For the first time on the WTTA podcast, we’re joined by a researcher, and not just any researcher.

Michael Sodini and Kevin Berry sit down with Kerri Raissian, Senior Research Scientist at the Yale School of Public Health’s Firearm Injury Prevention Initiative. Kerri shares her path from growing up on a cattle farm in Texas, to working in a district attorney’s office and running one of the largest domestic violence shelters in the country, to becoming a researcher focused on what actually reduces injury, trauma, and death.

This conversation goes straight to the real tension points, without the usual talking past each other:

• The difference between reducing firearm deaths vs reducing overall deaths and why substitution matters
• What gun owners worry about with ERPOs, and what it would take for policies to be trusted and usable
• Why secure storage keeps showing up as a high-impact solution, including the reality of firearm theft from vehicles
• How research funding changed after 2020 and why more universities are building firearm research initiatives now
• Why storytelling and lived experience still matter even in data-driven policy work

It’s candid, nuanced, and exactly what it looks like when the research community and firearm community sit at the same table and actually try to build answers together.

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In this episode of the Guns & Mental Health podcast, Michael Sodini and Kevin Berry sit down with Charles Anderson, CEO in the firearms media world behind Bleeker Street Publications, Athlon Outdoors, and its family of brands.

What starts as a chance bar conversation at NASGW turns into a powerful, honest discussion about what it looks like to live with mental health struggles while building a high profile career. Charles shares his path from growing up poor in a wealthy New York town, to the high pressure brokerage world later portrayed in The Wolf of Wall Street, to venture capital, and eventually to becoming one of the most influential voices in firearms media.

Along the way, he breaks down the reality of imposter syndrome, why “success” does not protect anyone from dark moments, and the coping framework that helped him survive when nothing else felt believable. Michael and Kevin connect the conversation to WTTA’s “Cause a Pause” mindset, and explore why the firearms industry has often been hesitant to engage tough topics like suicide prevention, and why that is finally changing.

If you’ve ever looked successful on paper but felt like you were one bad day away from unraveling, this one is for you.

Resources:

If you or someone you know is struggling, call or text 988 in the U.S. for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.

Chapters

00:00 — Welcome and introductions

01:10 — How Michael and Charles met at NASGW

03:20 — The phrase that stopped Michael in his tracks

04:10 — Charles’ background, Detroit and “keeping it real”

05:30 — Normalizing mental health talk in gun culture

06:40 — Growing up poor in a wealthy town

07:40 — From teenage stockbroker to Wolf of Wall Street reality

09:20 — Pressure, substance abuse, and the crash

10:20 — 9/11 grief, New York’s collective trauma, and leaving for Michigan

12:10 — First gun, training, and starting a blog

13:40 — When the blog started outranking major gun companies

14:50 — From agency life to running major publications

16:20 — Why authenticity matters, especially in this industry

18:10 — Imposter syndrome, image, and the pressure to “fit in”

21:20 — Chat question, why so little 2A legal coverage in publications

23:50 — Why “facts only” content struggles to get attention

27:10 — Why the gun industry avoided mental health for so long

31:40 — “You could kill yourself tomorrow”, what it really means

35:10 — The link to addiction recovery and getting through the next minute

38:30 — Why it works in conversation, but not as a slogan

41:10 — Permission, options, and Dr. Conte’s framework

44:30 — How imposter syndrome shows up, even during success

48:10 — What helps, therapy, self-awareness, and catching it earlier

57:40 — External “pull backs”, friends, helping others, and connection

01:01:30 — The “doom scroll” problem and a surprising coping tool

01:08:40 — The gambler mindset vs stability, and why some people must build

01:17:30 — How Charles tends to his mental health in real life

01:21:40 — Sponsors and shout out to Aguil

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In this special episode, Kevin Berry sits down with Kerri Raissian, Senior Research Scientist at the Yale School of Public Health, Kenny Barlow from Regal Products, and WTTA founder Mike Sodini to recap a week that moved the conversation forward in meaningful ways. The National Research Conference for the Prevention of Firearm-Related Harms brought together researchers, public health leaders, industry partners, clinicians, and advocates who all share a common goal. Reduce negative outcomes and save lives.

For the first time, WTTA and the ROOTS initiative were represented on the exhibitor floor. The response was overwhelmingly positive. Attendees were curious, supportive, and eager to learn how voluntary secure storage, mental health tools, and trusted community partnerships fit into the broader prevention landscape. Our team heard again and again how important it was to have firearm owners and industry voices present, willing to listen and willing to engage in good faith.

In this conversation, we break down key themes from the conference, share insights from panels and hallway conversations, and talk about what it means when different perspectives finally have a chance to connect. This episode highlights why cultural understanding matters, what ROOTS is building, and how collaborations across disciplines can create practical, real-world solutions that help families, communities, and firearm owners.

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