WASHINGTON — A former Grieving Out Loud podcast guest has been appointed to help lead a new Trump administration initiative aimed at addressing the nation’s addiction crisis.
President Donald Trump has named Kathryn Burgum as co-chair of the Great American Recovery Initiative, a national effort focused on addiction prevention and long-term recovery support. Burgum will serve alongside Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Her husband, Doug Burgum, is the U.S. Secretary of the Interior and former governor of North Dakota.
Burgum previously shared her personal story of substance use disorder on Grieving Out Loud in 2022, speaking candidly about the moment alcohol first quieted the self-criticism she carried for years.
“When I took that first drink, all of the voices inside my head that were telling me I was stupid and I made mistakes and I needed to be perfect went away,” Burgum said during the episode. “Then I felt like I could be anybody, do anything, so I did feel like it was Nirvana.”
Burgum has been open about her 20-year struggle with alcohol addiction and her journey to recovery. As first lady of North Dakota, she made ending the shame and stigma surrounding addiction a central focus of her public work.
“This is a disease because no one would choose this life,” Burgum said. “So to me it’s pretty easy to figure out it is a disease.”
The Great American Recovery Initiative is expected to emphasize prevention, treatment access and long-term recovery, drawing on both public health and community-based approaches.
