The MisFitNation

Hosted by Richard LaMonica

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709

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Nov 2026

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About the show

The MisFitNation Show: Empowering Stories of Resilience and Growth Welcome to The MisFitNation Show, hosted by Rich LaMonica, a proud US Army Veteran. Alongside a fellow Veteran and a prominent business leader, our mission is clear: to inspire and empower you to become a better human being. We spotlight the remarkable stories of Veterans and First Responders, showcasing their journeys of resilience, strength, and triumph over adversity. Each episode features captivating interviews with guests from diverse backgrounds, including authors, entrepreneurs, coaches, motivational speakers, and health & fitness professionals. Listeners will gain valuable insights, life lessons, and actionable advice from those who have faced challenges and achieved success. Whether it's the grit of our Veterans and First Responders or the expertise of thought leaders, The MisFitNation Show is a vibrant community dedicated to personal growth and collective well-being. Join us for an episode or become a regular listener! If you believe your story can inspire others, reach out to us to be a guest on the show. Accolades: 2025 Veteran Podcast of The Year - American Freedom Fund 2022 - Top 40 Over 40 - Podcast Magazine 2021 - Best Society and Culture Podcast - Veteran Podcast Awards Tune in to The MisFitNation Show, your ultimate platform for inspiration, motivation, and transformation. Discover stories that uplift and empower—because every voice matters! https://linktr.ee/themisfitnation

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60 recent

November 11, 20261 hr 38 min

He Fed Marines in Desert Storm. He Came Home Alone. | Joseph Randall

Joseph Randall remembers the balloons, the hugs, and the families waiting on the parade deck when he returned from Operation Desert Storm. He remembers realizing no one was there for him, picking up his bags, and walking back to the barracks. On Night 3 of The MisFitNation Veterans Week 2026, the ToosDay Crüe sits down with U.S. Marine Corps veteran Joseph D. Randall II for a 90-minute conversation on the Marine Corps birthday. At 19, Joseph volunteered to take meals forward to infantry Marines he’d served with. Back in St. Louis, he started at the salad station at Applebee’s, worked his way up to lead cook, and went on to build a career in fine dining, culinary education, and consulting. When a listener asks how to know if culinary school is the right move, Joseph gives a practical answer. Spend time in a working kitchen before you commit. He also shares the advice a mentor gave him while he weighed an executive chef offer. “No matter what you do, stay in the driver’s seat.” Years later, that advice helped him walk away from a publishing deal that would have left him paying for shipping and taking back unsold books. The conversation returns to that walk from the parade deck when Joseph talks about living with PTSD and why it took decades to put his experience on paper in *Forged in Heat: Discipline. Fire. Restraint.* When a viewer asks how to reach someone from an old unit who’s gone quiet, Joseph says he’s been that person. He talks about what it meant to feel supported by people who couldn’t fully understand what he was going through, and why he believes veteran mental health support should begin while people are still in uniform. If someone from your old unit comes to mind while you listen, reach out and give them room to answer. Follow The MisFitNation on Spotify or Apple Podcasts for the rest of Veterans Week. Explore Joseph Randall’s memoir and work at Orion Copper https://www.orioncopper.com/ Watch The MisFitNation on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@The_MisFitNation Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

November 10, 20261 hr 14 min

Who Am I Now? John Krotec on Brain Injury, Forgiveness & Finding Purpose

John Krotec’s therapist told him she couldn’t save his marriage—but she could help him save himself. What followed was the difficult work of facing pain he had kept hidden for decades. In this episode of The MisFitNation Show, U.S. Army Veteran, entrepreneur, author, and poet John Krotec shares how a 2012 vehicle accident and traumatic brain injury disrupted his life and brought long-buried childhood trauma to the surface. Facing sleepless nights, suicidal thoughts, and divorce proceedings, John sought professional help and began rebuilding his relationship with himself. He recalls the moment his wife told him she was calling off their divorce—and the unexpected discomfort of looking in a mirror and telling himself, “I love you.” This candid conversation explores cognitive behavioral therapy, self-forgiveness, poetry as an outlet for healing, and the ongoing challenges of living with a brain injury. John also tackles a question many veterans carry: How do you discover who you are today while honoring the person who wore the uniform? Together, we explore:• Finding identity and purpose after military service• Why service matters, with or without a combat deployment• Doing the hard work of trauma recovery• Rebuilding trust, relationships, and self-respect• Critical thinking and self-leadership through NeoMasculinity Solutions• Staying connected to the people who understand your story Whether you’re navigating life after service, supporting someone with a brain injury, or trying to find your footing after a difficult chapter, John’s story offers an honest look at what rebuilding can require—and why reaching out matters. Connect with John and explore The Sentinel Handbook:https://NeoMasculinity.Solutions Discover more from The MisFitNation:https://www.themisfitnation.comhttps://www.youtube.com/@The_MisFitNation Follow The MisFitNation Show and share this conversation with someone who could use encouragement to keep going. This episode includes discussion of childhood sexual abuse and suicidal thoughts. If you or someone you know needs immediate support, call 988. Veterans, press 1. A day tomorrow is better with you than it is without you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

November 10, 20261 hr 13 min

Chasing the Rush After the Navy SEALs with Dr. Tony Dice

Dr. Tony Dice can trace his appetite for adrenaline back to riding his bike as fast as he could and swinging from ropes in the trees. Long before he became a Navy SEAL, he knew the feeling he was after. On Night Two of The MisFitNation Veterans Week 2026, he talks about where that pursuit took him, how alcohol and drug addiction became part of his life, and what it took to ask for help. Tony takes listeners inside his early recovery, when he was afraid of relapsing and wanted to stay in treatment. He talks about working through the Twelve Steps, going back to school, and continuing to attend recovery meetings. He speaks about sobriety in terms of what he can do today, and why it matters to remember how bad things got even when life is going well. One of the most revealing moments starts with a listener who got sober and threw themselves into work. They ask Tony how he recognized when ambition had become another way to avoid what he was feeling. It’s a question that opens up the conversation beyond substance use and into the habits people can carry with them into recovery. A U.S. Navy SEAL veteran, former firefighter and paramedic, and now a clinical therapist, Tony brings his own experience to his work with veterans and first responders. He also shares what led him to write *After the Trident: A Navy SEAL’s Battle with Secrets, Shame, and Addiction* and why he decided to tell this part of his story publicly. Follow The MisFitNation on Apple Podcasts or Spotify for the full Veterans Week series. If Tony’s story brings someone to mind, share the episode with them. Learn more about Dr. Tony Dice and his work at https://bishopdicedefense.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

November 9, 20261 hr 16 min

Wounded in Iraq, Leading the Purple Heart | Frances Figueroa-Lowe

Frances Figueroa-Lowe signed up for the Army after a chance encounter with a recruiter in Queens. Years later, after being wounded in a mortar attack in Iraq, she signed up for something else she never expected to lead: her local chapter of the Military Order of the Purple Heart. In the Veterans Week 2026 kickoff on The MisFitNation, Frances joins Rich LaMonica to trace the steps between those two decisions. She talks about deploying with the 118th Military Police Company during Operation Iraqi Freedom, building a career in human resources after leaving the Army, and finding a new way to serve through veteran advocacy. Now the National Commander of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, Frances shares what a local chapter can do for veterans and military families, what it takes to walk into that first meeting, and why seeing women veterans in leadership can make it easier for others to step forward. Follow The MisFitNation for the rest of our Veterans Week interviews. Learn more about the Military Order of the Purple Heart and find a local chapter at https://www.purpleheart.org. Watch the interview on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/@The_MisFitNation Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

November 6, 20261 hr 9 min

When Being Strong Becomes Exhausting: Finding Yourself After Service with Amber Houghton

Everyone knows you as the person who handles everything. Who do you turn to when you’re the one struggling? For retired Air Force Chief Master Sergeant Amber Houghton, life after military service brought more than a career change. After 28 years in uniform, retirement, divorce, and changing relationships with her children challenged the identities she had built her life around. On The MisFitNation Show, Amber joins Rich LaMonica to share what people couldn’t see behind the capable exterior: staying busy to avoid the quiet, pouring into others while running on empty, and struggling to ask for help. Now a human performance strategist and founder of Elite Performance Strategies, Amber opens up about the ongoing work of discovering who she is beneath her rank, responsibilities, and other people’s expectations. This conversation explores: • Military transition and the identity questions a civilian résumé can’t answer • How high performance can conceal emotional exhaustion • The cost of compartmentalizing pain and carrying it into relationships • Finding purpose and human connection after military retirement • Changing the way you talk to yourself • Accepting help when you’re used to being everyone else’s support system • Leading with empathy, self-awareness, and better communication Amber also shares a simple reflection exercise she used to begin exploring who she was beyond the uniform—and why finding purpose takes curiosity, honesty, and action. Whether you’re preparing to leave the military, adjusting to retirement, navigating a major life change, or quietly exhausted from being “the strong one,” this episode offers an honest place to begin. Your next chapter deserves the same attention you’ve given everyone else. CONNECT WITH AMBER HOUGHTON Website: https://www.amberhoughton.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ElitePerformanceStrategies CONNECT WITH THE MISFITNATION Website: https://www.themisfitnation.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@The_MisFitNation Follow The MisFitNation Show on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, and share this episode with someone figuring out what comes next. Be Humble. Stay Hungry. Keep Hustling. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

November 5, 20261 hr 9 min

A Job Wasn’t Enough: Marine Veteran Jon Cole on Finding Purpose After Service

You can leave the military with valuable skills, land a good job, and still feel lost. Jon Cole knows that feeling—and the toll it can take when you try to carry it alone. In this episode of The MisFitNation’s ToosDay Crüe, Jake Holland and Stephen LaMonica sit down with retired U.S. Marine Corps Chief Warrant Officer 2 Jon Cole, host of The Bunkhouse Podcast. After 16 years of service and three combat deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, Jon’s medical retirement brought a challenge his résumé couldn’t solve: finding purpose and belonging beyond the Marines. Jon speaks candidly about isolation, increased drinking, strain on his marriage, and the realization that he needed help. He shares how counseling, journaling, faith, and family helped him move forward—and how reconnecting with fellow veterans gave him a mission he cared about. Along the way, the conversation explores the grief that follows you home, the family milestones missed during deployments, and the courage it takes to build new friendships when the old brotherhood feels distant. You’ll hear: • Why meaningful work and personal purpose don’t always arrive together • How Jon began opening up and rebuilding his support system • What he learned about putting counseling tools into practice • Why helping someone feel heard starts with listening • How The Bunkhouse evolved from an IT career podcast into a home for veteran mental health conversations There’s humor, hard-earned perspective, and a challenge you can act on today: check on one person you haven’t heard from lately. You don’t need the perfect words to let someone know they matter. “Be the light in someone’s dark.” — Jon Cole Connect with Jon and The Bunkhouse Podcast: https://linktr.ee/thebunkhouse Explore The MisFitNation: https://www.TheMisFitNation.com Watch our interviews and join the conversation: https://www.youtube.com/@The_MisFitNation Follow The MisFitNation for more conversations about leadership, service, resilience, and the next chapter. Share this episode with someone navigating life after the military. Need immediate support? Call 988. Veterans, press 1. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

November 3, 20261 hr 1 min

Who Am I After the Uniform? Finding Purpose with Francine Juhlin

She lost 100 pounds. Life still didn’t feel right. For U.S. Navy Veteran Francine Juhlin, getting healthy revealed a deeper question: What actually makes me happy—and who am I beyond the work I’ve always done? On The MisFitNation Show, Francine joins Rich LaMonica for an honest, uplifting conversation about military transition, identity, and finding purpose after service. Her journey spans 10 years in the Navy, Army National Guard service, an Iraq deployment, and decades supporting military aviation. But her next chapter took her somewhere unexpected: writing books and helping others discover their confidence. Francine shares how she challenged beliefs she had carried since childhood, developed her six-step personal change process, and found her voice through Toastmasters and storytelling. She also opens up about imposter syndrome, the uncertainty of becoming an author, and the joy that now fuels her work. Her mission reaches beyond veterans. Through her Camp Confidence children’s books and Personal Change Warriors resources, she helps people explore who they are, what matters to them, and what they want to do next. You’ll hear:• Why changing your circumstances may not change how you feel about yourself• How to begin exploring a new purpose when you don’t know where to start• What military leadership taught her—and what leading volunteers required her to learn• How adults can nurture children’s confidence and creativity• Why asking for help can open the door to your next chapter Whether you’re leaving the military, approaching retirement, supporting a military family, or reconsidering your career, this episode invites you to ask a powerful question: What would a meaningful next chapter look like for you? Connect with Francine and explore her free Clarity Starter Pack:https://personalchangewarriors.com/ Discover more stories of leadership, service, and resilience:https://www.themisfitnation.com/ Follow The MisFitNation Show and share this episode with someone searching for their next mission. Be Humble. Stay Hungry. Keep Hustling. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

October 30, 20261 hr 5 min

Your Own Weapons. An Invisible Injury. | Blast Overpressure with Tim Grossman

You trained to survive enemy fire. Who prepared you for the questions about your own? Thousands of mortar rounds. Repeated breaching charges. Years around heavy weapons. For the warfighters behind those systems, the conversation about blast exposure doesn’t end when the firing stops. U.S. Army combat veteran Timothy “Tim” Grossman joins Rich LaMonica and Jake Holland on The MisFitNation for a raw conversation about blast overpressure, traumatic brain injury (TBI), and the invisible burdens veterans can carry into civilian life. A former mortarman with the 101st Airborne Division’s Rakkasans and the 1st Infantry Division, Tim knows the gun line firsthand. After nearly two decades in veterans advocacy, including work with Disabled American Veterans and Wounded Warrior Project, he now leads the Cohort of Overpressured Warfighters Action Council (COWAC). His message: veterans need information they can use while the larger fight for recognition continues. This episode explores military occupational blast exposure through research, advocacy, and personal experience. Tim explains why repetitive low-level blast exposure during military training deserves attention, how he approaches the gaps in the science, and why an individual veteran’s exposure history matters. Jake brings his own EOD experience into a candid discussion of memory difficulties, emotional changes, and the struggle to explain what life feels like after service. Together, we examine: • Blast overpressure exposure among mortarmen, artillery crews, breachers, EOD technicians, and special operations personnel. • Brain fog, headaches, tinnitus, sleep difficulties, and other concerns raised in the conversation. • Overlapping PTSD and TBI symptoms—and the importance of looking deeper. • The distance between military brain-health research and VA disability recognition. • Documenting military exposure and discussing it with a medical provider. • The role of medical evidence, clinician opinions, and veterans service officers in service-connection claims. • Why Tim created a reference to help clinicians and advocates understand blast exposure. At the heart of this conversation is a question every American should hear: What responsibility do we carry when the weapons we ask service members to fire may leave injuries we cannot see? If you served around heavy weapons, love someone who did, or work in veteran healthcare or disability advocacy, make time for this episode. Listen. Follow The MisFitNation. Send this conversation to the battle buddy who keeps saying, “I haven’t felt like myself since I got home.” Explore Tim’s educational resources and advocacy: https://cowac.org/ More from The MisFitNation: https://www.themisfitnation.com/ Be Humble. Stay Hungry. Keep Hustling. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

October 29, 20261 hr 6 min

Paralyzed, Still Serving: Casey Callister’s Next Mission

Casey Callister was preparing for life after the Army when a head-on collision changed his future. Paralyzed from the waist down, he faced more than learning to use a wheelchair. He had to rethink his independence, his identity, and how he would show up for his wife and two children. Then his young son asked a question that stayed with him: “What do you do for work?” Casey had always taught his children to work hard and take responsibility. That question challenged him to lead by example—and helped push him toward a new way to serve. On The MisFitNation, host Rich LaMonica sits down with the U.S. Army veteran, former medic, and co-founder and president of Vet5 Foundation for a candid conversation about spinal cord injury, veteran mental health, accepting help, and finding purpose after a life-changing setback. Casey shares how twenty years of reunions with his Army brothers became the foundation for helping other disabled veterans and their families reconnect with life. Through adaptive fishing, hunting, outdoor experiences, and accessible family retreats, Vet5 creates opportunities to rediscover confidence and build friendships that continue after the trip ends. The details make this conversation powerful: inspecting hotel rooms to ensure accessibility, offering electric fishing reels, and helping an injured veteran shoulder a shotgun so he could enjoy shooting skeet again. Each story shows how thoughtful support can make something that feels impossible become possible. Casey also speaks honestly about the help he still struggles to accept, why healing looks different for everyone, and the often overlooked weight carried by spouses and caregivers. His approach to nonprofit partnerships offers another lesson in leadership: cooperation expands what a community can accomplish. For veterans, first responders, military families, caregivers, and anyone rebuilding after adversity, this episode offers a personal perspective on moving forward without having every answer. Your next chapter may look different. It can still be meaningful. Connect with Vet5 Foundation:https://vet5.org/ Explore The MisFitNation:https://www.themisfitnation.com Watch the interview and subscribe on YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@The_MisFitNation Follow The MisFitNation on your favorite podcast app, share this episode with someone facing a difficult transition, and tell us: What helped you find your next mission? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

October 27, 20261 hr 2 min

The Mustang That Changed Everything | Army Veteran Zachary Leyden

When Zachary Leyden left the Army after serving in Afghanistan, he expected civilian life to be his next adventure. Instead, he felt lost without the mission and the people beside him. After a DUI, a Vietnam veteran invited him to work with Mustangs. One horse, Kirby, would not let Zachary near him. Zachary spent days trying to earn his trust—until he stopped chasing, sat down in the pasture, and let Kirby come to him. That moment changed how Zachary understood horses, himself, and the people he hoped to help. On The MisFitNation, Zachary tells Rich LaMonica how he built Ocean View Stables near San Francisco, where veterans have been invited to ride free since day one. He shares why working with a horse begins with presence and clear communication, how people can unintentionally teach a rescue horse to fear them, and what “soft is strong” means when you are standing beside a 1,200-pound animal. Their conversation also reaches beyond the barn: the challenge of asking for help after service, leadership without rank, the founding of Saved by the Saddle, and Soft Is Strong: The Art of Horsemanship, the book Zachary wrote with his wife, Kalea. When Rich asks him to set every title aside and name his mission now, Zachary’s answer is simple: to be a good father. Connect with Zachary:Ocean View Stables: https://www.oceanviewstables.comSaved by the Saddle: https://www.savedbythesaddle.orgLeyden Horsemanship: https://www.leydenhorsemanship.com Explore The MisFitNation: https://www.themisfitnation.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices