Season 1 of Life Focus

Every day six thousand American women enter it. It’s not a sweepstakes, a day spa or the price club! It’s menopause, a scary, sometimes difficult “life change” that every woman must face. The good news is that life doesn’t end at menopause, but recognizing its symptoms can be tricky. On this edition of Life Focus, we’ll meet three women who have faced menopause with grace, adventure and humor.

Brian Bercht was not looking to cheat on his wife after 18 years of marriage, yet intimate talks with a co-worker threatened his whole world. On this edition of Life Focus, active cheaters and those who have come through an affair reveal the enticing and dangerous roller coaster ride of adultery.

After the Gulf Coast was hit by Hurricane Katrina, many kinds of markings were left on the abandoned buildings, telling the story of the tragedies the hurricane left in its wake. "One Dead in Attic" was written on the door of 72-year-old Thomas Coleman, the grandfather of 21-year-old Stacey Howard. The last Stacey saw of him was the night she took food and water to her grandparent's home. Her grandfather sent everyone away so he could protect his home in the 9th ward. Stacey represents just one person still devastated financially and emotionally from Katrina. In just one weekend, everything she had known—her home, family, friends and neighborhood—disappeared. We’ll meet just a few faces of those displaced and still looking for home—a year after the hurricane hit. You will be struck by how resilient the human spirit is, even when experiencing life's deepest sorrows.

With over 105 million members, "myspace" is literally one of the biggest hits on the internet. But as the popularity of this teen social networking site grows, so do the crimes such as sexual exploitation, kidnapping and even murder. Rochelle and Larry Lee of Seattle Washington were terrorized when their 14-year old daughter was encouraged to leave home through a friend she made on a popular teen website. It's a tragedy that they thought could never happen to them.

Undocumented workers come to America to seek the American dream but instead find hostility. They live in fear and choose to do so because they say their options are few. In this program of Life Focus, we’ll take a look at this fear in the eyes of Latin women who say their journey to America is only half the struggle.

Ron Hicks is a lifer behind the walls of the Louisiana State Penitentiary. Although many of those on the outside say he deserves his sentence for the crime he committed, Warden Burl Cain believes that a life time is too long a time to live without any hope. Hicks along with many other prisoners participate in intense programs that Warden Cain has implemented— programs that involve a rigorous daily routine requiring hard work and intense study. The difference this program has made on those living here has caused other state prisons to take notice. In this episode of Life Focus, we will shed light on the inner workings on the Louisiana State Penitentiary—a facility dedicated not just incarceration but to rehabilitation.

Heather Veitch became a stripper in 1995 when she was 21 years old. She made $1,200 to $2,000 a night, appeared in four soft-core and fetish films and lived life on the wild side. Born in Los Angeles and raised in Muscoy, a town of 9,000 people in San Bernardino County, Veitch grew up skinny, poor and sad. "I was the girl from the wrong side of the tracks," she said, recalling how she was teased by her peers and raped by family members. Soon Heather found herself in a job that paid well, but that encouraged and fed on her low-self esteem. In this episode, we’ll meet those in the strip-club culture who feel trapped in hopeless circumstances, unable to leave their high-paying jobs in the sex industry, but wishing they could.

Immediately after dying in a car accident nearly fifteen years ago, Don Piper went to heaven. EMT's on the scene determined he had been killed instantly after a semi had swerved into his lane, crushing him inside his car. But Piper was unaware of the chaos swirling around his body on earth-he knew only that he was surrounded by loved ones and friends, magnificent light, a sense of pure peace and the most glorious music he had ever heard. He was deemed dead for almost 90 minutes. Yet through remarkable events, Piper was revived. In this program, we'll hear his account and the accounts of others who tell of their remarkable journey back from beyond.

Nearly 20% of Americans are addicted to something, whether it’s food, gambling, drugs or alcohol. What often starts out as pleasure in these activities or with these substances usually ends in pain. In this episode of Life Focus, we'll take a look at the lives of people who live everyday with the shame and secrecy of having uncontrollable, destructive cravings and how they beat their addictions.

Nearly 25 years ago, Susan Schumake of Carbondale, Illinois was murdered while walking across her college campus. In addition to the few clues that the killer left behind was a great deal of pain and devastation. But two people never gave up on tracking the killer: Police Captain Paul Echols, inspired by his faith, and John Schumake, motivated by his love for his sister. Through this tale of twists and turns, Life Focus uncovers how the killer was caught and brought to justice nearly a quarter of a century later.

After an eight year marriage, Andrea and Chris decided to pursue their dream of starting a family, but after years of unsuccessful attempts, their hopes were fading away. With a persistent strong desire to have a child, they looked into traditional adoption but all attempts failed. Just when they were about to give up, another option was presented: Embryo Adoption. This is a story about the journey through this relatively new procedure and some of the issues that surround the 400,000 frozen embryos left over from successful in-vitro fertilizations.

Step into the minds of killers and rapists through the eyes of Former FBI agent Roger DePue. On this edition of Life Focus, we’ll see how the dark side of life led him to a life journey to understand the absolute nature of good and evil.

Michael Franzese has been described as one of the most powerful Mafia bosses in America….until he fell in love with Camille Garcia, a young woman who convinced him to turn himself in. This meant imprisonment and could have cost him his life, but today he lives to tell about it.

In this episode of Life Focus, we follow the Jacobs’ family. Two parents that love their children, and work hard to provide for their needs and their wants. But see how there lives were torn apart by incident that made child protection services step in.

Society is consumed by appearance and for some the struggle to be thin has become a sickness that eats away at the body, mind and soul. In this episode of Life Focus, we’ll journey through the lives of women who share the pains of dealing with eating disorders, and we’ll see their fight to recover.

In this episode of Life Focus, we’ll take a look at the modern dating scene, including 8-minute dating, video dating, want ads, and the Internet. What are the trends in finding the “right one”?

Today’s generation of children are believed to have a shorter life expectancy than their parents due the ever increasing epidemic of obesity. It’s an unbelievable fact that’s having obese teenagers look into a surgical solution. On this edition of Life Focus, we look at the lives of those who are having life-altering weight loss surgery so they can finally lose weight.

Teenage years are some of the most difficult years of a person’s life. No longer a child, and not yet an adult, it can be a time when parents never seem to understand, and when one thinks they know everything. It’s also a time when many teens feel alone and vulnerable and reach out to anyone who they think is on their side but as Life Focus found out with the Ryan family of Jones, Michigan, it can be a very dangerous time as well.

World-wide, on any given day, nearly 100 million children are homeless. Though life on the streets is dangerous, often times, it can be safer than the abusive homes these children are fleeing. Forced to fend for themselves, street-involved youth struggle to overcome poverty, isolation, unemployment and hopelessness. Take a journey as you hear about their struggle to survive.

Multiple Sclerosis is a silent disease and many people who have it, may not even know. In this episode of Life Focus, we examine the lives of two remarkable women who have MS but live their lives with one goal in mind---to let people know there is hope after being diagnosed with MS.

Child abuse and neglect have reached epidemic levels in our world today. On this edition of Life Focus, first we speak with author David Pelzer, a victim of life-threatening child abuse. We also get a look at the role foster parenting plays in the life of an abused or neglected child.

George Foreman won the Olympic gold in 1968 and became the world heavyweight boxing champion twice. But what is it that drives men like Foreman to succeed in sports and business? On this episode of Life Focus, you may be surprised to learn that the forces that once drove George Foreman to win at all costs, have changed.

For most, Christmas is a time for getting together with families. On Christmas morning, its about finding beautifully wrapped presents under a tinsel-laden tree. In short, it’s the season to be jolly. But for many people, Christmas looks a lot more like work than it does a holiday. The pressure of picking the perfect gift, finding the perfect tree, and entertaining with perfection turns Christmas into a season of dread. In this episode of Life Focus, we’ll see how those once stressed with the Christmas season are learning to cope.

The beauty of the backdrop of Vancouver’s beautiful mountain range and ocean is shaded by its dark reputation. It’s a place where drug trade is kept alive by prostitution, killing the souls and the spirits of the women and the men who participate in it. In this episode of Life Focus, we’ll meet prostitutes who are trying to seek a better way of life.

A look at the plight of Mexican immigrants in the United States. Learn how they come looking for a better life and how they struggle to get one.