Just Jess
Just Jess is a raw, unfiltered podcast diving into health, mental health, and the tough, often stigmatized topics most people shy away from. From personal experiences to deep discussions on medical ethics, social issues, and beyond—Jess challenges the norm, asks the hard questions, and gives a voice to stories that need to be heard.
Episodes
In this episode, Jess takes listeners on a deeper, fuller journey into queerness — what it means, where it comes from, how language has evolved, and how community shapes identity. From pansexual to ace, from trans masc to nonbinary, Jess breaks down the words we use with clarity, compassion, and a whole lot of personal experience.
This episode explores queer history, the movements that paved the way, and the importance of chosen fam...
In this episode, Jess explores the flavor, language, and grit of Pittsburgh — from the Steel City’s immigrant roots to the diner counters and hospital halls that still define it today. Featuring stories from the Glassport Diner, deep dives into local food staples like Primanti Bros. and Turner’s Tea, and reflections on resilience, healing, and finding home in a city that never stops rebuilding.
Visit Pittsburgh – Official ci...
October was heavy — chemo, Wig Out, grief, and growth. In this episode, Jess sits down in the quiet after the chaos to talk about what comes next: healing, exhaustion, and finding light in the aftermath. This is Jess's FIRST video episode of Just Jess.
-reSolve Crisis Services (Allegheny County) — 24/7 free crisis hotline: 1-888-7-YOU-CAN (1-888-796-8226). Walk-in center at 333 N Braddock Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15208.
-YMCA of Greate...
Trigger Warning: Murder, sexual violence, and death.
In this haunting Halloween episode of Just Jess, I explore the stories that linger — the souls we remember, and the darkness we refuse to glorify. From infamous true crimes to the invisible scars they leave behind, this episode asks what it really means to live among ghosts — both the ones we’ve lost and the ones that still walk beside us. It’s not about shock value. It’s about re...
Listener Warning:
This episode contains discussions of violence, serial murder, mental illness, and true crime. Listener discretion is advised. These stories are told to educate, not to glorify.
In this episode, Jess Faulkner explores the darkness beneath our fascination with true crime and serial killers. From Bundy and Dahmer to the dramatizations of Ryan Murphy and the performances of actors like Evan Peters and Charlie Hunna...
In this haunting deep dive, Jess Faulkner unpacks the true story behind one of America’s most infamous killers—and the myths that Hollywood built around him. Through fact, psychology, and dramatized storytelling, Jess explores Ed Gein’s fractured mind, Ryan Murphy’s chilling reinterpretation, and Charlie Hunnam’s descent into the role. But beyond the horror lies a harder truth: real monsters aren’t born in the dark—they’re made in ...
Whispers ripple through Pittsburgh’s bars and bridges: a serial killer hiding in plain sight, leaving a smile behind. In this haunting, research-driven episode, Jess Faulkner traces the origins of the Smiley Face Murder Theory—from the 1990s detectives who first connected mysterious drownings to the modern folklore that refuses to fade.
Along the way, she dives into Pennsylvania’s own history of real-world predators, the psychol...
In this episode, we explored the structural and human dimensions of the foster care system — the challenges youth face when entering and aging out of care, how trauma and identity shape their experiences, and what support systems (or gaps) exist for foster youth, caregivers, and agencies. We also discussed “what works” approaches: trauma-informed practices, culturally responsive supports, and community-based interventions.
Natio...
In this special episode of Just Jess, I open up about suicide, survival, and the stories that shaped me. I talk about my friend Dennis, whose struggle with opioids and alcohol ended in tragedy, and my own darkest moments—including a major suicide attempt in 2006 and the times I sat in a closet with a gun in my mouth.
This isn’t just about pain—it’s about awareness, connection, and survival. I share real statistics, risk factors, and...
In this episode of Just Jess, I dive into Netflix’s shocking documentary Unknown Number: The High School Catfish. What starts as a terrifying case of anonymous harassment against two teenagers unravels into one of the most twisted betrayals imaginable — a mother tormenting her own daughter. I break down the story, the fallout, and the mental illness behind it: Munchausen by Proxy. Along the way, I connect it to my own experiences w...
After a month of chaos, lost pods, and living without a bed, Jess has officially landed in Pittsburgh—and she’s ready to tell the story. From climbing over boxes just to make it to the bathroom, to discovering life-changing pierogies and pizza, this comeback episode is raw, funny, and full of heart.
Jess shares the highs and lows of the move, her first experiences at Hillman Cancer Center, what it means to finally feel heard by ...
In this deeply personal episode, Jess opens up about the relentless bone pain caused by her rare blood cancer, Essential Thrombocythemia. She breaks down what chronic pain really feels like, the emotional toll of managing it, and why she’s choosing nerve ablation as a next step. With raw honesty, real talk about medication fears, and a tribute to a friend lost to overdose, this episode is for anyone living in pain—or loving someone...
In this deeply moving episode, Jess sits down with a local Sumter mom to talk about the unimaginable—the loss of her child. Together, they explore the raw terrain of grief, the quiet moments of strength, and the ways a mother continues to honor her child’s memory while navigating life after loss. This conversation is honest, tender, and a testament to the resilience of love through heartbreak.
Jess recounts the wild, uncomfortable, and slightly chaotic experience of their most recent colonoscopy—complete with burning IVs, double sedation attempts, and a surprise post-op hangover that still hasn’t worn off.
Two polyps removed, IBS confirmed, and a whole lot of “what the hell just happened?” energy.
This isn’t a deep dive—it’s a dazed check-in from someone who’s still floating but still showing up.
🖤 Still dizzy. Sti...
Just a brief hello from Jess, a little update, a little mess, and all...Just Jess.
In this deeply personal episode, Jess opens their heart and shares a letter written to the daughter they gave up for adoption at nineteen—Lizzie. With raw honesty, tenderness, and courage, Jess revisits the pain of letting go, the complexity of love from afar, and the dreams they’ve always held for Lizzie’s future. This isn’t just a letter—it’s a legacy.
What unfolds is part confession, part celebration, and all love. Jess refle...
Listeners Be Advised
Surviving your diagnosis is only half the battle — surviving the meds is the other.
In this raw and brutally honest episode, Jess Faulkner opens up about the real cost of life-saving medications: side effects, withdrawal, polypharmacy chaos, and the everyday fight to keep moving forward.
From vomiting in trash bags to managing 17 prescriptions at once, Jess gets real about what it means to stay alive when your...
You ever wonder what a chronically ill, chaos-driven, emotionally loaded person keeps in their survival bags?
Today, we’re getting real.
In this mini episode, I’m taking you through my everyday clutch and my hospital emergency bag —
the essentials, the ridiculous, the sentimental, and the downright necessary.
From love tickets and lip balm to medication lists and comfy sweatpants,
these bags aren’t about looking cute — they’re a...
Starting over isn’t failure — it’s survival.
In this episode, Jess gets real about what it means to shed old lives, old dreams, and old versions of yourself in order to rebuild something new. From bounty hunter to cannagirl to survivor of homelessness and heartbreak, Jess shares raw stories of the many “mini deaths” she’s lived through — and why starting over isn’t just allowed, it’s necessary.
If you’ve ever felt like you ha...
(LISTENERS BE ADVISED)
Grief isn’t just an emotion — it’s a full-body experience. It shows up in your skin, your bones, your lungs, and your heart.
In this episode, Jess talks about how grief physically and emotionally affects us, why it doesn’t follow a straight line, and how we can survive it with softness, patience, and real self-compassion.
If you’ve ever wondered why grief feels so heavy — or how to keep living with the love and ...
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The Burden is a documentary series that takes listeners into the hidden places where justice is done (and undone). It dives deep into the lives of heroes and villains. And it focuses a spotlight on those who triumph even when the odds are against them. Season 5 - The Burden: Death & Deceit in Alliance On April Fools Day 1999, 26-year-old Yvonne Layne was found murdered in her Alliance, Ohio home. David Thorne, her ex-boyfriend and father of one of her children, was instantly a suspect. Another young man admitted to the murder, and David breathed a sigh of relief, until the confessed murderer fingered David; “He paid me to do it.” David was sentenced to life without parole. Two decades later, Pulitzer winner and podcast host, Maggie Freleng (Bone Valley Season 3: Graves County, Wrongful Conviction, Suave) launched a “live” investigation into David's conviction alongside Jason Baldwin (himself wrongfully convicted as a member of the West Memphis Three). Maggie had come to believe that the entire investigation of David was botched by the tiny local police department, or worse, covered up the real killer. Was Maggie correct? Was David’s claim of innocence credible? In Death and Deceit in Alliance, Maggie recounts the case that launched her career, and ultimately, “broke” her.” The results will shock the listener and reduce Maggie to tears and self-doubt. This is not your typical wrongful conviction story. In fact, it turns the genre on its head. It asks the question: What if our champions are foolish? Season 4 - The Burden: Get the Money and Run “Trying to murder my father, this was the thing that put me on the path.” That’s Joe Loya and that path was bank robbery. Bank, bank, bank, bank, bank. In season 4 of The Burden: Get the Money and Run, we hear from Joe who was once the most prolific bank robber in Southern California, and beyond. He used disguises, body doubles, proxies. He leaped over counters, grabbed the money and ran. Even as the FBI was closing in. It was a showdown between a daring bank robber, and a patient FBI agent. Joe was no ordinary bank robber. He was bright, articulate, charismatic, and driven by a dark rage that he summoned up at will. In seven episodes, Joe tells all: the what, the how… and the why. Including why he tried to murder his father. Season 3 - The Burden: Avenger Miriam Lewin is one of Argentina’s leading journalists today. At 19 years old, she was kidnapped off the streets of Buenos Aires for her political activism and thrown into a concentration camp. Thousands of her fellow inmates were executed, tossed alive from a cargo plane into the ocean. Miriam, along with a handful of others, will survive the camp. Then as a journalist, she will wage a decades long campaign to bring her tormentors to justice. Avenger is about one woman’s triumphant battle against unbelievable odds to survive torture, claim justice for the crimes done against her and others like her, and change the future of her country. Season 2 - The Burden: Empire on Blood Empire on Blood is set in the Bronx, NY, in the early 90s, when two young drug dealers ruled an intersection known as “The Corner on Blood.” The boss, Calvin Buari, lived large. He and a protege swore they would build an empire on blood. Then the relationship frayed and the protege accused Calvin of a double homicide which he claimed he didn’t do. But did he? Award-winning journalist Steve Fishman spent seven years to answer that question. This is the story of one man’s last chance to overturn his life sentence. He may prevail, but someone’s gotta pay. The Burden: Empire on Blood is the director’s cut of the true crime classic which reached #1 on the charts when it was first released half a dozen years ago. Season 1 - The Burden In the 1990s, Detective Louis N. Scarcella was legendary. In a city overrun by violent crime, he cracked the toughest cases and put away the worst criminals. “The Hulk” was his nickname. Then the story changed. Scarcella ran into a group of convicted murderers who all say they are innocent. They turned themselves into jailhouse-lawyers and in prison founded a lway firm. When they realized Scarcella helped put many of them away, they set their sights on taking him down. And with the help of a NY Times reporter they have a chance. For years, Scarcella insisted he did nothing wrong. But that’s all he’d say. Until we tracked Scarcella to a sauna in a Russian bathhouse, where he started to talk..and talk and talk. “The guilty have gone free,” he whispered. And then agreed to take us into the belly of the beast. Welcome to The Burden.
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The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!