Executive Corner with Ryan Hampton

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Stick with the Winners! –

July 15, 2019 – Over four years into recovery from a decade-long opioid addiction, Ryan Hampton has been rocketed to the center of America’s rising addiction recovery advocacy movement. A former White House staffer, he has worked with multiple non-profits and national recovery advocacy campaigns. He is now a prominent, leading face and voice of addiction recovery and is changing the national conversation about addiction.

With content that reaches over 1 million people a week, Ryan is breaking down cultural barriers that have kept people suffering in silence and is inspiring a new generation of people recovering out loud through his Voices Project. He’s also advocating for solutions and holding public policy makers accountable.

He was part of the core team that released the first-ever U.S. Surgeon General’s report on addiction in 2016 and was singled out by Forbes as a top social entrepreneur in the recovery movement. Ryan connects a vast network of people who are passionate about ending the drug epidemic in America. He has been featured by–and is a contributor to–media outlets such as USA Today, MSNBC, Fox and Friends, the New York Times, NPR, HLN, Vice, Forbes, Slate, HuffPost, The Hill, the Wall Street Journal, and others.

A former aide to President Bill Clinton, Ryan has received praise from Democrats and Republicans alike for addressing addiction as a trans-political issue–crossing the political spectrum to build an inclusive coalition focused on solutions. He worked closely with President Trump, Senate Democrats, Republicans and U.S. House leadership in crafting the historic HR6, the SUPPORT Act, signed into law by the President in October 2018. Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich has lauded that “Ryan’s story gives government leaders on both sides of the aisle smart commonsense solutions to consider.”

In 2016, Ryan created the web series Addiction Across America, documenting his 30 day, 28 state, 8,000 mile cross-country trip visiting areas hit hardest by the addiction crisis.

His first book, “American Fix — Inside the Opioid Addiction Crisis and How to End It” published by St. Martin’s Press, was released in August 2018.

Q. If you are in recovery, what was your Drug of Choice and when did you discontinue its use?
A. Opioids, February 2, 2015.

Q. At which of the schools you attended did you learn the most?
A. MAST Academy, high school in Key Biscayne, FL

Q.Do you believe leaders are made or born?
A. Both.

Q. Which film have you watched the most?
A. The American President

Q. Who is your favorite celebrity in recovery?
A. Anyone who’s in recovery is a celebrity to me. My favorite musical artist in recovery is Macklemore.

Q. If you ever retire, would you prefer to live by the ocean, lake, river, or mountaintop, or penthouse?
A. Ocean