[music playing]
Being in a relationship is difficult enough.
Add to it addiction, and you have a perfect recipe
for a tornado to come that you're
not going to be able to stop.
[music playing]
There's that old saying, misery loves company.
[music playing]
RICHARD: I can't see it being anything other than a
[music playing]
The worst hell you have ever had in your entire life.
[music playing]
[sizzling]
[blows]
Couples, in their addiction, just tear each other apart.
You were done with that.
We were done with that, and you brought it back.
The dishonesty--
[bleep] you.
I'm going. I'm done.
--the manipulation--
--the fighting--
My god, it's actually your fault!
--and the codependency is deep.
[music playing]
The only thing harder than fighting an addiction
is fighting codependency at the same time.
[music playing]
They're playing that dance of death,
and they're killing each other.
[music playing]
STEVEN: We met in a rehab facility.
Hey, you're amazing.
[snickers]
JIM: I would like to see them go their separate ways.
Are you all right, Cass?
JIM: It has absolutely destroyed our family.
I just hit a nerve right then.
He needs help.
She's gone all the way from the top to the very bottom.
STEVEN: That's not cool.
CASSANDRA: You're acting like a total [bleep].
Yo, watch your mouth.
JIM: This could be the last time that I see my daughter alive.
[music playing]
We have to go into it like it's
going to be a [bleep]damn dogfight.
I think they're in the parking lot of the funeral home
right now.
If they don't accept help-- [sniffs]
[exhales]
JIM: You're breaking Amanda's heart right now.
Let me just get a [bleep] second.
They're going to die.
[bleep]
Steven, can you stop.
We don't have time.
[grunts]
[music playing]
This first one of us together, that's the one with the hickey
on the forehead.
[bleep]
[snickers] But you loved it too.
CASSANDRA: He-- he just randomly put a hickey on my forehead.
[music playing]
My name is Cassandra.
My name is Steven.
And it's been an absolute pleasure, even when it,
like, absolutely hasn't been--
I mean, we have our moments.
But shit, I love her to death.
I wouldn't change anything.
Hey, you're amazing.
JIM: If I could get those two separated somehow--
but that's-- that's not my world anymore.
She's-- she's 30 years old.
STEVEN: We met in a rehab facility
that we both ended up at.
We've gone up and down, for sure.
We've taken, you know, two steps forward, three steps back,
five steps forward, 10 steps back.
PEARCE: I don't feel great about Steven
and Cassie's relationship.
When one stumbles, they both do.
When one strives, the other is brought down.
I'm not going to put the blame on one or the other.
They're in it together.
STEVEN: Hey.
Mhm.
I know.
[laughs]
I think, she's amazing.
She's one of the strongest people I've ever met.
Steven was my first digital drawing ever.
That's me, when I had a beard.
[snickers]
[music playing]
[fire sizzling]
[music playing]
I use heroin and crack cocaine.
I combine them and do what is called a speedball.
I have to do at least three speedballs a day.
It's an upper and a downer, so the crack,
it makes me feel more awake.
It gives the heroin that kick that I don't feel anymore.
[music playing]
I just hit a nerve right then.
A lot of the veins that I hit are very deep and usually right
next to an artery.
I go to sleep and wake up, and for a good six, seven hours,
still be OK.
But now, that doesn't really happen
anymore because of the switch from heroin to fentanyl.
You've got to have more of it.
You get sick quicker.
The rush is more intense, and it's more addictive.
[music playing]
JIM: Steven has been in Cassandra's
life for quite a while now.
- Are you done? - I wasn't.
But go ahead, I'm about to set up a shot.
JIM: And during that time, they're
conditions have only worsened.
Smoke some girl first.
STEVEN: All right.
They call it girl and boy out here.
So girl is the crack, and boy is the--
the heroin, fentanyl, whatever it is.
[lighter clicking]
I use fentanyl and/or heroin, whatever they put
in it at the time, and crack.
[music playing]
I use because I don't want to deal with my moods
and my emotions and past traumas...
She doesn't shoot intravenously.
Because my veins are garbage, and I
don't like dealing with it.
JENNY: Now, with the fentanyl, the stakes are so much higher.
Her body is getting weaker.
Watching Cass fade away is devastating.
There's hardly anything beneficial about using.
The only benefit is that you feel kind of good
sometimes, maybe, at the beginning.
[scoffs]
JIM: I would expect one or both of them
to be dead within six months.
[music playing]
It's kind of like, you give me a piece to where
I don't have to, like-- - What, girl?
Yeah.
It's where I'd-- like, I can put a little bit in there.
I don't have to bug you.
Like, this will be the last time I
ask you for crack, until, [bleep], I end up, [bleep],
giving you some. - OK.
[laughs]
[lighter clicking]
RICHARD: I believe Steven and Cass
are addicted to each other as much as they are the drugs.
JIM: In some ways, they have somebody, right?
But that somebody is-- is not providing
any semblance of stability.
CASSANDRA: Get your-- get your rocks off, right.
Then, get your rocks off. Get it? Hehehe!
[music playing]
ARNETTE: Steven's been in and out of jail.
He's lost everything he owns.
AMANDA: I worry about Cassandra all the time.
Jail hasn't stopped her.
Rehab hasn't rehabbed her.
JIM: Every time I see her, she looks worse, more
frail, more gaunt, more pale.
I don't know how to bring her back.
[music playing]
Because I'm in the vein right now.
ARNETTE: Steven has severe injuries in direct relationship
to the drug use.
I thought it was an abscess.
It ended up being staph.
They ended up having to do surgery.
I was in the hospital for like, probably, two and a half,
three months.
[music playing]
ARNETTE: He needs help.
Oh, no!
I know.
This is, in no way, shape, or form, enjoyable.
RICHARD: They're enabling each other
to continue in this lifestyle.
STEVEN: Are you all right, Cass?
CASSANDRA: It'll get me through the day.
[snickers] - They're killing each other.
[music playing]
[sniffs]
JIM: It has absolutely destroyed our family.
[groans]
ARNETTE: How long can someone live in this kind of life?
It's a Russian roulette.
JIM: Without this intervention, we wait for Cassandra
and/or Steven to die.
[music playing]
[rain splattering]
STEVEN: I remember the first time that I saw her,
she was the new girl.
CASSANDRA: He fell down the stairs.
Like, yeah, I tripped.
Like, so I was like--
I was, like, kind of focused on, like, trying to not look
like a goofy-ass douchebag.
This is when we were healthy together.
Look how different we are.
Yeah that's-- that's us, in the beginning.
2018, so different.
Yeah.
We started talking and did not stop--
Mm, right.
--for what? Eight?
Nine hours straight?
[music playing]
STEVEN: In the beginning we were sober.
We were as normal as I could possibly be.
I wasn't really doing anything, drugwise.
[music playing]
CASSANDRA: I feel like our engagement
was-- we rushed into things.
I'm not saying it was, like, necessarily going
to be a bad idea or anything.
But it was not well thought out.
STEVEN: I was still on probation at that time.
When I started using, I ended up going to jail.
[music playing]
We ended our engagement because, um--
I cheated on him.
Yeah.
He was in jail.
I started messing around with the dope man.
STEVEN: That was the one thing--
that trust is broken.
And it's really hard to get back.
It took a long time.
CASSANDRA: I know we both definitely have, like, some--
STEVEN: --resentments.
CASSANDRA: --resentments that we need to still, maybe, work on.
I've never fully gotten the trust back after he stole $630
from me.
[music playing]
I'm about to go have her take this out.
Hold on, that scared the shit out--
it just seemed like you were about to do
that so extra reckless.
No, no.
Like, I thought you were about to slap it in more.
Steve-O and Cass are in love.
But if you remove the drugs, it would
be hard to know whether you-- the relationship
would continue.
[groans]
JIM: I think it's a habit, and I think it's comfortable.
And hey, we can-- we can pool our resources,
and we can help each other do it.
I have, like, 80 I can send you now.
So, like, two boys, [inaudible] girl.
All right, cool.
See you soon.
You know, a lot of people in my life
are like, why do you keep Steven around?
And I can't always answer that honestly.
STEVEN: He doesn't care about us at all.
[snickering]
STEVEN: He'll be in this little ball.
I'll always end up like this, and all
I hear is [exhales audibly] and then not apologize.
He doesn't even say excuse me.
[snickering]
[whimsical music]
Sam, here you go.
Sit.
Good boy.
And I'm sure my dad is gonna want to talk about every issue
I have in my life.
My relationship with my dad, I know he loves me and all that,
but you know, we had some rocky moments.
I don't know.
I'm not excited to do anything, like, that's outside of a bed
right now because I think I'm getting sick.
When I'm sick and withdrawing and stuff,
I get sweating, and just my body aches.
And I usually--
I'm not able to control some bodily functions.
Usually, people either cannot control
their bowels or they throw up.
I haven't heard anything.
Hopefully, the guy is actually here soon.
I get very anxious, and just real cranky,
and not mentally stable.
I'm still trying to numb.
[sighs] [bleep].
Six minutes.
All right, bet.
Thank you. [snickering]
Still, I don't want my dad seeing any of this.
[phone beeps]
[sighs]
Finally
[grunting]
[sniffs, grunts]
[tapping on door]
No, [bleep]-- oh, [bleep]
[knocking on door]
[bleep].
[sniffs, grunts]
[bleep]
Oh, [bleep]--
[knocking on door]
[clattering, fan whirring]
You didn't knock that loud.
Hi.
That's Sammy.
Thank you.
[laughs]
Sammy, hi.
How you been?
I've been.
[chuckles]
This reminds me of, uh, Keesler, dorms.
Does it?
Let's get out of here and get some air.
I might change first, and then I meet you guys right outside.
All right.
See you in a minute.
JIM: So it's obvious that she has been using recently.
She wants me to believe that she's getting better,
but it's obvious she's not.
She's getting worse.
She needs help.
And she certainly has to remove herself
permanently from the environment she's in,
and that includes Steven.
[birds chirping]
Sam, quit pulling.
He's like leaning.
[laughs]
So what's next?
CASSANDRA: Try to figure out some of this legal stuff.
I have a felony possession that I am being charged with.
So do you have a lawyer for any of this?
I'm assuming you would like somebody
to try to help on your behalf.
No?
The addiction has consumed who Cassandra used to be.
When we talk every now and again,
I see that spark of Cassandra that I love.
The Cassandra that I know is still in there somewhere.
How many times have you been arrested or pulled
over in the last three months?
Too many.
Exactly.
It's a slow, almost imperceptible burn for you.
But for those of us sitting on the outside,
it's getting worse.
JENNY: Jim feels like he's mourning
someone who's still alive.
Every phone call, we never know if that's gonna be
the phone call that she's gone.
The physical toll on your body is--
I see it.
CASSANDRA: Do you see the, like, 20 pounds I put on?
Like--
Yeah, I also see--
CASSANDRA: I'm trying.
--the-- the things that you see are
victories are not victories.
CASSANDRA: Just never enough.
JIM: But it's honestly a convenient try.
You tell me, well, I'm using less.
OK, but that doesn't address the fact that you're still using.
But--
JIM: There's no buts.
There is a but.
There's not.
If you would let me finish again.
JIM: I think she gets frustrated with me,
because I eliminate her excuses, right?
Maybe she thinks I'm a horrible dad, but, uh, at this point,
I'm not here to make friends, right?
I can comfort her after she's gotten help.
The drug use is a coping mechanism.
Even more importantly, the drug addiction is killing you.
CASSANDRA: I definitely think I need help,
but I can't stop because whenever I do stop,
the emotions come back and the moods get all haywire.
I go back to using.
JIM: The Cassandra that I raised,
the Cassandra that I saw go into the military
and set the world on fire, there--
there is nothing you cannot do.
But you cannot do it when you're high.
Cassandra was born at Laughlin Air Force Base
down in Del Rio, Texas, where I was an air traffic controller.
Shortly thereafter, we moved to Michigan.
She was just an amazing kid.
She loved being around her mom, loved being around her dad,
and loved being with her sister.
The greatest joy in my life was my two girls.
The three of us were just the three amigos.
Her and her sister were inseparable.
AMANDA: I felt so lucky to have a sister who was
also my best friend, you know.
Cassandra was my best friend.
CASSANDRA: Cassandra did terrific in her studies.
Made excellent grades.
She was on the flag team for the band.
Went into rhythmic gymnastics, and before we know it,
she's placing in the top 20 or something in the nation.
AMANDA: It was always really impressive to watch
her do her routines.
How does she do that?
How?
I looked up to her.
She could do anything that she set her mind to.
Everything she touched turned to gold.
When Cassandra was about 14, her mother and I made the decision
to end the marriage.
It was just-- it was loveless.
And it just didn't make sense to stay married.
AMANDA: After the divorce, Dad moved to Texas.
And Cassandra stayed back home, and it was-- it was her
and Mom.
I joined the Air Force, so I was several time zones away.
JIM: The two of the three amigos in Cassandra's life
leaving in very short order.
I think the divorce was hardest on Cassandra.
But, you know, I don't remember it being bad.
AMANDA: Cass graduated from high school, went to the Air Force.
CASSANDRA: Went to my first base.
I was still 18.
I did air traffic control, which I
never thought I would want to do, but I ended up loving it.
JIM: Air traffic control school is an exceptionally difficult
course.
Yet, Cassandra, not only was she on the drill team,
she was the head drill master.
Her squadron, under her direction,
won first place in a drill competition.
And she was coined by a one-star general.
And she's been in the military about four months.
AMANDA: It's a stressful school, and she did it.
She was an air traffic controller.
CASSANDRA: It's, like, therapeutic for me, I guess.
I didn't have to worry about anything else
because all of my focus was on this ever-moving puzzle
in the sky, you know.
And I was good at it, so--
JIM: They said, we need somebody to go overseas to deploy.
She put her hand up, and said, I'm your girl, I'll go.
When I was 20 years old, I was deployed
at the United Arab Emirates.
AMANDA: When she came back, everything was different.
There was something off.
[breathing shakily] She wasn't Cassandra anymore.
I didn't wanna go through with the whole pressing charges
kind of thing.
JIM: Cassandra didn't tell anybody.
She tried to keep it in and try to handle it on her own.
Then I got the bipolar diagnosis, which
is an automatic, like, disqualification from air
traffic control, so I was officially out probably
another month and a half later.
And I was 23.
All I had known being the Air Force and air
traffic, in which I loved.
You know, I didn't have any more.
It gave me a little-- a numb-- a numbness and a way
to escape the negativity that was going on in my brain.
JENNY: And we've known each other
for a little bit over a year.
Cass's addiction is destroying the relationships that she has.
JIM: The three of us no longer have a relationship.
What happened to the three amigos?
It was taken away from all of us, this-- this addiction.
AMANDA: My relationship with Cass is nonexistent.
You know, close to her about five years.
I had to protect myself, and I had to protect
the family that I was raising.
I had to shut it off so that I could continue
functioning in-- in my life.
I miss Cassandra.
Her personality, I miss, all the time every day.
CASSANDRA: I have made it through a lot of things.
Even if I'm not necessarily happy with the situation
of my life, that I'm still pushing for something
I love you, kiddo.
I love you.
There's an artery right here.
And then there's a vein right by it.
And boom, I'm in.
That blood is very dark.
[pounding music]
[phone ringing]
Dennis is calling me.
STEVEN: Hold on.
Why would that be--
I don't know.
Hello?
What?
I don't-- I don't know.
All right, hold-- let me call you back.
Steven, where's your mom at?
What?
STEVEN: I got to-- - Do you feel like that clinic--
STEVEN: --call the clinic.
--sent her to the hospital again?
STEVEN: This is extremely concerning.
There's nothing she could be doing.
There's nowhere she should be.
I love my mom.
It's my mom.
Let me call Beaumont.
STEVEN: Call Aunt Arnette.
CASSANDRA: Hold on.
Uh, what is it?
Well--
This is me freaking out, you guys.
CASSANDRA: We're getting real nervous, I know.
STEVEN: This is me, like, losing my [bleep].
Like something bad happened to my mama.
STEVEN: What?
I don't know.
Let me call you back.
OK, so my mom is missing.
What?
My mom cannot even, like, get out of the house
without somebody helping her.
Let me call Beaumont.
This is me, like, losing my [bleep] right now.
If something bad happened to my mama--
CASSANDRA: Hi, I was calling to see
if my mother-in-law was a patient at any
of the Beaumont locations.
Carolyn [muted]
So she is there?
OK, thank you so much.
[chuckles] Can you send to the nurse, please?
We know she's somewhere, at least.
STEVEN: I love my mom.
I make sure she gets to the clinic.
Usually-- I paid the gas bill last night.
I paid $150 on their water bill last month.
Whatever I can do.
[tense music]
[metal creaking]
ARNETTE: Your mom called me the other day.
She really wanted some-- some crackers--
Crackers?
ARNETTE: Yeah.
So, uh, she's not getting flowers.
She's getting crackers.
[laughs] Your mom is in bad shape.
STEVEN: Like, I know.
Wobbly.
And I don't know--
She's wobbly.
And I don't know what to do.
ARNETTE: Steve-O's mom, she's going
downhill physically and mentally,
like her memories going, and needs his help.
If he was healthy, he would be taking care of her,
and-- and he's not.
I've always thought like my addiction is more of a symptom
of my issues growing up.
Like, I do what I know.
ARNETTE: Steve-O is an only child,
and his childhood was unstable.
He moved a lot.
Dad was in and out of the picture.
Steve-O's mom was a firefighter and hurt her back.
And so she got addicted to prescription drugs,
and it went downhill from there.
STEVEN: Until I grew up, I thought
everybody did some mind-altering substance
in one form or the other.
Even before I did drugs, I thought that.
My whole life, I've thought that.
ARNETTE: His parents separated when Steve-O
was about six years old.
RICHARD: Shortly after that he moved to Florida with his mom,
and down in Fort Lauderdale.
STEVEN: We ended up living with my Uncle Steve.
ARNETTE: My brother, Steve, became the father figure
at that time for many years.
RICHARD: It was a very healthy environment
for Steve-O and his mom.
And she did get clean when she was down there.
STEVEN: I love living in Florida.
My Uncle Steve, we ended up getting really close.
He used to take me to the auto show every year.
He taught me how to use nunchucks.
Steve-O was like a big brother to my children.
PEARCE: He was my idol.
He was always the strongest, the fastest, smartest.
He could do anything.
When Steve-O was in Florida, he thrived just all around.
It was also that he was surrounded with wildlife.
PEARCE: He always had some sort of animal
with scales, like, whether it be a lizard, or a snake.
ARNETTE: When Steve-O was about 11,
he dreamed of being a herpetologist.
That's the study of reptiles.
As long as I could form memories, I just love reptiles.
Steve Irwin, Crocodile Hunter, that was my hero.
RICHARD: He was so knowledgeable at that age,
and I was amazed by that.
I have no doubt Steve-O could have achieved those dreams.
When Steve-O was about 15, his Uncle Steve committed suicide.
That loss had a profound impact on--
on Steve-O's life.
Everything changed when he lost my brother.
I was crushed.
I don't remember my first kiss, but I remember
the first time I ever took an opiate pain
pill, Tylenol and Codeine.
I was probably 15.
Probably 16.
It made me feel good.
Made me more outgoing.
I could talk more.
It made me more comfortable.
RICHARD: When Steve-O was getting ready to graduate,
his dad came back into the picture.
I'm sure that was encouraging, but I
don't know how healthy it was.
Steve-O's father was not stable, loving, or peaceful.
It was in his early 20s when Steve-O started
to shoot drugs intravenously.
STEVEN: Me and my mom ended up moving with my dad.
My father, he's got an issue with me.
I think it's because he hates himself so much.
Growing up, all the death, and loss, and just craziness,
if I never dealt with, I wouldn't
be a drug addict right now.
ARNETTE: His own parents didn't have a healthy relationship
and couldn't express love, and build
him up, and-- and help him realize
how-- how great a person he is.
So he turned to drugs.
CAROLYN: Hi.
STEVEN: I love you so [bleep] much.
All I wanted to have was a good relationship with my father.
CASSANDRA: My hope is that he is able to get out of his dad's
situation, because he even can really do well,
and I know that he will if he can get out of all this.
STEVEN: I do everything he [bleep] wants me to do,
and it doesn't matter.
One of the people who brought you into the [bleep] world
hates you so much, there's no way you can think
you're a good [bleep] person.
Nothing that I do is ever gonna make that man happy.
I would love to make my [bleep] dad happy.
[knocking on door]
CASSANDRA: We are good.
STEVEN: We have drugs, people.
While she's doing that, I will patiently wait, 'cause if I
don't, I don't get my goodies.
[laughs] Shut up.
[chuckles]
She's usually the one that gets it.
Lotta boy.
STEVEN: I'm self-employed as a handyman.
I do anything from taking the trash out to redoing a porch.
I spend a lot of money.
I'm broke always.
As soon as I get it, it has to go.
CASSANDRA: Here, that's the boy.
You can look.
RICHARD: Steve-O's lost job opportunities.
He could be productive, taking care of himself
rather than relying on Cass to provide and support his habit.
STEVEN: She is able to make money easier than I am.
It's one of the main things that we argue about.
I don't work.
I'm retired from the Air Force, medically
retired, 100% disabled.
I get my check from the VA, which is decent amount.
STEVEN: She is basically pretty set,
and I mean, she deserves it.
CASSANDRA: I do have a few people that, you know,
I will still, you know, meet with from when
I was doing dates and stuff.
Streetwalking, la la la.
They're definitely not just like "customers."
You know, they're definitely friendships, as well.
So it's not just that.
[light music]
ZACH: I'm about 30 minutes outside of the city,
and we're going to see Cassandra and Steven.
My name is Zach Livingston.
I'm an interventionist, and I've been in the addiction space
for six years.
Addiction is extremely serious.
It's the leading cause of death for anybody 18 years old
all the way to 45 years old.
The stereotypical picture of the alcoholic under the bridge,
or the drug addict on Skid Row, more often than not,
isn't what it looks like today.
They looked the same as me.
Looked the same as Darren.
Look the same as your husband, your son,
your daughter, your brother.
It's everywhere.
Steven and Cassandra, they're both 30 years old.
They're both using crack and heroin.
And they're both kind of opposites on how they use.
Cassandra is smoking like $100-$150 a day of crack,
and using about $40 or $50 a day of heroin.
Now flip that, and that's what Steven's doing.
Got it.
He's doing about $100-$150 of heroin, but using about
$40 or $50 worth of crack.
They both went to treatment back in 2017,
and that's actually how they met.
Oh, great.
So they started off from a really healthy place.
ZACH: Yeah.
And got progressively, uh, less healthy.
ZACH: Yeah.
To me, what it sounds like is a rehab romance with legs.
It just took off.
Steven and Cass consider themselves life partners,
and they just know that they're going to be together forever.
Forever, until one of them dies.
ZACH: Yeah.
Forever's gonna end this year, for sure, for one of them,
if nothing else changes.
DARREN: Being in a relationship is difficult enough.
Add in drug addiction, you've got a perfect mix for disaster.
Each are enabling the other.
It's the very opposite of love.
ZACH: Cass, she's the money maker in this relationship.
She's getting her money from military disability checks.
She's also having sex for money.
DARREN: Steven knows this?
ZACH: Oh, yeah.
And this is his--
This is his quote, unquote, "life partner."
Right.
That if we leave them together to their own devices
and best ideas, they're done.
ZACH: The challenge for Cass and Steven
is gonna be splitting them apart to seek treatment.
They're gonna feel like they're getting hit twice.
Once, by being asked to be removed
from the drugs, and another time by being asked
to be removed from each other.
But if they don't accept help, I'd be willing to bet
that they're going to die.
CASSANDRA: Yeah.
As long as you can get a ride back or something,
I just have to have the room tonight.
So do you know what time you're gonna want me there?
Do you know yet, or will you just--
CASSANDRA: I mean like... - --call me?
CASSANDRA: Worst-case scenario, it's gonna be the morning.
Right.
Yeah.
STEVEN: We are going to split off for the night.
I'm going to have some inappropriate visitors.
So Johnny John will probably need me tonight, but he's--
Five?
It's only two.
It's the same [bleep].
There have been a few times that I
have found out that she may have,
you know, with somebody that I knew.
CASSANDRA: Apparently, I did something with someone
that he knows and I'd never--
So why [muted]?
You know that.
Who is [muted]?
- I already went through this.
We're not going to do this right here if you want to, yeah.
[cassandra humming]
I only got, uh, a one-on-one left.
CASSANDRA: Like I said, I got two boy and less girl
than I wanted.
He said that he was giving you four girl and a boy.
CASSANDRA: I know.
Well, it was like small ass girl,
and I only asked for one boy, and I
hate when I get extra boy because it's
like less girl, not extra, you know what I mean?
Tsk.
I understand I am able to make a lot more money,
but it really wears me down providing as much as I do.
And even in just the drug sense, how much I give him, like,
it adds up very quickly.
I don't know.
Dude--
CASSANDRA: I often feel, with Steven, that I am overutilized
and underappreciated.
STEVEN: That's not cool.
Why are you tweaking so hard?
Why are you doing that?
You're acting like a total dick.
Yo, watch your mouth.
We're getting a divorce for the night.
She's going back to the hotel.
And serve the divorce in the morning.
[metal creaking]
STEVEN: My Aunt Arnette and my Uncle Richard,
from time to time, come and bring a little bit of food,
some necessities, and such.
They make sure to try to help my family any way they can.
What's up, Steve-O?
First, I got to give you that.
That's your recipe.
Oh, thank you.
I'm always concerned about him.
They go down a hard road, so if we can help him,
it's a good thing.
What is this?
So those are whole chickens.
OK.
All right.
PEARCE: I think I'm just fed up with his addiction.
And I'm fed up with my mom and dad trying to help Steve-O
for years, giving him money.
I'll get the milk.
Just set it on the porch.
PEARCE: My mom will run groceries.
I have some canned goods.
Pick him up and drive him somewhere.
My dad will try to throw him some side work.
ARNETTE: Got it?
PEARCE: He says he appreciates it, and he loves us,
and that, you know, he'll be doing better.
And this never seems like there's any effort put back.
We'll come back.
ARNETTE: OK, good.
PEARCE: I guess he's really lucky that we [bleep] love him.
How's your mom?
How's...
STEVEN: I mean, she hasn't been getting better,
that's for sure.
They said that it was just a urinary tract infection.
So she's still there today, and they
didn't discharge her yet?
STEVEN: I'll make sure to find out more,
and I'll let you guys know.
You guys be safe.
I love you.
I love you, too.
Steve-O, as a child, we wanted to build him up.
We wanted to help him be successful.
STEVEN: I love you.
And I always--
I always wanted to help.
Yeah.
ZACH: I know you guys have had a rough several years.
This needs to be like the catalyst for hope.
First of all, thank you for coming.
I really appreciate it.
I'm meeting with Cass's father, Jim, and his girlfriend, Jenny,
and Cass's sister Amanda to make sure that everyone's
got the same truths around the catalyst that actually
kick-started all of this.
If we hold up a mirror for Cass to look in,
but everyone has different truths
and different understandings around that,
it's not gonna work.
Nobody likes to look at truth because it's sometimes painful.
I know that you and I have not really been able to sit
down and go, hey, let's--
let's bare our souls and cry in front of each other,
because neither one of us like to do that.
So--
It's understood that Amanda and I
will not speak about Cassandra.
The three of us no longer have a relationship.
JENNY: Cass's addiction is like the elephant in the room,
that everyone knows it's there, and it's
too painful to talk about.
CASSANDRA: My family doesn't really talk about feelings.
Wear the happy mask.
Wear the normal mask.
Addiction is a disease, I want to be clear about that.
This isn't a lack of will.
If it was, we would not have seen her
crush it with the gymnastics.
Right.
Fly up through air traffic control school,
and everything else in between.
Like, addiction is a disease, but it's
usually kicked into overdrive with some kind of catalyst.
We have to know what the truths are,
and that's why we're here having this conversation.
I have to make sure that Cass's sister, Amanda,
understands the catalyst that actually
kick-started all of this.
It was the sexual assault. Because if we downplay it,
so will Cass.
We're gonna hand-feed her rebuttals as to why she doesn't
need to go to treatment.
The only way to address these things
is through direct confrontation.
And I don't mean that in a punitive or combative way.
I mean that in a loving way.
Jim, would you explain some of what had actually
happened leading up to this?
CASSANDRA: My family knows most of the main events
in a very vague way.
They don't know to what depth each, you know, thing goes,
so--
JIM: I'm not sure if you're aware,
but, uh, Cassandra was assaulted.
She was sexually assaulted when she was deployed.
It's-- I didn't know, but I suspected.
Are we clear on what the assault was, though?
Without saying the word rape, she basically
said that she was raped.
I don't want us to run away from that word
anymore because it allows her to do the same thing.
Exactly.
But I'm just saying, when we're holding up mirrors,
we have to hold up what the real truth is.
Right.
ZACH: And I know that's uncomfortable.
AMANDA: This is the first time that I've
heard that Cass was raped.
Having those suspicions confirmed
is a horror that I wasn't ready for.
She was different when she came back from deployment.
JIM: Absolutely.
ZACH: From what you saw at that time, what was it like?
It was so stressful that I shut down.
So, like, I have, like, giant holes in my memory right now.
Like, I have a really hard time remembering some specifics.
CASSANDRA: After the MST is when I started really spiraling.
And I was about 22, and I started drinking really, really
heavily.
And I had to get, like, medically
detoxed at the hospital on base, and my commander
demoted me two ranks.
I ended up in the psych ward, because I was self-harming.
I had to get stitches a couple of times.
[poignant music]
JIM: After she confided what had happened,
I was able to convince her to go back, and--
and, at least, tell somebody.
CASSANDRA: So the MST, we made a restricted report
once I did finally bring it up to the therapist.
She told the VA.
They did their-- their investigation or whatever,
and prescribed some medication.
CASSANDRA: They went all the way to the secretary of the Air
Force's personnel board which decided I would
get my medical retirement.
JIM: And at that point, they processed her for discharge.
You're supposed to take these individuals
and get them the help that they need.
They never did support her to be there for her.
No, no, this is your problem.
You fix it.
ZACH: I can't fathom what it would be like to report such
an incident and be met with let's sweep it under the rug,
here's some medications to take.
Hope you figure it out, but let's
not talk about this further.
It's-- it's really frustrating.
ZACH: They failed her.
JIM: Allowed her to be sexually assaulted,
and then kicked her out.
ZACH: I mean, think about the core belief systems
that say, I'm not good enough.
Nobody cares.
My truth's not important.
I'm sure you can add to that a whole lot more.
JIM: My child joins the military,
deploys, is sexually assaulted, is kicked out
of the military for it, is not given the help she needs,
tries to blunt this pain and turns to illegal drugs.
Doesn't she deserve to have somebody help her with that?
ZACH: One of the very few things I've
seen be more powerful than the power of addiction
is a unified family front.
Your words, I know, is what carries
depth and weight to her.
Do you want her to be close to you again?
Of course, I do.
ZACH: OK.
JIM: This-- this wouldn't work without you.
ZACH: The biggest challenge for Cass
is going to be to work through this trauma.
You know, if-- if she was able to do that on her own,
she would have by now.
She's estranged from her sister.
She has a strained relationship with her father.
Where she's at now?
She's gone all the way from the top to the very bottom.
My challenge as the interventionist
is gonna be to chip away at any ego, any delusion
that they're clinging to that prevents
them from seeing the truth.
Like, we can hand her a brand new life on a silver platter.
Can I count you in on that, because I need you.
Hey, you're amazing.
We met five and 1/2 years ago.
ZACH: Steven and Cassandra, both 30 years old.
They're both using crack and heroin.
She's gone all the way from the top to the very bottom.
DARREN: He's been surrounded by death
and addiction all of his life.
I would love to make my dad happy.
CASSANDRA: We both have resentments.
I will do dates and stuff.
That's not cool.
You're acting like a total dick.
Watch your mouth.
ZACH: If they don't accept help, they're going to die.
[mellow music]
DARREN: We're here in Detroit to meet Steven's
Aunt Arnette and Uncle Richard.
What I'm really hoping to do is get some background and family
dynamics from these guys.
I think they can be a real big piece of the puzzle for me.
I think Steven's addiction is defense for, likely,
abandonment issues.
We've got to allow him to see that healthy relationships do
exist and are available to him.
Richard, Arnette, I'm Darren.
Hi, Darren.
Nice to meet you.
My wife Arnette.
Hi, nice to meet you.
I think the maternal instinct that you've
got for Steven can be a big driving force, you know,
in the next couple of days.
The more love we can surround Steven with,
the better off we're gonna be.
Steven's lost every key relationship
that he's ever had.
He's been surrounded by death and addiction all of his life.
And Cass and Steven's relationship
is what love and normal looks like to Steven.
ARNETTE: At two years of age, his mother was addicted.
So he, basically, was born and raised
in a household in addiction?
AMANDA: Yes.
When I see kids in need, my instinct is to help.
How can I help?
What do you need?
When you see Steven, he's your guy.
RICHARD: Right, because he's family.
We had to watch him go without--
without a father figure, the peace
that comes from knowing you're in an environment that is safe.
DARREN: Yeah.
RICHARD: I remember Steve-O. He'd come to the house,
and, uh, I'd be dying for him to go, and, uh, just thinking,
I wish we could just keep him here, take care of him,
because it was my heart to do that.
Do you know what the term codependency means?
ARNETTE: Yes.
I can see where you're coming from, but in my own situation,
I'm OK to say no.
I wouldn't say that every person who's
reaching into the lives of those who are needy
is a codependent person.
DARREN: Fair point.
I just want to reframe giving to Steve-O with you.
This is gonna be a tougher intervention
because Steven is surrounded by well-meaning,
but codependent people.
Even Aunt Arnette who has the best intention in the world
has trouble drawing the line between what's loving
and what is codependency.
Steven seeks codependent relationships that he can
benefit from because he's sick.
Look at Steven and mom, Steven and girlfriend,
Steven and you guys.
RICHARD: Yeah, there's been times we thought we were doing
something good for him, but it probably
wasn't the right thing to do.
ARNETTE: I didn't wanna make any assumption
because if it's a need that I can meet, I want to meet it.
DARREN: Your motives are clean, and it
comes out of love, right?
And you're also being manipulated.
ARNETTE: You can't always assume everything
in there-- everything they need is--
is due to a drug-related thing.
At this point, I would.
Every dire situation that they find themselves in
is dominoed by previous drug use.
ARNETTE: I don't wanna be a slave to their addiction.
And somehow, I have to decide whether I am going to meet
their needs, whether it's enabling them,
and I try to be very careful not to err.
DARREN: Their view of Steven's addiction is kind of twisted
due to their view on Steven's mother's addiction.
And that's really formed their relationship with him.
If the bottom isn't the leg wound he's got,
or even an amputated leg, it could be death.
RICHARD: Yeah.
ARNETTE: Right.
He's also battling a life of trauma,
and a life of abandonment issues, you know,
and it's not his fault. But we've got
to make it his responsibility.
We can't carry this for you, but we'll carry it with you.
And carrying it with you no longer
looks like an ear to listen to, or 20 bucks here or there.
You guys have been engaged long term.
You've loved him, and you have helped him.
And help is gonna look different beginning now.
In some regards, Steven's addiction
is both normal for the family, and it's
causing a great amount of pain.
Codependency goes hand-in-hand with addiction,
because addiction doesn't live without enabling.
The biggest issue for Steven is, you've got to show
him what real love looks like.
His aunt is gonna be a key player in this intervention.
Pray for open hearts and open ears.
And that's all we need.
I'm excited for you, guys.
I'm excited for Steve-O, that he's gonna
get a new chance at life.
STEVEN: I have used this anywhere
from 16 to 25, 30 shots.
It could have been in and out.
Hundreds.
That is a lot of use.
JIM: Are they using dirty needles?
I don't know.
The hygiene around this drug use is obviously getting worse.
Opa!
JENNY: I am a nurse, and Cass has come to me medical-wise.
And I am worried about the types of infections
that are occurring.
[steven grunts]
STEVEN: What in the [bleep]?
CASSANDRA: What's going on?
It's a really weird multiple, like, stinging.
Like, it's just gonna just [bleep] explode.
ARNETTE: Steve-O was very buff.
I mean, he came out of high school,
and his physique was, like, beautiful.
In the years since he's graduated,
his body has decayed.
He doesn't look healthy.
His skin is bad.
Last month, he was in the hospital.
They were threatening to amputate his leg.
It was that bad.
[bleep]damn!
This is weird.
I don't know.
CASSANDRA: If Steven doesn't get clean, he could either end up,
you know, like his father, or dead.
I'm not [bleep].
It really feels like you hit it with a baseball bat.
My leg is killing me, but it's reinfected in a different spot
now.
I made the decision to [bleep] give that leg away as soon
as I put that needle in my arm.
There's very good possibility that I could lose my leg.
[toilet flushing]
[tense music]
DARREN: Glad you guys could all make it here today
to support each side of an intervention
for both Steven and Cassandra.
Family members of both Cass and Steven,
they don't know each other, so you've
got to have legitimate, unified messaging across
the front lines of the family.
These guys are well invested in keeping
each other's addictions alive.
The main thing that we just need
to have coming into this conversation
is just honesty and willingness.
But Cass's family, there's a total lack
of understanding about what the disease of addiction
actually is.
They are the family that wants her to assert
her power of will, crushing everything
that she touches because that's what she used to do.
With Steven's family, they've enabled
Steven and his addiction for the past several years.
They're emotionally exhausted.
They're done.
So, I mean, coming in here today,
how are you guys actually feeling?
I feel hopeful for the first time
ever since the addiction started.
We're all here for the same thing, right?
Right. Right.
We want what's best for them. JIM: Yeah.
They're in this together.
Hopefully, we can get them both the treatment
that they need, because at this point--
ARNETTE: Absolutely.
--we have people that we love, and I'm glad that we're able
to work together to say, hey, let's get them where they need
to go, and then let's do our best to keep them from enabling
each other in the future.
The goal of the intervention is to give the family
their voice back and to go, same day,
door-to-door from intervention directly to treatment.
If these guys say no tomorrow, we
need to start making decisions that will help influence them.
Bottom line's do you wanna go to treatment?
You can decline our help.
Here's what we're gonna do about it.
Cassandra, we're calling your PO, your bondsman.
Whatever we can do, we're making that happen today.
She's got felonies hanging over her head.
She's got impending jail time, that could be terrifying.
And I think that gets both their attention real quick.
Like, you guys declined treatment today?
ARNETTE: We're gonna make it really, really hard on you.
You think life is hard now, it's gonna be really hard.
PEARCE: How are we gonna make it harder on Steven?
DARREN: We start with the legal stuff with Cassandra.
If we can get Cass's agreement first,
I think Steven will follow.
He's codependent enough that her decision can sway him.
But the best thing that can happen for these guys,
in my opinion, is that they go-- go their separate ways
to get healthy.
ARNETTE: Will they be told that they're gonna separate?
DARREN: Absolutely.
ZACH: We're gonna have the bottom lines
in place to help us ensure that they do effective immediately.
Will you guys be willing to disrupt what the norm is?
What the norm has been?
RICHARD: I want to say, yeah, it has to happen now.
JIM: And if Steven truly loves my daughter,
he's gonna know that if he does not agree to go,
he-- he's not gonna have Cassandra, 'cause
she's gonna die.
I need him to help me keep my daughter alive.
DARREN: That's-- that's the statement right there.
I think they're in the parking lot of the funeral home
right now.
JIM: I told Cassandra that yesterday,
you do not have six months.
You-- you will be dead.
Every time I have a conversation with Cassandra,
I walk her through closing all of the doors, but the truth.
I don't know if you were aware of what she
went through in a crack house.
No.
JIM: There was a man in the same room she was in,
and another individual walked in there
and blew that man's head off in front of my daughter.
And my daughter called me in the middle of the night [sniffles]
saying, his brains are all over me.
That happened real close to me.
Then the guy came, like, over to me,
and I was like, oh, shoot, like, I'm next.
But then he left.
But that happened before I met Steven,
and that's just not something I wanna deal with.
I don't wanna deal with the nightmares.
Amanda, I wanna hear from you, especially.
I could just see your facial expressions has
changed as Jim was talking, and I don't
know what you're thinking.
You're who I wanna hear from.
Take your time.
DARREN: Amanda, whatever it is you're about to say,
all I wanna invite you to do is be ready to say it tomorrow.
OK?
Because whatever that is, that could be the thing
that saves your sister's life.
ZACH: Here's-- here's why I'm trying
to hand you the mic right now is because I need you tomorrow.
I need the big sister.
Your words carry so much depth and weight
that I need you to be able to convey those in a way
that she hears it.
Yes, I'm just--
panicking right now.
It's OK.
I hadn't heard most of this before now.
[pounding music]
JIM: I'm so sorry, Amanda.
I'm so sorry.
I did not realize that you did not know that.
ZACH: This case has hurdles.
Amanda has so much emotional leverage,
like, she can be one of the most impactful
people for this intervention.
But right now, Amanda is freezing.
If the drugs don't kill Cass and Steven first,
Steven's gonna die from his leg, and Cass's lifestyle
is gonna kill her.
[breathes audibly]
DARREN: They're [inaudible] the letters here in a little bit.
But I think this room full of people
is all we need to move both of these guys into health.
It's gonna take everything that we've-- all of us got,
but I think we can do it.
[sniffles]
[poignant music]
ARNETTE: Hi, guys.
ZACH: Hey.
Come on in here. - Good morning.
Good morning.
Good to see you.
Today is Steven and Cass's intervention.
Howdy.
ZACH: It was obvious that Amanda had a lot of anxiety yesterday
and shutting down.
So I wanna have a conversation with her.
Come on out.
She's very guarded.
She does not wanna let out emotion.
She does not wanna be vulnerable.
Take a seat. - OK.
ZACH: We need to coach her on how to communicate
in a way that's from the heart.
In order to manage Cass's anxiety,
I have to manage Amanda's first.
I just wanna rally with you before we
actually start any of this.
Yeah.
Yesterday, I know, you said you were real anxious.
Yeah.
Understandably so.
Started to shut down a little bit, disassociate a little bit.
But how are you feeling today?
You know, it always takes time to-- to process
new information, especially when it's--
horrifying.
I needed time to, you know, digest it, I guess.
Yeah.
I know first reaction, because it's human nature,
is gonna be to just shut down a little bit,
and try to disassociate a little bit.
But I'm gonna shoot you straight,
not to place pressure on you, just
'cause I need your help with this one.
I know.
You know your voice is gonna carry a lot of weight
with Cass.
I need your help directly to save your sister.
I really do.
I know.
I'm here.
Ready?
Yeah.
All right, let's make it happen.
All right. Thanks.
I'm proud of you.
Thank you for being here.
Thanks for checking in.
It-- it is appreciated.
DARREN: The coolest thing that I've
seen in a long time is the way you guys are
operating together, like, from the bottom of my heart,
for real.
That is why we're gonna be successful today.
And should we be successful long term,
it's because we make that long-term connection
between the two families.
We do know they were getting-- they were scoring this morning,
a little while ago, so they should be pretty
amenable when they get here.
My biggest concern today is that in Steven's case,
we don't have enough consequences in place.
The only thing that we've got as leverage
is going to be Cassandra.
[tense music]
STEVEN: If you can't satisfy somebody,
you can't satisfy somebody.
It doesn't matter how much I clean, how much I work,
or how much [bleep] money I bring back.
DARREN: If all hell breaks loose,
we just stay within the pillars.
We need to get one of these guys to commit to treatment,
and then use that as leverage for the other.
What we need to do throughout all of this
is calm, cool, and collected in our communication.
If Steven or Cass is elevated, we do not match that.
We do not become elevated.
DARREN: If we veer from kind and loving, we give them an excuse.
Right.
DARREN: We talked about what if they say no,
we're not negotiating today.
This is what the deal is.
ZACH: We have to go into it like it's
gonna be a [bleep] dogfight.
I know we talked about some of the legal stuff.
There's a lot of leverage there. - Yes.
I've called the police before, and I will call them again.
If we can rock those bottom lines,
I think we should be in pretty good shape.
DARREN: And the same goes for Steven.
Today's a great day to spend emotionally
on the person you love.
Speak with confidence, speak with authority,
the authority of love, and just tell the truth.
OK.
Jim, Pearce, let's go to the door.
[sighs]
[beeps]
[cassandra singing]
Sam, those are your job.
Oh, hi. Wow.
Hi.
I didn't recognize you for some reason.
I wasn't expecting you to open the door, I guess.
I didn't expect you.
Oh.
OK.
[pounding music]
STEVEN: We had no clue what we were
just about to walk into here.
CASSANDRA: Not cool, guys.
[bleep] intervention?
What is this?
This is [bleep].
Come on and have a seat.
CASSANDRA: It's not what I [bleep] signed up for.
Sup Steve-O.
Oh, man.
I hate all of you right now so much.
[bleep]
Man, I hate all of you right now so much.
STEVEN: You [bleep], man.
Steven, what's up, dude?
It's gonna be a easy day, too.
Easy sit down and talk.
We just wanna talk to you, guys.
That's it.
I'm gonna go talk to her.
Her head just probably exploded.
CASSANDRA: I'm overwhelmed.
AMANDA: Can I give you a hug?
Oh, my God.
I-- I love you.
Like, knowing--
[breathing heavily]
STEVEN: Not-- not cool, you guys.
CASSANDRA: Not what you guys told us we were doing.
STEVEN: You guys should have given
us a heads up as to what was--
no, doesn't matter.
Forgive the presentation if you can, but you
guys are surrounded by love.
CASSANDRA: By people we love, and they're
gonna tell us why we hurt them.
I know.
Hey.
DARREN: This is all about love and support for you guys.
I'm not doing an intervention.
STEVEN: This is not meant to be a negative thing.
I know, but I--
I-- people.
Like, there's too many people.
STEVEN: Hey.
Amanda, will you tell your sister why you're here today?
[sobs]
I'm here because I love you.
I know--
And--
I don't wanna do this.
[sobs]
I love you, and I am here--
DARREN: You guys' families are worried about both of you,
right?
We're clearly here to talk about addiction today,
and how it's affecting both of you,
how it's affecting your relationship.
Cassandra we're all here because we love you.
[sniffles] I know.
ZACH: What I'm going to encourage you to do,
Jim, is you already wrote down what you wanna say.
You articulated it beautifully in the letter.
JIM: Cassandra, I will always remember
the first time that you won your very first medal
in rhythmic gymnastics.
I remember yelling, that's my kid!
You took center stage then, and you take center stage today.
You have suffered unimaginable traumas.
The things you have been through would have
already killed most people.
That's how strong you are.
But you are not strong enough to beat this on your own.
We have the very real opportunity
to connect you and Steven with the kinds of experts you never
had and always deserved, and give you the chance
to start living again.
ZACH: Thank you, Jim.
AMANDA: Cassandra, I loved all of our adventures,
and I cherish that you were my maid of honor at my wedding.
Having my first favorite person by my side
was more important to me than I can ever articulate.
I was the one who dropped you off at the terminal
for your deployment.
When you came back, everything changed.
When you called me to tell me you were using drugs,
I was heartbroken to see the path that you were taking.
I love you so much.
I want you back in my life, and I want
you to be able to be an aunt.
I love you.
Cassandra, what'd you hear?
[sniffles]
ZACH: This entire group of people in this room
just wanna rally behind you.
JIM: It scares the hell out of me
because this could be the last time
that I see my daughters together,
and they're both alive.
Cassandra, you're killing yourself,
and you're doing it in front of me.
[sniffles]
ZACH: What they're offering today
is treatment, specifically for women
who have been through very similar things,
and the traumas that could come with that.
When?
ZACH: Today.
STEVEN: Today?
No.
I'll go, like, tomorrow, like, no, I'm not--
like, I can't make a decision or anything
right now, not in this setting.
Like, no.
It's too much, like--
DARREN: We love to talk with you guys about the treatment
centers themselves so you can know what
you're potentially agreeing to.
For you Steve, in Southern California,
right outside of Los Angeles, complex clinical,
complex medical that can handle your leg.
The whole deal.
Right?
Cass, that place is dope, and that place
is in West Palm Beach, Florida.
CASSANDRA: How long is the program?
ZACH: Programs are 90 days.
90?
DARREN: 90.
[pounding music]
I'm hear to ask you to accept the help.
Like what?
Am I leaving, like, from here to some [bleep]?
Because I'm not doing that, if that's the case.
ZACH: Yes.
No, then.
If you were like, where you're going in there days.
[bleep], yeah! But--
JIM: We didn't know about this until--
Yes, but telling-- JIM: --yesterday afternoon.
--me that I have to go from this house?
No.
Why?
Because I'm not gonna be able to in this environment.
That's [bleep].
DARREN: Cass, how much time do you think you need to make--
Give me a night.
DARREN: What if we don't have a night?
What about a couple of hours?
JIM: We're out of options, sis.
Here's the thing, Steven.
You have an opportunity right now to help keep her alive.
I'm asking you to help me.
That's unfair to Steven.
[chuckles]
Dude, I know you--
Cassandra, I'm offering you--
Then, yes, two hours at the room.
Sure, leave the door cracked, or what the [bleep] ever.
DARREN: I did some bad math.
We actually have less than one hour.
CASSANDRA: This is [bleep].
It's not [bleep].
It's how they feel.
They love us.
Hey, Steven?
Yes, sir.
When she's talking, like, you can tell right now,
like, she wants to go, like, she even says it.
She just needs your support.
STEVEN: I am not gonna change that woman's mind.
I've been with her every single day for six years.
I know her.
ZACH: I hear her wanting to go.
STEVEN: She's still going back to the hotel.
ZACH: I just can't help but feel like leaving right now
is a bad idea.
CASSANDRA: [inaudible].
ZACH: I know, but I can-- even you said, I wanna go.
Yeah, but not today.
ZACH: I'm just trying to understand.
Like, give me a second.
STEVEN: Yeah, she--
CASSANDRA: Can we go?
So we can get back, or what the [bleep] ever.
STEVEN: Her decision affects my decision.
Mm-hmm.
Why does hers affect yours, but not yours hers?
I just wanna understand it.
STEVEN: I know me going would not-- that's not what's
gonna make her, like, go.
JIM: Listen, guys.
STEVEN: No, you listen.
You're turning-- you're making--
You're making it less likely for me to go,
the more you try to do this.
Let me just get a [bleep] second!
STEVEN: Like, look, we need to go to the hotel.
CASSANDRA: Right now, please! STEVEN: We're going.
CASSANDRA: Just wasting time.
I'm not talking in the car.
I hope you know that.
You're breaking Amanda's heart right now.
You are-- you are killing Amanda.
You know you're going to go.
I just need you to say yes.
Let's go to the room.
I'll be on the plane.
Let's go.
We don't have time.
I've got to get you to-- - [bleep]!
--the airport.
I'm not--
[bleep]!
I'm not doing this.
[bleep]!
I'm going.
I'm done.
You know you're going to go.
I just need you to say yes.
Let's go to the room.
I'll be on the plane.
Let's go.
We don't have time.
I've got to get you to-- - [bleep]!
--the airport.
I'm not--
[bleep]!
I'm not doing this.
[bleep]!
I'm going.
I'm done.
Let me get in a room alone here.
[bleep]!
Come on.
Get the--
ZACH: Steven, Cass is gonna stay here in a room.
OK, good for her.
Grab my bag, please.
DARREN: Hey, she's gonna go in a room here,
so you guys will talk.
[bleep] this.
[grunts] Damn it.
Where can I go?
- Steven. - Stop.
Stop. Stop.
This is so overwhelming.
I understand, sir.
I'm so sorry this is how you handle like...
CASSANDRA: [bleep] you.
Ugh!
JIM: We need to talk.
Man, look--
JIM: You're gonna have to listen to me.
You are going to have to shut the [bleep] up.
STEVEN: I am listening.
Close your mouth, Steven.
We are trying to keep you two out of prison.
Do you love my daughter?
Yeah, absolutely.
Do you wanna see her in prison?
That's a simple yes or no.
Man to man.
Like, obviously, like I would not--
Yes or no?
No.
OK.
You hold the keys to make that happen by telling her
to get on the [bleep] plane.
You are her man.
Tell her to get on the [bleep] plane.
I would go do that, but you know
your daughter as well as I do, and she's
not going to listen to me.
She listens to you.
Tell her to get on the plane.
We're out of options, dude.
STEVEN: For all intents and purposes,
Good.
I think I like that answer.
So I had coached Jim to ask Steven
if he loved his daughter.
And when Steven answered, yes, I think
that's what it really enlisted Steven
and gave Steven a purpose, and got him
on board to go to treatment.
He said-- he said, get excited.
We're about to come back to life.
STEVEN: I'm gonna go, OK?
I-- I don't know what she--
she said.
JIM: I need you in the car within about 15 minutes.
CASSANDRA: [bleep]!
Then can I get 15 minutes alone?
JIM: If you-- if you promise me you'll get in the van and go.
Look me in the eye and promise me.
CASSANDRA: Can I get the 15 and go?
Can I get the 15 minutes?
JIM: You have 15 minutes.
- I love you so [bleep] much. - [sobs]
Hey.
You're gonna [bleep] with this thing's ass
like every [bleep] other thing you've
ever [bleep] put your mind to.
And I'm gonna see you in 90 days.
JIM: I was very proud when Steven
made the decision as a man to say, hey, I
love you enough to let you go.
[sighs]
The moment that Cassandra said yes to treatment,
that is the moment that all of this has led up to.
[sobbing]
I've got Sammie, Cassandra.
I could feel the weight coming off of my shoulders.
And for the next 90 days, I'll have a measure of peace knowing
that she's getting the help that she so desperately has
needed for so long.
I love you, too.
My hopes for Cassandra on the other side of treatment
is that she's able to make decisions for herself
and be actually in control of her own life
instead of just following the addiction
into all those dark places.
I'm very excited to-- to get my little sister back.
STEVEN: We're doing this.
We're doing-- we're doing this.
STEVEN: OK.
ARNETTE: I love you, too.
RICHARD: Treatment, this time, is
gonna work for Steve-O because he
has a vested interest in somebody
he cares for very much.
If he wants to maintain that relationship,
he needs to be healthy and sober.
ARNETTE: I was afraid that Cass and Steven weren't gonna--
gonna go today.
It was very traumatic.
I'm very, very, very thankful.
I believe that today was the last time he'll use drugs.
- We did it. - Yep.
We did it, man.
RICHARD: A lot of help.
We did it.
Thank you.
ZACH: I mean, we'll see you on the other side, OK?
All right, buddy.
Truth be told, I don't know what I want for Cass and Steven.
If they could get back together in a healthy way, like, sure,
I'd love for that to happen.
If they wanna go separate ways, I want the same thing.
I just want whatever decision that's made
between them that is not based in codependency and addiction.
[light music]
Once I get alone and process, maybe I'll know anything.
[sniffles,sighs]
STEVEN: If I made the choice to not do this today,
and Cassandra got sober, and happy,
and I never talked to her for the rest of my life,
I would be happy knowing that she was happy.
And that's what matters to me.
Hi.
How was your ride?
Hi.
I'm Nitya.
It's nice to meet you.
At the core of Cassandra's substance
use is her complex trauma.
Cassandra McKay, I just need you to sign this.
Here at Heal Behavioral Health,
we're a dual diagnosis facility.
That means we are licensed to treat
mental health, substance use, and at the core of all of that,
the trauma.
Can I grab your arm?
NITYA: The only thing that's standing in her way
is her own fear and her own uncertainty and doubt,
and all of that is rooted, again, in what she
has been through in the past.
So helping her overcome that and kind of redefine who
Cassandra is, you know, she has a really
good opportunity to get better.
STEVEN: I have been off narcotics for 147 days today.
I feel absolutely amazing.
I came here with holes in my body.
I was 90 pounds.
I gained 75 pounds.
LINDSEY: Steven worked with his therapist on trauma
from his family of origin and how that affects him today.
The biggest challenge Steven will face, moving forward,
is his relationship with Cassandra.
Hey, guys.
My man.
LINDSEY: There's a lot of codependency
in that relationship.
And he was able to develop some insight into why he feels
responsible for her well-being.
So how's Cassandra doing?
STEVEN: She's doing as good as she can be.
Like, in Detroit, when you're using drugs.
When Cassandra left treatment, I was sad.
I definitely would have liked her to finish it up like me.
I know she'll get through it.
She just needs that little--
little oomph.
Me and Cassandra are definitely still life partners.
I love her to death.
She's an amazing woman, and I would never
wanna be with anybody else.
No matter what, I'm still gonna be there for her.
Working with you guys through the therapy and everything,
like, I came to the conclusion that, you know,
every day that I'm sober is my choice.
I wanna do this for me.
I wanna finish what I started.
Before coming here, I didn't have really
any confidence in myself.
I figured that I was gonna be on drugs for the rest of my life.
This opportunity has been absolutely amazing.
[waves crashing]
[theme music]