PLEASE NOTE: In the first three minutes of the interview, the guest's audio is choppy. We improved the sound as much as possible, and it gets better later on.

In this episode, Marilyn Lynch joins the podcast to share the life and legacy of her late husband, Matthew James Lynch, who passed away on May 25, 2024, at the age of 44. A devoted husband, father of three, and talented chef, Matt died from an apparent kratom-induced seizure. Matthew was pursuing a degree in accounting at Liberty University, where he maintained a 3.61 GPA. He participated in Celebrate Recovery and was connected to AA, maintaining 1,037 days of sobriety from alcohol when he passed.

A Florida-born skater as a kid, later becoming a drummer as part of his deep love of music—especially metal—he was known for his devotion to his family. After enduring chronic pain from a car accident, Matt sought alternatives to prescription opioids and began using kratom, a legal herbal substance marketed as natural and safe. What began as a hopeful path to healing quietly evolved into a difficult dependency, culminating in a series of unexplained seizures and ultimately, his untimely passing.

The autopsy report later confirmed kratom as a contributing factor in his death. A postmortem toxicology screen conducted via liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC-MS) detected mitragynine at 5.2 mg/L and 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-HMG) at 0.74 mg/L. Naloxone was present, due to attempted reversal of opioid effects, by emergency responders. Amphetamines, benzodiazepines, traditional opioids, ethanol, cocaine metabolites, or gabapentin/pregabalin were NOT detected. At time on death, Matthew was on prescribed anti-seizure, heart and cholesterol medications. Today, Marilyn now honors his memory by speaking out, sharing his story to raise awareness about the unregulated risks of kratom.

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