
I Blacked Out Every Night While Running The San Francisco Bureau of HuffPost | Highrise Suicide Attempt and How I Got Sober
From Rise Above with Kevin Lanning by Kevin Lanning
June 5, 2026 · 1h 7m
About this episode
Carly Schwartz shares her journey from a successful journalism career to overcoming addiction and finding sobriety.
Carly Schwartz had a career most journalists only dream about. Running the San Francisco Bureau of HuffPost at 26. On the leadership team of one of the biggest news organizations in the world. Blogging for a governor who became California's Governor. Expense accounts, concerts, restaurant openings and a life that looked absolutely electric from the outside. And she was going to bed every night wishing she wouldn't wake up the next morning. Behind the blazing career was a secret life of cocaine benders, blacking out, taking hits of nitrous oxide under her covers at noon on a Sunday, and a depression so severe that she dropped out of Northwestern University, checked herself into a psych ward, and eventually found herself standing on the roof of a Panama City highrise on the phone with a suicide hotline. She went to a Panamanian jungle to find herself. She found cocaine instead. Now 8 years sober, Carly has written her memoir I'll Try Anything Twice — and built a life centered on storytelling, healing and finally understanding what it means to love herself. If you or someone you love is struggling with addiction or mental health, you don’t have to do it alone. Reach out to my…
People in this episode
Host: Kevin Lanning
Guest: Carly Schwartz
Topics covered
- addiction
- mental health
- journalism
- personal story
- recovery
- self-love
Keywords
- Carly Schwartz
- HuffPost
- addiction
- sobriety
- mental health
- self-love
- recovery
- journalism
Sponsors
Compassion Behavioral Health
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: HuffPost, Northwestern University
Books & works: I'll Try Anything Twice
Places: California, Panama City, Panamanian jungle
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