Content warning: This episode contains a candid discussion of suicidal thoughts. Please listen with care.

Kelly and Alison Victoria have been friends for years, both Chicago girls with more in common than they ever got to explore until now. This is the conversation they've been wanting to have, and Alison chose Comfort Food as the only place she'd tell this story for the first time.

For the first time ever, Alison opens up about a four-year legal nightmare that nearly destroyed everything she had built. It started with a business partnership that seemed promising and spiraled into eight lawsuits, forensic audits, unpaid contractors, permits that were never pulled, and headlines calling her a fraud. She lost her house. She lost her car. Her bank account was drained. And at her lowest point, she called a friend and said she didn't want to live anymore.

This conversation goes there. All of it. How Alison kept showing up anyway, how HGTV had her back when she was terrified they would fire her, and how she rebuilt from zero into the thriving, Emmy-nominated career and life she has today. She also talks about what she learned: that the truth always prevails, that patience is a real virtue, and that grief comes in more forms than most people realize, including the grief of losing yourself.

This one is a must-listen for anyone who has ever felt buried alive by someone else's mess.

If you or someone you know is struggling, please reach out to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988.

Follow Kelly on Instagram @KellyRizzo and keep the conversation going there.

You can follow Alison Victoria at @thealisonvictoria

This episode is sponsored by Marconi Foods. For 15% off use code KELLY at Marconi-foods.com

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