The Call: Podcasts in Teaching

Just as I dropped my daughter off at dance class this morning, I heard the beginning of This American Life. I rarely feel compelled to listen to an entire podcast episode, (of any podcast), often listening a bit and then reading the transcript if I want to finish the story. It is more efficient and usually I am pressed for time. Today’s episode was a story I couldn’t stop hearing, or whatever the audio equivalent is to “I couldn’t put it down”. I kept the radio playing during a few errands and then when I got inside the dance studio I put in headphones and listened to the rest.

“The Call” is episode 809 of This American Life. It was a sobering, sometimes frightening, and very realistic portrayal of substance use, overdose, the challenges of treatment, and the all the ways drug use can devastate your life and well-being.

And also, at the end, it was a little bit hopeful.

I am going to think more about how I might use this is in a class. I could see it being used in policy class to help teach about programs of harm reduction. I could see it being used in courses teaching foundational content on substance use and practice in this field. I also think this is a podcast I would be careful about where and to whom I assigned it. I would definitely give some “trigger warnings” and give people some space and time to listen to it in a way that would not be triggering if they are personally close to these issues.

I don’t have personal connection in any close friend or family way to this issue, but I have many “looser” connections to it. Even with my degrees of separation, I was crying at several points during this episode at how raw and honest it was. So, do be mindful of how you use it in your work if you choose to. I think the power of the episode is worth the investment of time in figuring out how to use it well.

Here is the website for the Never Use Alone hotline, and here is the SAMHSA overview on the treatment model of harm reduction.

And, to take the theme of the episode in a different direction, here’s what we know about the efficacy of hotlines.