Scott Parks, the lively voice behind KMBZ Radio’s afternoon show, Dana & Parks, teetered on the brink of self-destruction. In a September weekend haze, drowning in a solo drinking spree, he faced an unexpected intervention.
As he heard the garage door creak open, he assumed it was a buddy gearing up for an early Chiefs game watch. Little did he know, his rock bottom was about to unfold in his living room. There, awaiting him, were his mother, brother, and two daughters, ready to pull him back from the edge through an intervention.
Scott Parks, having completed a 30-day inpatient treatment for alcoholism, understands the widespread impact of addiction on millions of Americans. It’s not merely a personal struggle; it’s a battle that drains loved ones tirelessly seeking assistance for their cherished family members.
In a pivotal moment, Scott Parks, still inebriated in front of his family, reached a turning point. He quietly admitted to them that he had long anticipated this day and was relieved it had arrived. The situation escalated into a classic intervention led by his brother, urging immediate treatment. Despite expressing a desire to get sober, Parks wrestled with the lingering temptation of unconsumed liquor.
The sneaky grip of addiction/alcoholism shows up in antisocial behaviors, making it tricky to spot, diagnose, and treat. While relapse is a possible part of recovery, it’s a strong wake-up call to emphasize the crucial need for an unwavering commitment to an alcoholic’s recovery program.
Scott Parks, with 28 years on the air at KMBZ, wants those grappling with addiction to understand that the disease doesn’t have to define them—help is within reach. Speaking from personal experience, Parks relapsed after three years of sobriety, nearly jeopardizing everything he had worked hard for.
During an interview with Barrett News Media, Scott Parks talks about his setback and absence from KMBZ. He also shares how his partner, Dana Wright, saved his life and their show while he was away for treatment. Parks also discusses how the stigma surrounding addiction can make people sick and what his plans are now that he is sober.
Ryan Hedrick: How has the reaction been since you returned to work after undergoing treatment for your alcohol addiction?
Scott Parks: I would like to say that it’s been overwhelmingly positive, but it’s been nothing but positive. It’s been humbling. I expected to get a bit of blowback when I decided to be public about what happened. I wanted to get a handful of people who would write in and say, ‘You brought that on yourself; your disease is a choice. I haven’t gotten any of that. I am humbled by it.
RH: What was the relapse experience like for you? Why did you decide to drink again after three years sober?
SP: I can’t go into great detail about what led to the relapse other than to say that it was a trauma that hit my family; I can’t go into any more detail at the moment. It’s always said that the thing you put above your sobriety will be the first thing that you lose, and truer words have never been spoken. I put something above my sobriety; it collapsed, and when it collapsed, it took my sobriety with it.
Having said all of that, I recognize that I am responsible for handling this disease, and this disease does not control me unless I allow it to control me. Nobody else makes that decision for me. Going back out was four times worse than I ever imagined.
RH: How so?
SP: The disease came back with a vengeance. It wasn’t like I had never left off; it doubled while I was away. I made this reference on the air a couple of weeks ago; my disease was not in the parking lot doing push-ups, it was doing burpees and squats, and he brought every friend he had, and they were pissed. I was just shocked at how quickly it came back and how strong it came back.
(The phrase “doing push-ups” refers to the idea that addiction is always present and can resurface at any moment).
RH: Can you discuss how your partner, Dana Wright, supported you in seeking help? What does her support mean to you during this time?
SP: Dana has been a saint through this whole thing. She was the first one to notice it in the beginning, probably because we spend so much time together, but she was the one who initially recommended that I take 30 days off, and she held down the fort while I was gone and never complained.
She did every show, every day, all by herself, and I could not ask for a better professional partner than Dana Wright. She saved my life; there’s no doubt about it. She told me that she could tell [that I was drinking again]. She didn’t say that there was anything in particular; she said, ‘I could tell that you have relapsed, and I didn’t deny it.
RH: How long have you been at KMBZ?
SP: I’ve been at KMBZ since I was 24 years old. (Scott has been at KMBZ for 28 years).
RH: Is this the first incident with drinking that you have had at KMBZ?
SP: For sure. You don’t last 28 years at a place by ruffling a lot of feathers. As far as getting into trouble, I don’t want to call it that because that plays into the stigma that people like you and me try to eliminate. If we’re going, to be honest, and we’re going to get this thing treated like a disease, that you and I both know that it is, we’ve got to change the way people think about it. Maybe even including ourselves.
RH: If you were explaining to someone who didn’t see addiction as a disease, how would you help them understand and grasp what you’re going through?
SP: I would tell them that explaining addiction to somebody who is not addicted to anything is almost impossible. I don’t know why I have been blessed and cursed with addiction, but I have. I do consider myself lucky that I get to go through life as an alcoholic and cursed at the same time.
RH: Can you explain how the treatment has benefited you?
SP: I feel different since I left treatment. It did what I couldn’t do for myself, and that was to get me to put the bottle down. Nothing that I was trying prior to going into treatment worked. I couldn’t stop drinking; no matter what, I just couldn’t stop. It also got me to look at things in my life in ways I had not looked at them. It gave me a different perspective.
RH: Will you utilize your platform, whether through the radio station or your show, to educate people about addiction or alcoholism?
SP: I don’t know if I am going to use the show if I am going to use the show at all. I can see my boss or the audience get a little annoyed after a while but what an incredible gift that I have been given in sobriety, and what a shame it would be if I didn’t pass this on to someone else.
I have to do something, what it is I don’t know yet. I’ve had conversations with one person that I met in rehab about getting six months of sobriety under both of our belts and going back and talking with the very groups that were us at one point.
