The MisfitNation With Rchard LaMonica

Donna and Charlie Simko remember meeting at Fort Campbell a little differently. Charlie remembers coming home from deployment and meeting Donna in the platoon. Donna remembers her 21st birthday and Charlie being the one who got her to the hospital when she needed help. In The MisFitNation’s Veterans Week finale, they tell Rich LaMonica both versions of that first meeting and share what it took to keep showing up for each other in the years that followed. Both served as U.S. Army Military Police, but military life looked different depending on who was home and who was away. Donna talks about the lasting effects of injuries and sexual harassment during her service, losing their daughter Harper at 30 weeks after a triploidy diagnosis, and welcoming their daughter Raegan while Charlie was deployed overseas. She also shares one of the details that stayed with her after Harper’s death. They had time to take photographs with their daughter before saying goodbye. Charlie describes going straight into problem-solving mode during a crisis, making sure everyone else is okay before dealing with what he’s feeling. He also talks about medically retiring after nearly 11 years in the Army and discovering what he liked about building custom cabinets, from figuring out a difficult project to seeing the finished work. The episode closes with a Veterans Week gratitude check. Donna talks about the people at work who give her flexibility when her family needs her. Charlie talks about the men he chooses to keep close. Both share how a deeper faith has brought them closer. Follow The MisFitNation on Spotify or Apple Podcasts for more conversations with veterans and military families. If this episode brings someone to mind, send it to them and check in. https://www.themisfitnation.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The sun was coming up, and Sam Juan still hadn’t slept. In a brief moment of clarity, she could see what drugs and alcohol were helping her avoid. Getting sober would take longer than that morning, and it would mean rebuilding much of the life she’d made after the Army. On Day 4 of The MisFitNation Veterans Week, Jake Holland sits down with U.S. Army veteran, writer, and artist Samantha “Sam” Juan for a Veterans Day conversation about what it takes to come home from war when your body is still braced for it. Sam enlisted in high school and started as an Army cook. After earning U.S. citizenship, she retrained as a signals intelligence analyst and became one of the first women selected for the Army’s Cultural Support Team program in 2011. She went on to lead a team attached to Joint Special Operations Command in Afghanistan. The Bronze Star recipient and Pat Tillman Scholar explains how a habit she learned in an abusive childhood—disconnecting from what she felt—helped her stay composed under pressure and made it harder to recognize when she needed help. Sam speaks candidly about relapse, changing the routines and relationships that kept pulling her back, and her personal experience with psychedelic therapy. She also talks about motherhood, returning to painting, and writing her memoir, *Everything Happens for You*. One question guided her as she decided which stories she was ready to tell: “Am I writing from the wound or the scar?” When Jake asks what the difference between surviving and living looks like on a regular Wednesday, Sam’s answer is simple. She can be there for the small moments she used to rush past. Follow The MisFitNation on Spotify or Apple Podcasts for more conversations about life after military service. Explore Sam’s artwork, speaking, and memoir updates at https://www.the1samjuan.com. Watch the full Veterans Day interview on YouTube at https://youtube.com/live/l2wdhHyPSr8 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joseph Randall remembers the balloons, the hugs, and the families waiting on the parade deck when he returned from Operation Desert Storm. He remembers realizing no one was there for him, picking up his bags, and walking back to the barracks. On Night 3 of The MisFitNation Veterans Week 2026, the ToosDay Crüe sits down with U.S. Marine Corps veteran Joseph D. Randall II for a 90-minute conversation on the Marine Corps birthday. At 19, Joseph volunteered to take meals forward to infantry Marines he’d served with. Back in St. Louis, he started at the salad station at Applebee’s, worked his way up to lead cook, and went on to build a career in fine dining, culinary education, and consulting. When a listener asks how to know if culinary school is the right move, Joseph gives a practical answer. Spend time in a working kitchen before you commit. He also shares the advice a mentor gave him while he weighed an executive chef offer. “No matter what you do, stay in the driver’s seat.” Years later, that advice helped him walk away from a publishing deal that would have left him paying for shipping and taking back unsold books. The conversation returns to that walk from the parade deck when Joseph talks about living with PTSD and why it took decades to put his experience on paper in *Forged in Heat: Discipline. Fire. Restraint.* When a viewer asks how to reach someone from an old unit who’s gone quiet, Joseph says he’s been that person. He talks about what it meant to feel supported by people who couldn’t fully understand what he was going through, and why he believes veteran mental health support should begin while people are still in uniform. If someone from your old unit comes to mind while you listen, reach out and give them room to answer. Follow The MisFitNation on Spotify or Apple Podcasts for the rest of Veterans Week. Explore Joseph Randall’s memoir and work at Orion Copper https://www.orioncopper.com/ Watch The MisFitNation on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@The_MisFitNation Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

John Krotec’s therapist told him she couldn’t save his marriage—but she could help him save himself. What followed was the difficult work of facing pain he had kept hidden for decades. In this episode of The MisFitNation Show, U.S. Army Veteran, entrepreneur, author, and poet John Krotec shares how a 2012 vehicle accident and traumatic brain injury disrupted his life and brought long-buried childhood trauma to the surface. Facing sleepless nights, suicidal thoughts, and divorce proceedings, John sought professional help and began rebuilding his relationship with himself. He recalls the moment his wife told him she was calling off their divorce—and the unexpected discomfort of looking in a mirror and telling himself, “I love you.” This candid conversation explores cognitive behavioral therapy, self-forgiveness, poetry as an outlet for healing, and the ongoing challenges of living with a brain injury. John also tackles a question many veterans carry: How do you discover who you are today while honoring the person who wore the uniform? Together, we explore:• Finding identity and purpose after military service• Why service matters, with or without a combat deployment• Doing the hard work of trauma recovery• Rebuilding trust, relationships, and self-respect• Critical thinking and self-leadership through NeoMasculinity Solutions• Staying connected to the people who understand your story Whether you’re navigating life after service, supporting someone with a brain injury, or trying to find your footing after a difficult chapter, John’s story offers an honest look at what rebuilding can require—and why reaching out matters. Connect with John and explore The Sentinel Handbook:https://NeoMasculinity.Solutions Discover more from The MisFitNation:https://www.themisfitnation.comhttps://www.youtube.com/@The_MisFitNation Follow The MisFitNation Show and share this conversation with someone who could use encouragement to keep going. This episode includes discussion of childhood sexual abuse and suicidal thoughts. If you or someone you know needs immediate support, call 988. Veterans, press 1. A day tomorrow is better with you than it is without you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Tony Dice can trace his appetite for adrenaline back to riding his bike as fast as he could and swinging from ropes in the trees. Long before he became a Navy SEAL, he knew the feeling he was after. On Night Two of The MisFitNation Veterans Week 2026, he talks about where that pursuit took him, how alcohol and drug addiction became part of his life, and what it took to ask for help. Tony takes listeners inside his early recovery, when he was afraid of relapsing and wanted to stay in treatment. He talks about working through the Twelve Steps, going back to school, and continuing to attend recovery meetings. He speaks about sobriety in terms of what he can do today, and why it matters to remember how bad things got even when life is going well. One of the most revealing moments starts with a listener who got sober and threw themselves into work. They ask Tony how he recognized when ambition had become another way to avoid what he was feeling. It’s a question that opens up the conversation beyond substance use and into the habits people can carry with them into recovery. A U.S. Navy SEAL veteran, former firefighter and paramedic, and now a clinical therapist, Tony brings his own experience to his work with veterans and first responders. He also shares what led him to write *After the Trident: A Navy SEAL’s Battle with Secrets, Shame, and Addiction* and why he decided to tell this part of his story publicly. Follow The MisFitNation on Apple Podcasts or Spotify for the full Veterans Week series. If Tony’s story brings someone to mind, share the episode with them. Learn more about Dr. Tony Dice and his work at https://bishopdicedefense.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices