Breaking the Silence: Conversations on Grief, Addiction and Healing Season 2

Angelique Strang

Welcome to Season 2 Pull up a chair and exhale. Breaking the Silence is a podcast about grief, addiction, healing, resilience, and the human experience. Hosted by Angelique Strang, these conversations explore the questions that keep us stuck, the lessons hidden inside our hardest moments, and the perspectives that help us move forward. Whether you're navigating loss, supporting someone you love, rebuilding after trauma, or simply searching for meaning, you're welcome here. Some questions create cages. Better questions create doors. 988.org Linktr.ee/angeliquestrang

  1. Jan 11

    Episode 20 Matt Melvin

    When Matthew Melvin started working at a car dealership in South Burlington, Vermont, he never thought that one mistake would lead to a life-changing stint in prison.Feeling he wasn’t being paid his full commissions on car sales, he made an impulsive decision to get what he felt he was owed. He hatched a badly-thought out plot to steal a car, sell it as his own and keep the profits.However, a basic reference and background check quickly revealed that the vehicle’s title was not in his name, but still belonged to the dealership. He was arrested andsentenced to prison. While Matthew has taken responsibility for his poor life choices, hebelieves he has been treated unfairly due to his sexual orientation,religious and political affiliations, and his adult diagnosis ofautism. While he and his lawyer argued that his punishment would bebest served in a mental health facility, Matt was unfortunatelysentenced to 18 months in prison to be served in general population.Terrified and alone, Matthew began his prison term with the best of intentions—to keep his head down and serve his time as uneventfully as possible. But being a gay, Christian, Trump supporter brought him unwanted and negative attention. He was bullied by cellmates, targeted by gangs and even raped in one facility. The months he was imprisoned felt like decades and there were times he doubted he would make it out alive. Bullied Behind Bars chronicles Matthew Melvin’s life feeling like anoutcast, enduring a lonely and friendless childhood, and beingpunished for a crime that began with the honorable goal of him just trying to make a living. Website https://bulliedbehindbars.com Facebook https://www.facebook.com/matthew.melvin.5621 Instagram https://www.instagram.com/bulliedbehindbars

    38 min
  2. 12/17/2025

    Ann Oickle

    My nurturing yet blunt guidance is rooted in personal experiences, Tony Robbins Training, Akashic Records, and Reiki training, and more, I tailor to uplift busy parents, especially navigating special needs children.A little bit about me, at a young age, I lost 2 brothers to a genetic deficiency, at the age of 23, I lost my best friend, my mom. Unaware of belief systems I had taken on from life's experiences, I had a jovial personality but kept people at arm’s length. At the age of 34, I had my first child, she was GORGEOUS! (as most parents would/should say about their babies LOL). When she was 2, we lost her grandad on my husband’s side to cancer complications, and a few years later, her grandma was at his side due to health complications. Between all this, we had moved across the country over 5000 KM away from all our family and most of our friends. At her age of 13 our daughter was diagnosed with high social anxiety, ADD, select mutism, and later was assessed for high-functioning autism. All while I was working a full-time at a high-stress job.Needless to say, my healing and spiritual journey was much-needed and timely. At the age of 46, my journey had taken a deep dive, then Covid hit and shit got real! Fast forward, my spiritual, training journey and it has all led me to heal from high stress, anxiety, overwhelm and chaos. The resilience has been a blessing. I was introduced to cellular health and targeted health with high quality natural ingredients and my entire health journey felt like it was a complete package. I now offer that package to you in multiple ways!  / annoickledynamiclivinglifestyles

    1h 22m

About

Welcome to Season 2 Pull up a chair and exhale. Breaking the Silence is a podcast about grief, addiction, healing, resilience, and the human experience. Hosted by Angelique Strang, these conversations explore the questions that keep us stuck, the lessons hidden inside our hardest moments, and the perspectives that help us move forward. Whether you're navigating loss, supporting someone you love, rebuilding after trauma, or simply searching for meaning, you're welcome here. Some questions create cages. Better questions create doors. 988.org Linktr.ee/angeliquestrang