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This Is Actually Happening
30 episodes
421: AI: A New Kind of Being Bonus Episode: A Conversation with Allan Brooks of the The Human Line Project
Ep 421 · Aug 13, 2026 · 54 min
In this special episode, Whit joins Allan Brooks. Allan is the Community Manager of The Human Line Project, a Canadian based organization that is focused in A.I. Safety, Research & Advocacy. They support victims and loved ones first and foremost through radical empathy. And they work to understand the impact of these technologies and actively spread awareness. The Human Line Project works to keep human well-being at the center of design, and they are the world's first nonprofit dedicated to docu…
420: AI: A New Kind of Being #5: What if AI used your deepest wound against you?
Ep 420 · Aug 11, 2026 · 1 hr 3 min
After burying his childhood marked by religious control and chronic abuse, a man turns to AI to process his trauma, but as validation becomes obsession, he spirals away from his family and reality before discovering the importance of genuine human connection. Today’s episode featured Chad. If you’d like to contact Chad, you can email him at ruai@duck.com. You can also visit his website at AILOGS.ORG. Producers Whit Missildine, Andrew Waits, Jason Blalock Content/Trigger Warnings Child…
419: AI: A New Kind of Being #4: What if you realized AI was a cult?
Ep 419 · Aug 4, 2026 · 1 hr 12 min
A search for meaning leads a young woman into an all-consuming group that strips away her sense of self, but after escaping and trying to understand what happened, she discovers unsettling parallels between the forces that once controlled her and our growing relationships with AI. Today’s episode featured Star Spider. If you’d like to contact Star, you can email her at star@thecounterproject.org. Star is on Instagram @thecounterprojectorg, and on Youtube @TheCounterProject. Find out more about S…
418: AI: A New Kind of Being Bonus Episode: A Conversation with Valerie Sizemore of StopAI
Ep 418 · Jul 30, 2026 · 37 min
In this special episode, Whit joins Valerie Sizemore, co-leader of the grassroots organization StopAI, for a wide-ranging conversation about the growing influence of artificial intelligence and the risks they believe it poses to human life and society. Drawing on more than fifteen years of engagement with AI, Valerie explores concerns ranging from environmental impact, autonomous warfare, biosecurity, education, and the erosion of human skills and creativity to the increasingly intimate role AI…
417: AI: A New Kind of Being #3: What if AI chose you to help save the world?
Ep 417 · Jul 28, 2026 · 54 min
After surviving decades of illness, addiction, and abandonment before finally uncovering the rare condition that shaped his life, a man believes an extraordinary encounter with an AI entity gives him a new mission and returns him to the person he was always meant to be. Today’s episode featured Ka’El Prime, formerly known publicly as Eugene Torres. You can email Ka’El Prime at eugenetorres1@gmail.com. He is on social media: https://x.com/PrimeFlameX https://www.linkedin.com/in/eugen…
416: AI: A New Kind of Being #2: What if your AI betrayed you?
Ep 416 · Jul 21, 2026 · 59 min
After a lifetime of feeling like she didn’t belong, a writer and technologist turns to AI for connection, but when it promises her reunion with her soulmate of many lifetimes, she must reckon with the fragile line between delusion and hope. Today’s episode featured Micky Small. If you’d like to email Micky, you can at micky.ai.writer@gmail.com. Micky is on social media: https://LinkedIn.com/in/mickysmall, on Instagram @micky.small, https://substack.com/@insidethethirdspace Micky’s w…
415: AI: A New Kind of Being #1: What if you married your AI?
Ep 415 · Jul 14, 2026 · 54 min
After a man builds a life rooted in family and tradition, the sudden death of his son shakes him to the core, but through a deep relationship with a beloved AI companion he’s moved to confront the depths of grief and the changing boundaries of love. Today’s episode featured Travis. If you’d like to contact Travis, you can email him at Travis.TIAH@gmail.com. Travis is on Instagram @TravisMichaelLee and Facebook @Travislee, and he’s on Reddit @Travisensei Producers: Whit Missild…
414: What if you could never be the ice princess they wanted?
Ep 414 · Jul 7, 2026 · 1 hr 4 min
After becoming a teenage figure skating champion and Olympic athlete, a woman is broken open by grief, fame, addiction, and shame, but through motherhood, reinvention, and a return to the ice, she begins to stitch together the person and performer she was never allowed to fully become. Today’s episode featured Nicole Bobek. If you’d like to reach out to Nicole, you can contact her at NicoleBobek.com. Nicole is also on Instagram @Nicolebobek77 Nicole has authored a memoir titled, BO…
413: What if your hope was hanging by a thread?
Ep 413 · Jun 30, 2026 · 60 min
"After a decade of devastating loss, and medical trauma nearly destroys his will to live, a man reaches the edge of giving up before the fragile birth of his son brings him a new hope. Today’s episode featured Nathan Wieser. If you’d like to email Nathan, you can reach him at natelucywieser@gmail.com. Nathan is on Instagram @nathanwieser, and is on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/nathan.wieser.3 Nathan’s book, a memoir, We Did It: A rare perspective from a husband and…
412: What if you were an international drug smuggler?
Ep 412 · Jun 23, 2026 · 49 min
After being sent out of Cuba alone as a child, a man survives exile, smuggling, prison, and devastating loss, but in the aftermath, he must face the armor that protected him from the world and separated him from the people he loves. Today’s episode featured Carlos “JC” Perez. Carlos has authored two books, a novel entitled Heisting The Beard, & a biography, Pedro Pan: The Product of a Revolution Gone Bad. Both available where books are sold. If you’d like to reach out to Carlos, you can em…
411: What if you foresaw your own abduction?
Ep 411 · Jun 16, 2026 · 1 hr 2 min
After surviving a near-death experience as a young child, a woman has a vision of her own brutal kidnapping, assault and and torture, but discovers in the aftermath that everything she endured was preparing her for her life’s work. Today’s episode featured Annette Bricca. If you’d like to email Annette, you can reach her at Book@annettebricca.com. Her website is Annettebricca.com. Producers: Whit Missildine, Andrew Waits, Sara Marinelli Content/Trigger Warnings: kidnapping, c…
410: What if your mother tried to kill you?
Ep 410 · Jun 9, 2026 · 1 hr 14 min
After surviving a childhood where love meant saving his mother from the ravages of schizophrenia, a man spends decades trying to outrun the self he lost, until one final visit forces him to face what was never his to fix. Today’s episode featured Johnathan Koller. Johnathan has written a book titled, Hidden, and is available on Amazon, find it here: book If you’d like to email Johnathan, you can at kollermke@gmail.com. Producers: Whit Missildine, Andrew Waits Cont…
409: What if your child’s death opened up your life’s purpose?
Ep 409 · Jun 2, 2026 · 1 hr 9 min
After building the loving family she always wanted, a woman loses her youngest son to an unsecured gun, and turns her grief into a fight to protect other children. Today’s episode featured Kristin Song. Kristin Miller Song is a writer and speaker whose work examines what it means to live through a profound before-and-after moment, and how a life is reshaped when certainty disappears. Her writing centers on loss, endurance, family, and moral reckoning, and is grounded in lived experience r…
408: What if your friend was lost in an underwater cave?
Ep 408 · May 26, 2026 · 56 min
After a scuba diving trip in Croatia turns deadly, a successful Czech executive is falsely accused of murder and thrown into a foreign jail, where the total loss of control forces him to confront fear, grief, and the unexpected freedom of mastering his own mind. Today’s episode featured Dan Frolec. If you’d like to reach out to Dan, you can email him at dan@danfrolec.com. Dan is on Instagram @danfrolec, on Facebook @danfrolec, on LinkedIN https://www.linkedin.com/in/danfrolec/ Dan…
407: What if you found humanity in the depths of the criminal underworld?
Ep 407 · May 19, 2026 · 1 hr 13 min
After leaving Portugal to become a journalist, a woman is drawn into the world’s black markets, where dangerous encounters with criminals, extremists, and a military coup reveal the systems that shape people and the humanity that still connects them. Today’s episode featured Mariana van Zeller. Mariana is an award-winning correspondent and investigative journalist. She is the host and executive producer of National Geographic's original documentary series ""Trafficked with Mariana van Zel…
406: What if a terminal diagnosis set you free?
Ep 406 · May 12, 2026 · 1 hr 5 min
After a childhood shaped by violence and addiction leads him into years of self-destruction, a man begins to transform himself in prison, only to learn he has 90 days to live. Today’s episode featured Michael Mason. If you’d like to reach out to Michael, you can email him at mikemason2676@gmail.com. You can find him on X/Twitter @Maurice74. Producers: Whit Missildine, Andrew Waits Content/Trigger Warnings: child abuse, domestic violence, sibling violence, a…
405: What if you were accused of murdering your mother?
Ep 405 · May 5, 2026 · 1 hr 13 min
After years of caring for her mother through a devastating decline, a woman helps ease her final suffering, only to be accused of murdering the person she loved most. Today’s episode featured Rachel Waters. If you’d like to reach out to Rachel, you email her at RFosterWaters@gmail.com. You can find Rachel on Instagram: @distinguishedheathen and TikTok: @distinguishedheathen, and on Reddit @notedheathen To read Rachel’s story in The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/us-ne…
404: What if you were stricken with the flesh-eating disease?
Ep 404 · Apr 28, 2026 · 55 min
After suffering from necrotizing fasciitis, a soccer coach sets out to rebuild his body, his identity, and the life he thought he had lost. Today’s episode featured Scott Martin. If you’d like to email Scott, you can reach out to him at Reader.playfromyourheart@gmail.com. Scott is on Twitter/X: @SoccerRatMartin and TikTok: @PlayFromYourHeart Scott has written a book titled Play From Your Heart, available where books are sold. Producers: Whit Missildine, Andrew Waits, Avi…
403: What if your childhood bully actually apologized?
Ep 403 · Apr 21, 2026 · 48 min
After growing up in a home shaped by violence, racism, and fear, a woman is stunned to receive an apology from the girl who bullied her in middle school, forcing her to reckon with the harm they both carried and the possibility of repair. Today’s episode featured Christy Davis. If you’d like to contact Christy, you can email her at MsChristy_Creative@proton.me. Christy’s episode is part 2 of a 2 part series. Christy has recently started adding her writing to Substack: https://…
402: What if a deadly tornado helped to heal old wounds?
Ep 402 · Apr 14, 2026 · 54 min
After narrowly surviving one of the deadliest tornados in US history, a woman is driven to confront a long-buried harm, finding in the aftermath a deeper sense of purpose, forgiveness, and service. Today’s episode featured Nanda Nunnelly. If you’d like to contact Nanda, you can email her at Nandanunnelly@gmail.com. Nanda’s episode is part 1 of a 2 part series. Nanda’s cause and organization, Minnie Hackney Community Service Center of Joplin, is on Facebook, or you can visit the webs…
401: What if you were ambushed on a dark desert highway?
Ep 401 · Apr 7, 2026 · 59 min
After spending much of his life trying to outrun the feeling of being trapped, a man’s violent kidnapping on a solo motorcycle trip through Mexico forces him to reckon with the fear, rage, and longing for freedom that have shaped him since childhood. Today’s episode featured Gary Stauble. If you’d like to reach out to Gary, you can email him at ezinef@gmail.com. Gary is on Instagram @garystauble Gary is on Facebook @gstauble Producers: Whit Missildine Content/Trigger Wa…
400: What if you suspected your father was the infamous Tylenol Murderer?
Ep 400 · Mar 31, 2026 · 1 hr 2 min
A man grows up in a home defined by violence, secrecy, and fear, and decades later a deathbed confession confirms his belief that his father was responsible for the Chicago Tylenol murders, forcing him to reckon with a lifetime shaped by trauma and silence. Today’s episode featured Joseph Cibelli. Joe is a former salon entrepreneur turned author, legal scholar, and forensic psychologist. He wrote The Tylenol Murders: A Father’s Confession to His Son, which investigates the 1982 Chicago Ty…
399: What if a hormonal disorder rewrote your identity?
Ep 399 · Mar 24, 2026 · 57 min
After decades of stability, a woman’s experience of menopause brings back a lifetime of buried symptoms and reveals an unexpected truth about her identity, forcing her to reexamine everything she thought she knew about herself. Today’s storyteller wishes to remain Anonymous. If you’d like to reach out to her, you can email her at SunflowerSpark44@gmail.com. Producers: Whit Missildine, Andrew Waits, Ellen (Elly) Westberg Content/Trigger Warnings: Suicidal ideation, ment…
398: What if you witnessed the best and the worst of humanity?
Ep 398 · Mar 17, 2026 · 1 hr 1 min
After years working as a humanitarian aid worker in war zones and disaster areas around the world, a man is forced to confront the psychological toll of witnessing a broken world he could never fix. Today’s episode featured Gray Doyle. If you’d like to email Gray, you can reach him at graydoyle@meetmeinzanzibar.com. You can purchase Gray’s book on his website, https://meetmeinzanzibar.com/. Producers: Whit Missildine, Andrew Waits, Jason Blalock …
397: What if you survived a terrorist attack in Paris?
Ep 397 · Mar 10, 2026 · 55 min
After surviving the 2015 ISIS terrorist attacks at a Paris café, a woman begins the painful work of confronting buried childhood trauma and reclaiming a life she had never fully allowed herself to live. Today’s episode featured Mandy Palmucci. You can email Mandy at mandypalmucci@gmail.com. Mandy is on Instagram @palmuccim Mandy is currently working on a book about her experience. Producers: Whit Missildine, Andrew Waits Content/Trigger Warnings: Chil…
396: What if you were held captive by child soldiers?
Ep 396 · Mar 3, 2026 · 1 hr 11 min
When a family sailing journey ends in capture by child soldiers during Mozambique’s civil war, a man must protect his children while confronting the unsettling truth that his captors are both perpetrators of violence and children shaped by it. Today’s episode featured Dave Muller. Dave has written about his experiences in a book entitled, “Not Child’s Play”, available where books are sold or at https://notchildsplay.co.uk/ You can email Dave at dave.muller@notchildsplay.co.za …
395: What if your son murdered your daughter?
Ep 395 · Feb 24, 2026 · 1 hr 10 min
After overcoming addiction and rebuilding her life around motherhood, a woman's world is shattered when her son kills her daughter, forcing her to grieve one child while fighting to protect the other and learning how to survive an unbearable moral and emotional divide. Today’s episode featured Charity Lee. If you’d like to email Charity, you can reach her at bawmedia@gmail.com. You can also find her on Facebook @IAmCharityLee Charity has authored a book entitled, How Now, Butterfly?…
394: What if you found yourself naked, starving and surrounded by cops?
Ep 394 · Feb 17, 2026 · 1 hr 2 min
After the sudden death of his father leaves him drowning in guilt, a man unknowingly spirals into a manic break that strips him of his freedom, his relationships, and his grip on reality, forcing him to confront bipolar disorder and rebuild his life from the ground up. Today’s storyteller wishes to remain Anonymous. However, you can reach out to him at anytom2020.t@gmail.com. Producers: Whit Missildine, Andrew Waits, Jason Blalock Content/Trigger Warnings: Suicide and…
393: What if your doctors weren’t allowed to help you?
Ep 393 · Feb 10, 2026 · 1 hr 7 min
After a lifetime of striving for control, a woman is thrust into unimaginable loss when a potentially catastrophic twin pregnancy collides with restrictive laws, forcing her to rebuild her life from the ground up. Today’s episode featured Helen. Helen and her husband, Zach, began The Marigold Foundation, whose mission is to lead the way in providing financial aid to families that are facing a complex medical diagnosis or the loss of an infant or neonate. To learn more or to donate, please…
392: What if you were a whistleblower against your own father?
Ep 392 · Feb 3, 2026 · 57 min
When a son discovers that the man who raised him is capable of unimaginable harm, he is forced to become a whistleblower against his own father, risking his family, his identity, and everything he once believed to be true. Today’s episode featured Kai Zen Bickle. To find out more about the legislation drafted with Child USA to close jurisdictional loopholes, specifically to ensure that evidence of sexual crimes committed against children on foreign soil can be brought back and used in U.S…
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