<p>What if your mother left to follow a cult… or you woke up in a morgue… or if your boat got caught in a storm and began to sink -- what would you do?&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;This is Actually Happening brings you extraordinary true stories of life-changing events told by the people who lived them.&nbsp;From a man who finds out a celebrity crush isn’t who she seems to a woman stranded in a Mexican desert fighting to survive, these stories will have you on the edge of your seat waiting to hear what happens next.</p><p>New episodes come out every Tuesday for free, with ad-free episodes and exclusive past episodes available for Wondery+ subscribers.</p>

This Is Actually Happening

After surviving a chaotic and abusive upbringing, a woman develops an undiagnosable autoimmune disorder that threatens to take her vision and her livelihood, but when a friend brings a blow-up doll to play a practical joke one night, everything changes.

248: What if an invisible disease blew up your life?

Bill Mitchell built a successful career, marriage and family, but just as his bright and loving daughter graduates from college with big dreams, an unthinkable event irreversibly changes everything.

247: What if you didn't see the signs?

Always feeling she had failed the ideals of her strict Muslim, South Asian family and community, a woman struggles to navigate trauma, shame and self-expression, when unexpected news forces her into a powerful reckoning.

246: What if you could never be what they wanted?

A woman struggling to find herself finally discovers a place where she belongs and forms a deep friendship, but when she experiments with a powerful psychedelic the experience reveals more than she bargained for.

245: What if you were taken to the dark side?

A man struggles to free himself from his father’s iron grip on the family, but when an unsettling truth about his past is revealed, his entire life comes into focus.

244: What if you could never make him proud?

Our family members are not always who we think. When Eleonore Richland exposed her father’s dark legacy, she vowed to clean up the family business – and hired her half-brother, Santino Reyes, to help her do it. But old habits die hard. In the shocking new third season, Eleonore reckons with what her father always taught her growing up: medicine is a bloody business. From Wondery, the makers of “The Shrink Next Door” and “Dr. Death,” Blood Ties stars Gillian Jacobs (Community, Love), Christian Navarro (13 Reasons Why), and Peter Stormare.




Listen to Blood Ties: wondery.fm/TIAH_BTS3

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Presents: Blood Ties S3: Strange Days

After a woman’s Mormon family falls apart following the death of her father, her mother brings her to a Scientology Center where she leaves everything behind.

243: What if you signed a billion-year contract?

The terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001, took a large toll on America’s sense of security. In the dawn of this new era, Congress moved to take swift action by creating the Patriot Act. The stated goal was to identify and strike back against terrorists, but in practice, the law had much wider-reaching effects. But everything changed in 2013 when an intelligence contractor named Edward Snowden decided to expose the truth, leaking more classified documents than any whistleblower in American history.




This four-part series from American Scandal follows Edward Snowden’s transformation, from a respected intelligence officer, to the most wanted whistleblower in the world.    




This is just a preview of Edward Snowden from American Scandal, but you can listen to the rest of this episode at wondery.fm/AS_TIAH.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Presents: American Scandal: Edward Snowden

After growing up queer with a complicated father in the 1960s, a man forges his own path, identity and career in the arts, but suddenly, after a routine surgery, he wakes up unable to move.

242: What if you woke up and couldn't move?

A woman falls deeply in love with a married man in her close friend’s circle, when suddenly an unthinkable event throws everything into question.

241: What if you were the other woman?

Growing up in a household full of both love and violence in Mississippi, Kiese Laymon struggles with generational trauma, career success, and addiction before finally facing the silences of his past.

What if you were the one to break the silence? - [Rebroadcast #137]

Following a tumultuous upbringing, a woman begins confronting the complexities of her identity and self-destructive tendencies, when all of a sudden, devastating bouts of Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder begin to consume her life.

What if you suddenly felt like a werewolf? - [Rebroadcast - #119]

Struggling to find his identity after college, a man suddenly suffers from a panic attack that leads to a terrifying downward spiral.

What if you thought your mother was a robot? - [Rebroadcast #146]

After self-medicating for years to cope with the emotional aftermath of an abusive, religious upbringing, a woman goes in for a minor surgery, and when she emerges, everything has changed.

What if a minor procedure left you permanently altered? - [Rebroadcast #135]

Following a heart attack, a man finds relief and healing through unusual sexual fetishes.

What if your deepest fear was your greatest pleasure? [Rebroadcast - #105]

Growing up Jehovah’s Witness and then setting out to form an identity of her own, a woman reconciles the silences of her loving and devoted family with an unthinkable act that throws everything into question.

What if your family was consumed by an unthinkable act? [Rebroadcast - #126]

Growing up with a single mother and a father in jail, a dancer’s life is forever changed when one night, while doing a favor for a friend, two unknown shooters open fire.

240: What if nine bullets shattered your dreams?

A boy grows up in a household devastated by AIDS, opening a downward spiral of loss and a path of resilience.

239: What if a single decision led to a spiral of loss?

A teenage Russian immigrant in Iran is jailed and tortured during the Iranian Revolution of 1979, but when a prison guard falls in love with her, she’s forced to weigh the price of her freedom.

238: What if you were tortured in an Iranian prison?

A woman struggles to find herself among her mother’s multiplying crises that always seem to find a new rock bottom.

237: What if your mom hoarded 90 cats?

A woman always seeking a sanctuary from a chaotic upbringing has her home and her life upended when a bizarre new roommate threatens to ruin everything she’s built.

236: What if you had the worst roommate ever?

After growing up with a patriarchal Christian home, a woman grapples with her father losing touch with reality when his delusions begin to dramatically unravel the family narratives.

235: What if delusion consumed your family?

Growing up Jewish and surviving the twin traumas of domestic abuse and antisemitic bullying, a man finally establishes a new life for himself, when devastating loss threatens to keep him locked in a cycle he can seemingly never escape.

234: What if your joy came with a tragic price?

Growing up in a loving Mexican immigrant family in the US, everything changes in a young girl’s life when a home invasion, abandonment and unprocessed losses mount, leading to a dramatic wake up call.

233: What if they invaded your home?

A man suffers a serious injury after a drunken fight, but in its wake, a deeper unhealed wound festers that leads to an act of hate.

232: What if you committed a hate crime?

Just before coming into adolescence, a young girl experiences an unspeakable trauma, but a bigger horror begins once she reveals her secret.

231: What if they all betrayed you?

Growing up with a sense of heroic duty, a man becomes a cop fighting the drug war, when the sobering realities of his job lead him to profound awakening.

230: What if you discovered you were the enemy?

Growing up evangelical in the Purity movement of the 1990s, a woman constructs the ideal life, when piece by piece, her image of family, marriage and her identity begin to be dismantled.

229: What if your life unraveled thread by thread?

A woman struggles to break out of her role caretaking a father who was haunted by his experiences in Vietnam, but when both of their worlds unravel, she must find a new source of strength.

228: What if you grew up with the ghosts of war?

A newly married man traveling the world with the love of his life faces unimaginable horror on a hiking trail in Romania.

227: What if you faced a terrifying beast?

Soon after coming into adolescence, a woman develops flu-like symptoms of an unknown illness that continue to progress until it alters her forever.

226: What if you had three different faces?

At the peak of his life, having built a successful marriage, family and career, a man faces a series of compound losses that put him through a dark night of the soul.

225: What if you stared into the abyss?

After a girl is saved from her abusive father, she finds solace in her mother’s protection, but when her mother meets a new man, an even greater menace threatens to take everything.

224: What if they stole your childhood?

A woman who always felt different is compelled to hold a shocking secret that could shatter the family illusion.

223: What if you were the dirty little secret?

A man who always felt like he didn’t belong in his own house wakes up one morning to a surreal tragedy.

222: What if you were a stranger in your own home?

A woman struggles to free herself from the catastrophic consequences of an obsession with a man she cannot leave

221: What if you were addicted to each other?

An obstetrician must find healing and forgiveness after an unexpected tragedy opens old wounds.

220: What if they died in your hands?

A man goes on a duck hunt with his friends, when a freak accident changes everything.

219: What if you bled to death?

Growing up in a strict, sheltered household, a woman must confront a new reality when her older sister, who was the glue of her family and her identity, begins to fall apart.

218: What if the family glue came undone?

From the ashes of her own descent into severe mental illness, a nurse finds resilience to face her job’s gravest challenges.

217: What if you saw the face of death?

A man attempts to reconcile the sudden onset of psychotic symptoms with his Catholic identity.

What if the Devil was battling for your mind? [Rebroadcast - #116] 

A woman fights for survival during an infamous mass shooting in Las Vegas.

What if everything turned to mayhem? [Rebroadcast - #110] 

Still reeling from an estrangement from her own mother, a woman digs into her past and unravels secrets that shake the family foundation.

What if you uncovered the family secret? [Rebroadcast - #118] 

After her first marriage falls apart, a woman has a second chance at a dream family, but growing suspicions lead her to unimaginable revelations.

216: What if you opened Pandora's Box?

Growing up in the projects and a broken home, a man learns survive on the streets through dealing drugs and brutal violence, when a desperate moment leaves him with a choice that changes everything.

215: What if you faced the monster in the mirror?

Breaking away from her childhood, a teenager buries a traumatic encounter in self harm, pushing her to the limits of life and death.

214: What if you woke up in oblivion?

Growing up in an abusive household, a woman struggles to find meaning in her life, when one night, a sudden, unexpected, violent attack changes her life forever.

213: What if they were murdered trying to protect you?

A woman’s happy childhood with her single mother unexpectedly takes a bewildering, dark turn, leading to a moment that will change everything.

211: What if you had to let her go to save yourself?

A woman growing up in a sheltered life with conservative parents is taken from her driveway one night and led into a darkness she never could have fathomed.

210: What if you didn't know where they were taking you?

A man searches for healing after his father, a disgruntled post office worker, falls into a violent downward spiral.

208: What if you ran through the pain?

Growing up in the Mormon church, a woman follows a structured path to love and marriage, but what hides underneath threatens to unravel everything she’s built.

207: What if you faced the ultimate betrayal?

After her parents’ divorce a girl’s relationship with her mother tailspins until a shocking accusation throws everything into chaos.

206: What if no one believed you?

Whit Missildine, host of This Is Actually Happening and The Long Shadow, and Dan Taberski, host of Missing Richard Simmons and Nine Twelve discuss 9/11 their approaches to their respective series honoring the tragedy.

The Long Shadow: Bonus - Interview with Whit Missildine and Dan Taberski

In the aftermath of September 11th, 2001 a cardiologist volunteers to help process the body parts from those who lost their lives in a temporary morgue inside a Brooks Brothers department store.

205: The Long Shadow: What if you processed the remains?

On September 11th, 2001, the first female firefighter in the New York City Fire Department confronts the impossible tasks of that day and the skewed narratives that followed.

204: The Long Shadow: What if you fought the fire?

A Port Authority employee narrowly escapes from the 68th floor after a plane hits the World Trade Center on September 11th, 2001, but the most devastating impact comes from the psychological wounds that haunt her life for decades after.

203: The Long Shadow: What if you were on the 68th floor?

On September 11th, 2001 an ER Doctor finds himself in charge of the closest emergency room to the Twin Towers.

202: The Long Shadow: What if you ran the ER five blocks away?

A woman who finally finds her sense of purpose after a tumultuous upbringing realizes a mother’s ultimate horror.

201: What if you believed it was all your fault?

“All the reality that I had been putting off, and all of the denial, it all crashed in on me.”

 

Producers: Whit Missildine, Jason Blalock




Episode Summary: Growing up in the closet with a mentally ill mother, a man finds his true love, but as their past continues to weigh in, the only remedy he knows threatens to consume everything he’s built.




Today's episode featured Gabriel. Gabriel is now a psychiatric social worker and licensed therapist in Orange County, California. You can find out more about Gabriel on Instagram @gabriel.emmm.

 

Website for Jason Blalock: www.jasonblalock.com

 

Social Media: Instagram: @actuallyhappening

Website: www.thisisactuallyhappening.com




Wondery Plus: All episodes of the show prior to episode #130 are now part of the Wondery Plus premium service. To access the full catalog of episodes, and get all episodes ad free, sign up for Wondery Plus at https://wondery.com/plus

Episode Sponsors: Best Fiends, Lending Tree, BetterHelp: betterhelp.com/happening

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Content/Trigger Warnings: drug abuse, drug addiction, opioids, overdose, death, suicide, explicit language

 

Intro Music: "Illabye" – Tipper

Music Bed: Ambient Themes by Nigel Coutinho

 

Services

If you or someone you know is struggling with the effects of trauma or mental illness, please refer to the following resources.

 

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255 

National Alliance on Mental Illness: 1-800-950-6264

National Sexual Assault Hotline (RAINN): 1-800-656-HOPE (4673)

Crisis Text Line: Within the US, text HOME to 741741

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

200: What if you were consumed by your only cure?

Following early experiences of isolation and bullying, a man assigned female at birth finds a beautiful friendship, that soon descends into a bewildering cycle of gaslighting and obsession.

199: What if your deepest friendship was your darkest fate?

A woman with severe harm OCD encounters the many faces of death and dying but finds renewal in caring for others and ultimately herself.

198: What if you rescued everyone to save yourself?

After surviving a brutal upbringing in the South Bronx, a man finds himself on the other side of death following a minor accident and returns with a profound awakening.

197: What if you died?

A refugee recounts her experience of the horror and devastation of the Rwandan genocide.

What if you survived a genocide? [Rebroadcast - #113]

A musician is sideswiped by a sudden break into a nightmarish world that will not let him go

What if you had a ten-year nightmare? [Rebroadcast - #103]

After a chaotic upbringing, a man assigned female at birth finds a new community with caring mentors, when their mental illness threatens to unravel his entire reality.

What if you transitioned into an alternate reality? [Rebroadcast - #124]

A woman recounts her childhood dealing with a mentally ill father obsessed with Disneyland.

What if the happiest place on earth was your worst nightmare? [Rebroadcast - #79]

A man is relentlessly stalked by his girlfriend's ex.

What if her ex-boyfriend tried to kill you? [Rebroadcast - #114]

A woman who seeks awakening through myriad healing practices finds her ultimate challenge when she goes missing in a Maui forest.

196: What if you went missing?

Decades after her brother disappeared in the early 1980s, a woman becomes deeply involved in the search for a missing friend.

195: What if you never stopped searching?

A woman is haunted by a relentless threat of danger when her pursuit of safety turns into obsession.

194: What if you ran but couldn't hide?

A man haunted by an early childhood trauma finally establishes his own identity only to be sideswiped by another unwanted, shocking exposure.

193: What if your deepest secret was shared with the world?

A lifelong traveler heads out for a quick bike ride in the Swiss Alps and finds herself lost in a dark, icy unknown.

192: What if one wrong turn meant life or death?

Growing up with a close, religious family a young woman’s aspiration for perfect beauty turns her into the very image of herself she was afraid of.

191: What if you suffered from trichotillomania?

Following an early childhood trauma, a woman seeks to fill the void with a series of unhealthy relationships, until a fairytale romance promises to be everything she ever wanted

190: What if your fairytale was finally within reach?

Growing up in a home of abandonment and neglect, a teenager finds a grand, new reality in the rabbit hole of addiction until they can no longer find their way back.

189: What if you couldn't stop shining?

A woman grows up with an idyllic childhood in Scotland, when a phobia of mysterious origin begins consuming her thoughts and eventually her future

188: What if you spent four years inside?

A young man growing up in an abusive home falls into a whirlwind romance that throws him into another cycle of chaos

187: What if you were trapped all over again?

Growing up with an unreliable mother, a woman develops severe OCD with multiple phobias, until she must confront the most improbable scenario

186: What if you were consumed by a preposterous phobia?

Grappling with her identity and disruptive health anxiety, a woman reaches in adulthood with a dream job and strong community, when suddenly her worst-case scenario becomes a reality.

185: What if you kept shaking hands with death?

Growing up in an environment of constant change, a woman vows to find a different path to stability, only to have a shocking revelation turn her world upside down

184: What if you didn't know who he was?

After making a successful career and surviving several tumultuous relationships, a woman descends into the darkest depths of severe mental illness

183: What if everyone was watching you?

A mother struggles to raise her child through a series of chaotic relationships, when one day, as her daughter’s mental illness spirals out of control, an unthinkable decision will change their lives forever

182: What if your daughter committed a seemingly unforgivable act?

After a traumatic childhood, a young woman spirals into mental illness and in her darkest moment makes an unthinkable decision that will change her family forever

181: What if you committed a seemingly unforgivable act?

A young woman’s first trip to reconnect with her homeland in Ethiopia takes a terrifying turn as hijackers take over an otherwise routine flight

180: What if your plane was hijacked?

A horrific accident leaves a man severely disabled, but after hitting rock bottom in his recovery a new life opens he could never have imagined

179: What if a horrifying loss led to a grand adventure?

A woman finally escapes the trauma of her mother’s mental illness only to find a new, more horrifying monster in the very place she finds respite

178: What if you couldn't tell him what really happened?

Having adapted to the challenges of growing up with cerebral palsy, a woman is sideswiped into a new life after a crash she can’t remember changes everything.

177: What if you woke up two months later?

A woman develops a severe eating disorder that lands her in intensive psychiatric care, where an extreme treatment program traps her in an alternate reality from which she cannot escape.

176: What if you were trapped in a never-ending dream?

A man’s rage grows after growing up with racism and abuse, leading to transformative encounters with brutality, violence and ultimately, inner strength.

175: What if you had their knee on your neck?

A woman answers a Craigslist ad for a job and ends up on a harrowing night that doesn’t add up

174: What if you couldn't remember that night?

A mother faces the ultimate tragedy at the hands of those who are supposed to protect and serve.

173: What if your cry for help led to an unthinkable tragedy?

A woman fights for her life after her husband turns into a monster.

Holiday 2020 Rebroadcast - #100: What if he wouldn’t let you leave?

An American working in Tokyo ends up in the crosshairs of a notorious organized crime family.

Holiday 2020 Rebroadcast - #87: What if you were hunted by the Japanese Mafia?

After a brutal rape at age 11, a woman keeps her secret, only to be haunted decades later by events that compel her to confront her deepest fears

172: What if you were lured into an unspeakable hell?

Growing up surrounded by racism and police brutality, a man tries to understand and heal his past by seeing what’s really inside the belly of the beast.

171: What if you saw inside the belly of the beast?

A young woman hungry to explore the world goes on a trip to Tanzania and unexpectedly finds herself caught in an endless cycle of impending doom.

170: What if you didn't sleep for 120 hours?

At a young age, a man develops a fetish for diapers that ends up reshaping the course of his adult life.

169: What if you were an Adult Baby Diaper Lover?

A woman self-medicating for anxiety and depression spirals into an alternate reality after an other-worldly encounter

168: What if you believed you were Jesus Christ?

After growing up in a rigid Christian community, a woman finds beauty in revolting behaviors.

167: What if you had a fetish for disgust?

After visiting a psychiatrist for mild anxiety, a young man embarks on a wild spree that will alter the course of his life forever.

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Latest episode: Tue Sep 27 2022