, his “subtraction equals multiplication” insight, and his belief that “you gotta let go to grow” make this episode both deeply personal and immediately useful.

This episode matters if you’re in recovery, loving someone who is, or carrying pain you haven’t learned how to turn into purpose yet. It’s also for anyone who wants to create more honestly, live more intentionally, and understand how faith, grief, and creativity can work together to rebuild a life.

Essential listening for anyone who believes their story is not over.

Piere's Bio and Contact Information

Piere was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. His first exposure to poetry was through Dr. Suess books when he was very young. Piere loved the rhythm, rhymes, and wordplay of poetry. Reading and writing poetry became a way for Piere to escape from his problems and release his emotions. Piere is a recovering addict who has experienced much growth, and has met many people who has influenced his way of thinking.

One thing that hit him after his mom died was remembering her words, "Piere, you only have one life to live, so you better get this right".

Her words forced Piere to look within himself and come to terms with the bad choices he was making. Through his work, he wants to make her proud.

Through his website NewLifePoetry.live and his social platforms, he shares writing and recovery-focused messages designed to encourage and inspire others.

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Burnout does not mean you are broken. It can be the signal that your life needs a different framework, and Dianna Collier shares the practical positive psychology tools that helped her move from exhaustion and languishing into a life and career built around flourishing.

Dave Roberts sits down with Dianna, an Austin-based certified positive psychology coach and school psychologist, for a conversation about what actually helps people shift out of stuckness. Dianna traces her path from high-pressure school psychology, through burnout and major life transitions, to the coaching work she does now with clients navigating change, self-doubt, and renewal.

You'll discover how positive psychology works as the science of flourishing, why strengths-based coaching can be more effective than deficit-focused thinking, and how small actions can create real momentum when you are feeling low. Dianna breaks down her CHANGE framework for coaching, including clarifying a positive goal, building hope, taking tiny first steps, navigating the bigger picture, going for it, and expanding into what comes next.

She also shares how she uses tools like the VIA Character Strengths assessment, appreciative inquiry, self-compassion, and authentic gratitude to help clients rebuild confidence without falling into forced positivity. If you've ever dealt with imposter syndrome, negative self-talk, or the sense that you're doing everything right but still feeling stuck, this conversation offers a grounded, hopeful way forward.

Dave and Dianna also explore the reality of endings and transitions in helping relationships, the mind-body impact of stress, and the challenges young adults and parents face during big life changes. Dianna's Positive Launch program brings positive psychology into the parent-child transition to college and adulthood, offering support, perspective, and practical tools for families who want to stay connected while letting go well.

This episode is ideal for anyone in a season of transition, anyone supporting a young adult, and anyone who wants a more compassionate, realistic way to build confidence and momentum. If you need proof that small shifts can create meaningful change, this is the conversation to hear.

Dianna Bio and Contact Information

Dianna Collier, M.A., is an Austin, Texas–based Certified Positive Psychology Coach and School Psychologist who helps people navigate challenging life transitions with greater ease. She has a private coaching practice and also provides career coaching for clients at the Career Transition Center.

Dianna writes The Positive Pull, a weekly newsletter that shares practical, positive psychology–based tools for facing life’s difficulties and nurturing success from one’s most empowered self. She has also facilitated workshops on a variety of positive psychology topics. Alongside fellow Positive Psychology Coach Jennifer Hanawald, Dianna co-facilitates Positive Launch, an interactive program that supports parents of young adults as they transition to college and greater independence. Dianna is the mother of two daughters, ages 20 and 22.

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College is breaking students in ways most people never see. Dana Christian Lee and Jason Reid reveal why so many young adults are overwhelmed by pressure, loneliness, impossible workloads, and the struggle to belong, and how their new documentary College Unscripted is designed to spark the conversations campuses desperately need.

About Dana and Jason

Dana and Jason bring a rare mix of lived experience, deep compassion, and hard-won insight into youth mental health. Dana, executive director of Tell My Story, explains how the film grew out of conversations with students, parents, and educators who kept pointing to the same crisis: young people are expected to become adults instantly, often without the life skills, emotional support, or freedom to navigate it well. Jason, who co-founded Tell My Story after the death of his 14-year-old son Ryan, shares why storytelling and honest dialogue can reach students in ways lectures and warnings cannot.

Website: tellmystory.org

Dana: dana@tellmystory.org

Events and screening inquiries: events@tellmystory.org

You’ll discover:

• Why the transition from high school to college feels so much heavier now than it did for past generations
• How belonging, becoming, and burnout collide for today’s students
• Why overpacked schedules, AP pressure, and social comparison are feeding anxiety and depression
• What colleges can do differently by prioritizing human connection over sheer output
• Why AI, cheating, and unrealistic expectations are becoming part of the same conversation
• How Tell My Story uses film as a turnkey campus event that leads to real discussion, not passive viewing

This conversation goes far beyond college advice. It gets into the emotional cost of perfectionism, the hidden pain students carry with them, and the urgent need for educators, parents, and peers to notice when someone is struggling before it’s too late. Dave Roberts also brings his perspective as a college educator, making the episode especially valuable for anyone working with young adults who are balancing academics, jobs, grief, family pressure, and mental health challenges all at once.

If you care about students, teach students, parent students, or are a student trying to hold it all together, this is essential listening. College Unscripted is really about something bigger than college—it’s about giving young people the space to be seen, heard, and supported as they write their own story.

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