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Why You Should Listen?
Chris Herren first became a celebrity as a teenage McDonalds All American basketball star. Then disaster struck as a freshman at Boston College when a roommate offered him a single line of cocaine. The next 14 years of his life included addiction, arrests, the loss of his family and his basketball career. The fourth time he overdosed on Heroin, he crashed his car and died in of all places a cemetery, where he was resuscitated by a local policeman who recognized him immediately from basketball and told him, “I cannot believe your life has come to this.”
Seven years sober, he has now accomplished more as a human being than he ever did as a basketball prodigy. A new generation of youngsters now know Chris from the ESPN 30 for 30 Film, “Unguarded”. His honesty and vulnerability in telling his story has brought tears to the faces of hardened criminals when he speaks in prisons, and he has no doubt saved the lives of hundreds, possibly thousands of teenagers as he tirelessly shares his story around the country. Chris Herren is a man on a mission to make up for time and love lost.
Chris is the founder of The Herren Project, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing treatment navigation, educational and mentoring programs to those touched by addiction and to educate people of all ages on the dangers of substance abuse. In 2012, The Herren Project launched a national anti-substance abuse campaign, Project Purple, to encourage people of all ages to stand up to substance abuse.
Listen to this episode of the Jim Huber Show to hear Chris speak in detail about the issues our teenagers face today with alcohol and drugs. Chris gives great tips and strategies on how to prevent kids from going down the same path that he traveled. He also lets you know how to help someone that is struggling with addictions. There is so much beneficial information for coaches, parents and players that Chris discusses throughout the show!
Enjoy this episode of The Jim Huber Show!
What You will Hear In This Podcast
- 0:20- Clips from Chris Herren Unguarded
- 1:37- The Beginning of the Journey to Recovery
- 2:54- It Doesn’t Have to be Rock Bottom to Get Well
- 4:21- Finding Your Realness and Becoming Comfortable for Who You Are
- 5:06- Blessed to be 7 Plus Years Sober and Saving Lives
- 7:26- A Little Girls Courage Inspires Project Purple to Help Change Social Culture in Schools
- 10:30- The Ages That Chris Started Talking to His Children About Alcohol and Drugs
- 11:03- Parents Need to Understand That Kids Don’t Have to Use a Substance to Have Fun
- 12:29- The Ways Chris is Building Self-Esteem With His Children at Home
- 13:50- What was Chris Lacking that Lead Him to Alcohol and Drugs
- 14:40- The Importance of a Parent Asking Their Child WHY They Need it
- 16:33- Parents Need to Stop Being Naïve in Thinking That Their Child Will not Become Addicted
- 17:09- Disappointment of Colorado Legalizing Marijuana
- 17:40- How do Coaches and Parents Help Kid’s Not Fall into the Pressure
- 19:15- Health Should be a Bigger Part of School Curriculums
- 20:23- Humbled to be Speaking in front of a Million Teenagers, NBA, MLB, NFL and College Teams
- 22:15- Chris Herren’s Daily Rituals to Keep Him Sober
- 23:40- Heather Herren the Rock That has Kept the Family Together
- 25:48- Ways to Follow Chris and Schedule Him to Speak to Your Group
- 26:37- How Chris Coaches Kids in Basketball and Gives Them What He Didn’t Receive
- 28:02- An Effective Way to Discuss With a Teammate Who is Struggling
- 29:44- The Reason Organizations Should Bring Chris in to Speak
Follow on Twitter: @c_herren
Find information on Chris Herren and schedule him to speak at www.ahoopdream.com
I’d love to know your thoughts after you check out the interview. What resonated? What did you learn?
Hit me up @jimhubershow or reply back to this email
Remember: “Let’s Make The World Better Through Sports”
From Chris’s podcast we learnt a lot and we even use the speech to help kids here in Africa. How health should be part of the school. We have started a program called Basketball Against Drugs in the high density suburbs of Dangamvura in Mutare Zimbabwe. And an annual event is held on the 31st of December for awareness. Thanx to Chris and everyone else involved in this fight against drugs. We hope to join hands and work together in this fight.
I am glad to hear that Chris’s message has assisted you in giving talks to kids in Africa about the importance of health and realizing drugs can be a detriment to living life at the fullest. Best wishes on your fight against drugs.