The Behavioral Corner 
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The Behavioral Corner 
Hi, and welcome. I'm Steve Martorano. And this is the Behavioral Corner; you're invited to hang with us, as we've discussed the ways we live today, the choices we make, the things we do, and how they affect our health and wellbeing. So you're on the corner, the Behavioral Corner, please hang around a while. 

Steve Martorano 
Hey, everybody, how are you doing? Welcome again to the Behavioral Corner. Me? I'm Steve Martorano I'm the...sort of the chief "hanger outer" here on the Corner. And what we do is, well, you know, we wait, if you stay in one place long enough, you're gonna run into interesting people and we like to think we do struck pay dirt on this time and the Corner. What we do is we talk about behavioral health, which is very briefly is about everything. So this is the podcast about everything, everything that affects the way we behave, how we feel, our emotional well-being, substance abuse issues come up lots of times, and the whole thing is underwritten by our great partners Retreat Behavioral Health, about which more later. Okay, this I gotta tell you in the interest of full disclosure, is almost like a busman's holiday to have my guest on we are joined by "my brother from another mother," Anthony Gargano, aka "The Cuz" -- world-renowned -- world-renowned. Anyway, very famous Philadelphia and national sports talk host, former partner of mine, great, lifelong friend, a great friend of mine, and he's hanging with us on a corner. Anthony!

Anthony Gargano 
Don't you love it? I'm so excited. Stevie, this is the greatest. Listen, when you first -- you said "Hey listen, do you want to hang out with me and do the podcast." I said -- what did I tell you, Stevie? I'll do anything. I mean, literally, if you said Stevie--you say, Anthony, I need you to rob a bank. I'm here with you.

Steve Martorano 
Let me tell you about Anthony and me. And this is I say this with all humility. I had a dog once. The dog didn't enjoy me as much as Anthony does. I am blessed. The guy just laughs at my jokes. Carried me for a couple of years on a radio...

Anthony Gargano 
You are hysterical. You are...I've learned so much and listen to me. I learned so much about life first. And then of course the business and media and storytelling and radio. I learned so much from you. And you know what's interesting, I still quote you. If you listen to the show that I do daily, you'll hear Steve Martaranoisms. A lot better. 

Steve Martorano 
You gotta cut that out.

Anthony Gargano 
Everything you said, man I I soaked up.

Steve Martorano 
You're very kind. And you of course, almost taught me what offsides are in hockey. But you know, you know me, it's like hockey, "That's the thing with the stick. Anyway, Anthony, I have a lot of fun. We could do this for hours. But we're...we're a...we're really about the work of behavioral healthcare. This is actually for real...for the real topic. And in the interest of full disclosure, again, we are recording this prior to the Super Bowl, which is the thir... is at the 13th of February. So we're recording it somewhat before then. So obviously we don't know the outcome. So I'm gonna put Anthony right on the spot right now. So again, when this...when we drop this Behavioral Corner it will be the Tuesday after the Super Bowl has been played. So he's going to do is Cuz's Nostradamus routine. Tell us the Super Bowl score. Winner and the score.

Anthony Gargano
All right, I like the Rams. I think the Rams win. I think they score in the 30s So I'll give you 34 to 24. Rams win. The key to this game is going to be the Rams defensive front against the Bengal's banged-up offensive line. Listen, the Bengals are a fun story. And Joe Cool...Job Barrows dynamite. But I don't see how the Rams -- I don't see how you block them. I mean, Von Miller. Aaron Donald. Stevie -- you're a defensive guy.

Steve Martorano 
I agree. I absolutely agree. So let me see if I understand that because I don't really know how these things work. They cover and take the over. 

Anthony Gargano 
Yes.

Steve Martorano 
Making sure...

Anthony Gargano 
Exactly

Anthony Gargano 
Right here - 34-24 rams with 58 -- 58 is the total. Okay. All right. Anyway, you know what, Tuesday? When this thing drops. We'll see. Alright, here's what we're going to talk about. It's here. stopping saving trees and I know Anthony has dealt with this on his program every year, I'm sure. And that's what I'm calling surviving football withdrawal. We knocked this around the other day and it was light-hearted, we can have fun with it. And then I did my little prep ahead. And I went, you know what, of course, there are academic studies about this stuff. University Loyola, I'm looking at one from Loyola medical school, where they talk about what happens when football is taken away from people as abruptly as it is, you know, after Sunday -- this coming Sunday, boom, nothing, right? You know, there's, you want to get into the chemistry of it. But when you're doing anything pleasurable, dopamine is flooding a certain part of your brain, the pleasure centers, you feel great, the activity goes away the dopamine levels drop, bang, you're in a funk. There's, and we don't need any more funky times. So I know you've dealt with football withdrawal. 

Anthony Gargano 
Yeah, I'm a survivor. 

Steve Martorano 
Tell us a little bit about how you feel when you know it's over for...

Anthony Gargano 
So I'm really twisted with this stuff, Stevie. So I want once the final weeks of the season start. I almost anticipate this thing. Right? And actually, it starts right at the end of college football, right? Because that's when you start to weep. It's on the other side, right? You have the holidays, and how this kind of you're scared, right? Because you love the holidays, your level of football goes with it. But as soon as the holidays are over, bang, college football's over. And then the NFL, our lifeblood starts to dwindle. They tease us right? You have a wildcard weekend. And this year, it was a super wildcard weekend. You had two games on Saturday, three games on Sunday, one game on Monday night. And then you have the divisional round. Alright, two games on Saturday, two games on Sunday. And then it's two games, the championship weekend. And then, of course, the off weekend and the Super Bowl, and I get depressed. It's like, especially the sport is the greatest. And you know what it is to me and something that you've always said, it's an event. And so it's something that you look forward to, you know, every week, you have something look forward to it's...listen, as human beings, I know you say this all the time. We look forward to our vacations, right? Or special circumstances in life, right? Special occasions. Football at least gives you something to look forward to weekly. And the other sports don't have that same poll. That same event status.

Steve Martorano 
Football, of course, plays out more novelistic than even baseball, or even basketball. There are many, many more games in both those two sports. It's hard to get a kind of narrative flow. The immediate impact of that is because as I said, it's a long season and there are many games. Football is there's a chapter a week. There's a chapter a week. And so this, this dopamine kick you get -- you know how it works on...on for most people on sports radio. Monday, Tuesday, you're talking about what happened.

Anthony Gargano 
Right.

Steve Martorano 
And Wednesday, you begin to pivot who's coming up Thursday, Friday, it's getting ready for the next Sunday. So it's a week-long...

Anthony Gargano 
It's a rhythm, yep. 

Steve Martorano 
And this year, I want to ask you, do you think that the drop-off...the withdrawal symptoms are going to be more pronounced than in the past because we have just seen may be the greatest postseason in history?

Anthony Gargano 
Yeah, that's a great point. And, and I think like listen, that Bill's Chiefs game was some of the most...like that capped that weekend. That was like, ridiculous. It was so...it was such great theater. It was so entertaining. You know what else to these games -- think about it -- you watch them with food. Right? So there's the comfort of football, food, whether it's pizza and hoagies, all these great things that taste good, right? There's the comfort of family and friends. So you're watching it with others. You don't get together to watch a Tuesday night basketball game or Thursday night hockey game. You get together to watch a football game, right? And you're with your friends, you're with your family, your children, whatever. So you have food, you have family and friends. And then you also have the fantasy or the betting or whatever you're doing. So that also adds to think about the closest of camaraderie, family and friends, food, and then the adrenaline rush of fantasy and betting.

Steve Martorano 
Yeah, if you think maybe this is being made too much of your kidding yourself. Anthony just correctly identified how much is invested in these games. A lot. A lot. In fact, I used to think it was just nonsense told by politicians. But you know, your team -- particularly your football -- is one of the few things that literally bond people in an age a moment, when nobody seems to be on the same page, we get at least agree about this. The games are on. Alright, listen, I hate to do this to you -- well, you're gonna be hearing this after the fact -- but it will be exactly the moment when it probably hits you. The games are over. You're staring into the abyss of February -- which is no day at the beach, right? Worse, it's terrible. So what are some of the things? What do we do? You know, there is a whole list of tips on you know, what to do. And one which I from this, you know, medical researchers that I love. He said don't go cold turkey.

Anthony Gargano 
Right.

Steve Martorano 
Does that make sense to you?

Anthony Gargano 
Yeah, it does. You have to do something right. You have to dive into something. And so listen, if you don't like other sports, give it a shot like March Madness is a fun thing, because it's kind of a holiday spirit. It's all those games. It's games during the day, like Thursday and Friday. So there's fest...there's a festive nature to it. You know, you drink and eat. and have fun at all. So there's that. But there's also I think you need to dive into something. I'm a big believer in this because I dealt with this every year. And I again, I'm it's me, right like I feel it. I'm depressed. Sunday night...Monday morning, I get up and like I don't care about the commercials, right? I don't want to talk about it. I go on the show. Somebody gives a rat's behind about the commercials. I go, "What am I going to do? What am I going to go? It's February. And life stinks. It's dark, dreary cold, and baseball not even starting. Who knows when they will ever do it?" And what?!?! I need something, so, I usually do..make this my television, film, TV, book, entertainment time.

Steve Martorano 
Great point. Because you're...because obviously, the game comes to us via the box. For the most part, the games are not only going but so is this the focal point of your attention. There's nothing on...there's nothing on. Well, the tips of this...your great pick...I know you love movies, you're a big fan of movies and a sharp observer of them. But some of the other suggestions are and I love this. Watch old games, watch clips. For instance, how many times have you seen the Philly Philly Special from the Superbowl with the Eagles win? I can watch it every day I can. On my television set, it makes me feel good. So that's a great idea. So...

Anthony Gargano 
You know what's funny, like, you bring up the Super Bowl. And if that doesn't make your point, that the...it's such a deep relationship, right? That -- you saw it -- I mean, all these souls congregating at the parade -- we all felt the need to dive into the streets. Right? After they win I was on Walnut Street with a bottle of tequila, and I was hugging and kissing strangers. I mean...

Steve Martorano 
It's just a regular day for you.

Anthony Gargano 
We're hugging everybody. And you know, it's such...people have pictures of their loved ones who passed on. I mean, anything that connotes, that kind of emotion and love and that has to be real. You always say the most important job in Philadelphia, it's not the mayor. But it's the coach of The Eagles. I've heard you say that many times. And it's true because we all have this collective kind of...it's...it's...it's not...we get our identity from them. It's, they matter so deeply. And it connects us to the timeline of our lives. 

Steve Martorano 
Oh, yeah. Yeah.

Anthony Gargano 
It connects us to all that stuff,

Steve Martorano 
It's also one of the for...it's one of the morality tales, that's clearly defined. There are rules. There's a beginning a middle and an end. And when it's over, the story has been resolved that they won. We lost. Next, right? Life's not like that, like of course it's not like that. That's why people get so upset at bad calls because it upsets their sense of equipos -- equilibrium. Wait a minute, how could there be a bit cool? What's wrong with you guys? He just messed up the whole thing. Anyway, all of this contributes to what's going on in our brain chemistry and I'm not kidding. I mean, you ask anybody who loves sports, the Super Bowl at nine o'clock at night Super Bowl Sunday, for the most part, the game will be over 10 o'clock, the latest, boom. A gloom descends upon football nation. That's...that can be dangerous. I mean, people can get really worked up, I don't make the make...make light of the seven stages of grief because it's always associated with death. But in a different sense. It's also about loss -- losing something, you lose that something is gone. So I wanted to go through a couple of the stages of grief and see if you've experienced them so that people who may be feeling them go "Oh, it's not me. Anthony's crazy, too." We're talking about withdrawing from football. As it ends for another season. It's some of them are apropos and some are not. But one of the first stages of a loss is you're shocked. 

Anthony Gargano 
Yeah.

Steve Martorano 
Right, it may sound silly, but like, you know, every season ends, but nevertheless, when when it ends, aren't you hit by like, "What do you mean it's over?"

Anthony Gargano 
Oh, yeah, Oh, yeah. And you start to reach for another one, right? You sit at the bar, like, "Wait a second. Can I get one more game? "Please play one more game." Like, oh, my God, I mean, it's denial. Right? 

Steve Martorano 
Yeah. Yeah. 

Anthony Gargano 
You know, because you started you're going, Okay, wait, we got a game this weekend, right? The Super Bowl wasn't played.?!?! We have another game, please tell me about a game.

Steve Martorano 
Alright, so that's what that's like one of the stages. And so obviously, it applies. The next stage is that, you know, it's a little different than it says pain and guilt. Although the guilt is so much unless you...unless you, you know, have lost a lot of money. But...this third stage is fantastic. The stage of grief. And that's the anger stage where you're angry. 

Anthony Gargano 
I get ornery. I mean, look if people who...and you're all about behavior, right? So when you modify behavior, like if you're a smoker, and you quit smoking, well, you're ornery, right? Like, you know, you're testy. So now you take away my football, and you cut me off at the stop sign or like a traffic light. You know, I'm in a bad way. like, "Yo, dude, you know, it's bad enough about football, and they cut me off. C'mon. 


Steve Martorano 
That's great...it's a great tip for those of you who listen to sports radio. Be careful calling in after Super Bowl in March Madness, because those guys don't suffer fools. Lightly anyway, if you're allowed to run into a buzzsaw -- anger. And then of course there is depression, which is like the fifth, fourth or fifth stage of grief. So how down do you get? 

Anthony Gargano 
Yes, very...sleep more. Okay. All right. Ah, I have that remorse. I don't want to do anything. Right. I'm not smiling. I find everything to be a chore...

Steve Martorano 
Daddy's sleeping. Daddy's sleeping. Daddy's been saving since Tuesday. What? Get up! Right. You sleep more. Loneliness.

Anthony Gargano 
Yes. Yeah. I mean, look, it's it is a companion, right? Thursday Night Football. Sunday all day. Monday Night Football. There is a companion to this...like... Listen, how many guys right? You're working guy? Come home, right Do your thing your family. And then you retreat? Right, you retreat into just a game. And there...oh my God, Steve, one of my favorite stories -- now, it's not football, but the same thing applies. There was a guy who was suffering from deep depression. There was a piece in Esquire magazine. And the guy found comfort in Brent Musburger's voice and he would...he would watch Big 12 college basketball, right? Just so we can hear Brent Musburger come into his living room. And it was like Brent Musburger was putting a blanket on. 

Steve Martorano 
And it lifted him out of his depression, right?

Anthony Gargano 
Yes. 

Steve Martorano 
Incredible. It doesn't surprise me it really doesn't. Be because again, as we said, this is something we're heavily invested in. The other thing that's interesting about this process is how addictive the behavior is. When you watch a football game, addictive behavior is characterized by a lot of things, one of which is strict adherence to certain rituals. That's what you do. 

Anthony Gargano 
Yep. 

Steve Martorano 
Are you a...do you watch a game in a certain way, all the time?

Anthony Gargano 
Yeah, I do. I do. I have...I have my Sunday morning routine, which includes all...I like to, you know, I love to read about the games I love to kind of look a -- and then there's like the fantasy and the whole betting and you're kind of looking at the games and trying to suss them all out, right. And then I like I'm an incessant note taker. So even games that I don't -- that don't involve the Eagles, I will write notes about oh, look at this player. And I'll do all that stuff. And then there are times when I'll have the kids with me, right? I try to bribe them. So "Hey, Anthony, I got a bag of Doritos, right? Would you come to watch the game with me? There's some ice cream, here. Stromboli." And so they're like...I can have the warmth of the children, right, around me like...I and...We had the whole family. During that weekend that you talked about that incredible weekend that postseason culminated with Chase Bills. I had Tam right chose my wife. It was the kids, and we were all in the living room. And it was so cozy, Steve. We're enjoying it. I'm doing my rituals. And the added benefit was the warmth of family. And now it's over. Now it's cold. Now I feel naked in the corner.

Steve Martorano 
It's like the end of The Truman Show. Never click what? What else is on? There's nothing on. Football in gone. After the Super Bowl, this show will be on the air -- on our website, The Behavioral Corner, the Tuesday after the Super Bowl, and we will be floating...free-floating in this cloud of nothingness, which is really depressing. Finally, as you go through these stages, apparently you reach some kind of resolution and some kind of acceptance. When does that happen for you? When -- when can you see the next season come?

Anthony Gargano 
Okay, so the draft is a big piece of it. Right? So I...so I did...here's how it works. I'm miserable through February. And then the combine comes like toward the end of the month. Right?

Steve Martorano 
Anthony lives in the combine. I thought the combine was farm equipment. I thought it was a piece of farm equipment. Every year you go, "You're ready for...you ready for the combine? Tell me about the combine.

Anthony Gargano 
So you have all these kids working out for the draft. You know, it's guys in shorts, right? Guy's in their underwear. The underwear Olympics, right? So you have that. They do have March Madness, right? And then you have like the start of baseball right. Spring. There's newness blossoming. So that's...uplift your spirit. And then you have the draft. And that's fun. And after the draft, you're in May. Now your mind's thoughts to, you know, spring, summer, and then training camp.

Steve Martorano 
Ohhhhh.

Anthony Gargano 
And the cycle continues.

Steve Martorano 
So you can...that's...that's when...it's interesting enough. Interestingly enough, it seems to me that what you're describing is to reach the acceptance portion of the process. You need to see the renewal coming. You can't I mean, God forbid one day they say that's it. There's no football ever. That will be a tough one to swallow. Well, anyway, I know we've been through this not only professionally but personally together. We drove back from Jacksonville. 

Anthony Gargano 
Yes!

Steve Martorano 
We drove down and then we had to live with that. That wasn't any fun. So we know what we're talking about. Anthony, a minute or two left. A couple of things for guys listening, particularly guys, but women too, you know, make sure they're ready for this. What's the...what's the first thing they should do when the game ends?

Anthony Gargano
Alright, the game ends and you got to pick a handful of games to watch. Old...you talk about old games to watch. You talk about old games...I'm a big believer in those, right?So one of the fun...one of the fun things is in your mind to pick 10 games that you want to do. Now we're blessed with YouTube, right? And YouTube's amazing, and so and, and it can,...it can be any game you want. right? So...but go and pick 10 games, and think about right think about football. Think about the games you want to watch. Write them down. Right? And so that'll take you to bed. And so then when you wake up on Monday, all right. And it's horrible. You could start watching one game a night. Don't watch...don't go crazy and watch three old games in one day. Right? You're... you're burned out. You don't want to do that. You just go, walk, boom, boom. And then slowly you wean yourself off.

Steve Martorano 
That's a great idea. And it'll confirm in your wife or your significant other's mind once and for all that you've lost you, your mind your, your marbles. Every time, I'll tell you real quickly, every time, my wife -- and it's happened many times -- sees me watching Secretariat win the Belmont Stakes she goes, "One day you'll tell me why you keep watching that." And I go, "You'll never get it." Anyway...

Anthony Gargano 
What is it? Let me ask you real quick. Why can men watch things over and over again? Movies. TV shows. Like I can...you know...you and I always talked about the Godfather, and how we could watch the Godfather, you know, whatever. We'll watch half a dozen times a year.

Steve Martorano 
Yeah, I'll tell you what somebody told me about the Grateful Dead. Which I didn't quite...I love the Dead, but I'm not a Dead Head. 

Anthony Gargano 
Right.

Steve Martorano 

"How many times have you seen them?"

They'd say, "400 times."

"The same band 400 times."

"Yeah. Why?"

"Don't they get boring?"

They would always say back to me. "Do you like baseball?"

"Yeah."

"Games always the same, isn't it, except the outcomes are different?"

Anthony Gargano 
Wow.

Steve Martorano 
Guys... guys...guys like things that they like. It's really comforting because you know how it's gonna work out. And you know, the Godfather is a great example. It's perfect. That's why I like a horse races. It's perfect. 

Anthony Gargano 
Perfect. 

Steve Martorano 
So is my friend for those of you in the area I know you know -- 97.5 The Fanatic -- middays. He's on the air 10 o'clock. And he's, as I said, a great friend. And thank you for doing this.

Anthony Gargano 
Oh my God. I thank you for asking. Anytime I get to hang out with Steve Martorano is a great night.

Steve Martorano 
Well, anything bothering you -- let me know. You hear voices, you know? Any...he hears voices for a living. He's okay. Anthony Gargano, The 'Cuz. Thank you so much, my brother. 

Anthony Gargano 
Love you, brother.

Steve Martorano 
Thank you, guys. Don't forget to follow us all those places we're supposed to be followed -- Facebook, Instagram, all that stuff. Like us. He's supposed to be able to like us. And we'll be...we'll be at you next time on The Behavioral Corner.

Synergy Health Programs 
Millions of Americans are negatively affected daily by their mental health. Retreat has served the community for over ten years, offering comprehensive mental health programming through our mental health division, Synergy Health Programs. To learn more about Synergy, please reach out today at 855-802-6600. 

The Behavioral Corner 
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