Podcast Summary

Holmberg's Morning Sickness – Arizona’s #1 Morning Radio Show

Episode Date: February 24, 2026
Hosts: John Holmberg, Brady Bogen, Brett Vesely, Larry, and Dick Toledo
Main Topics:

• Obama’s podcast comments about aliens
• John Holmberg’s recent eye health crisis, retinal surgery, and PSA about eye care

Episode Overview

This episode is equal parts irreverent morning show banter and serious health cautionary tale. Back after missing a week (and episodes) due to emergency eye surgery, host John Holmberg delivers a graphic, honest, and darkly comedic recounting of his retinal detachment, using it as a soapbox to urge listeners to get their eyes checked. The team also riffs on President Obama’s casual mention of aliens on a recent podcast and how our culture’s reaction to such extraordinary revelations has changed.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Holmberg’s Absence & Health Crisis

[01:09-44:00, 53:10-68:10]

• Why John Was Gone: Holmberg recaps the past week, revealing he was dealing with a major retinal detachment in his right eye that required immediate surgery.
• Symptoms & Denial:
  • Describes “floaters”—visual disturbances that looked like gnats—which he ignored for days.
  • “Typical guy move, dude move: it doesn’t hurt, this can’t be bad.” [14:41]
• The Progression:
  • Mistook flashes of light and fogginess for a migraine.
  • Vision worsened dramatically—described as looking through a “lava lamp.”
  • By the time he checked one eye, he realized “90% no vision in that eye… it was an eclipse.” [21:56]
• Hospital & Surgery:
  • ER visit full of wild characters, including a patient with Tourette’s using the N-word loudly [24:00].
  • Immediate surgery needed. Had just eaten Kit Kats in the ER so couldn’t be put under right away.
  • “You need surgery right now… you could very possibly have that retina detach and you’ll never see right again.” [26:19]
• Compounding Losses:
  • Amid all this, Holmberg’s elderly cat had to be put down just hours before surgery. “Crying my eyes out—and I’m not supposed to have any sort of action going on here with my eyes and I’m sobbing.” [28:43]
• The Brutality of Recovery:
  • Forced to lay literally face down, motionless, for 6 days, 24 hours a day, with a gas bubble in his eye to keep the retina in place.
  • “They hand you a paper: 5 to 14 days face down, 24 hours a day. Don’t move.” [31:54]
  • Attempts at humor: “If you’re ever gonna peg me, now’s the time!” (directed at his gay friends, taking advantage of his ‘power bottom’ position—[32:54])
  • “There is no PT, there is no 'this will help.’ Don’t move.” [31:54]

2. Life During Recovery

• Physical & Mental Toll:
  • “Six full days of flat on my face… depression sets in about 10 hours. You can’t. I started thinking about prisoners in isolation. Because I holed up alone. I couldn’t be around the dogs, people, TV, nothing. It is the worst thing I have dealt with in my life as far as any sort of recovery.” [36:06]
  • “You start getting dark thoughts… your brain doesn’t work right.” [38:50]
• Men & Denial:
  • “When there’s no pain, a man doesn’t react. I know that. Women love going to doctors. Men don’t.” [13:35]
• Loss of Simple Joys, Like 'Tugging':
  • “This seven-day stretch...the longest I’ve had without ejaculating in 43 years. Kill me now.” [42:37]
• On Not Moving:
  • “How do you ask somebody like me to just stop moving?” [39:20]
  • “For any reason, I’m not going more than seven days [without masturbating] ever again… Not supposed to do that, but I did.” [52:24]
• Hakuna Matata:
  • Discussion reveals there's no sure cause for retinal tears—could be age, trauma, hypertension, or just bad luck.
  • “Luck of the draw, according to the doctor...You might have gotten hit with a baseball when you were seven.” [39:30]

3. Alien Disclosure Fatigue

[06:17-11:00]

• Obama’s Casual Confession:
  • Obama was asked on a podcast about aliens; he essentially confirmed “Yep, there’s aliens”—and no one cared.
  • Holmberg’s disbelief: “A former President sat in a podcast—‘Oh yeah, there’s aliens, sure'—and nobody said ‘What?’…We’re not amazed at anything anymore.” [06:19]
  • Discusses how the media, public, and politicians have become numb to these extraordinary revelations.
  • Hypothetical: “If Trump said it, we’d have teams of people searching.” [08:38]
  • On slow alien disclosure and prepping the public: “We can’t have Trump doing it… the calm voices have to say, ‘Oh yeah, that’s a thing.’” [10:53]
• Irreverent Jokes:
  • Running gag about “Big Mike” (Michelle Obama conspiracy) and how Obama’s trustworthiness is only diminished by the right’s joke about his wife’s gender.
  • “You don’t have to like his politics, but when Obama talks… that dude’s pretty reliable.” [07:08]

4. Eye Surgery: Facts, Fears, & Freak Facts

[44:00–end]

• What Causes Retinal Tears?
  • No specific culprit—age, trauma, high blood pressure, even too much ‘tugging’ (not really).
• Diabetic and Nearsighted Risk:
  • Listener texts point out that diabetics and nearsighted people are more at risk, but Holmberg’s case was not diabetes-related.
• Listener Interaction:
  • Multiple listeners chime in with their own brutal or ongoing eye surgery stories—some had to do the face down recovery for 14 days or multiple times per year, pushing them to the brink mentally. [46:09+, 53:55+]
  • “Third time I’d kill myself. That ain’t living. You can’t do it.” [55:32]
• Medical Innovations, Dark Humor:
  • Holmberg muses about “Harvest bots” and Elon Musk—wishing he could have his eye placed in a robot for recovery, not himself.[48:53]
  • Explains the “gas bubble” method, in use since the 1920s, and how primitive the early days were.

5. Takeaway: Get Your Eyes Checked

• Holmberg’s Plea:
  • “Go get your eyes checked. Don’t put yourself through…if you can go, go get your eyes looked at.” [14:41, 36:40, 63:03]
  • Encourages even the ‘toughest’ listeners: “Don’t fix your eye, fix your eye. I don’t care. Don’t put yourself in a position to be face down for more than an hour.” [44:46]
  • Listener tip: most eye docs have an Optomap machine—“Checks your retina connections…only cost me $49 with insurance. Worth it.” [62:57]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On Medical Denial & Men

• “Typical guy move, dude move: it doesn’t hurt, this can’t be bad.” (John, 14:41)
• "When there's no pain, a man doesn't react. Women love going to doctors. Men don't." (John, 13:35)

On Obama and Aliens

• “We are not amazed at anything anymore…A former president sat on a podcast—'Oh, yeah, there’s aliens’—and nobody said 'What?'” (John, 06:19)
• “A trusted, calm voice like [Obama] saying ‘Oh, yeah, there are aliens’…we’re three or four more years from now, I’d guess we’re about 30 or 40 years from contact.” (John, 10:53)

On the Nightmare Recovery:

• “They hand you a paper: 5 to 14 days face down, 24 hours a day. Don’t move.” (John, 31:54)
• “Six full days of flat on my face…depression sets in about 10 hours.” (John, 36:06)
• “You start getting dark thoughts…your brain doesn’t work right.” (John, 38:50)
• "For any reason, I'm not going more than seven days [without masturbating] ever again.” (John, 52:24)

On the Absurdity of "Rest as Recovery":

• “The only time you ever hear ‘rest comfortably’ and they mean it is hospice. Whenever you have to recover from something, they’re like, ‘We’re gonna put you in the worst position ever and you can’t move for days.’” (John, 44:46)

On Listeners’ Eye Surgery Horror Stories:

• “If I got told to do this again…there’d be some serious consideration I’m not doing it. I’ll get through that, but it is awful.” (John, 55:33)
• “Take the eye out. Just remove them and start smelling stuff.” (John, 66:49)

On the Human Condition:

• "Face down, ass up is only meant to be for pleasure—and for like, ten minutes at a time, maximum." (John, 56:05)

Important Segment Timestamps

| Time | Topic | |-------------|--------------------------------------------------------------| | 01:09 | John returns, reveals health scare | | 06:17–11:00 | Obama, aliens, and cultural apathy to “otherworldly” news | | 13:35–44:00 | Detailed walkthrough of Holmberg’s retinal tear and surgery | | 31:54 | Face-down, no movement order; mental pain vs. physical pain | | 46:09+ | Listener horror stories, frequency in athletes & diabetics | | 48:53 | Musings on robots & medical innovation | | 53:55 | Worst-case recovery stories, depression, dark humor | | 62:57–63:43 | Eye doctor ‘Optomap’ machine, final PSA for eye care | | 64:20–68:10 | Eye-themed music for the wake-up song |

Takeaways & Final Thoughts

• Holmberg’s ordeal was a wakeup call: He turns his suffering into a PSA, urging listeners not to ignore "floaters," flashes, or eye changes.
• Cultural numbness to bizarre news: The group lampoons the public’s muteness at Obama’s “aliens confirmation,” highlighting how jaw-dropping info can be swallowed by the news cycle.
• Unfiltered honesty and gallows humor: Despite horror stories and mental strain, Holmberg and crew keep the tone comic, relatable, and uniquely HMS.
• Community in suffering: Listeners flooded in with their stories; some listeners survive repeated face-down recoveries, and a dark camaraderie emerges among “retina survivors.”

For Listeners

If you take anything from this episode: If you notice floaters or flashes in your vision, see an eye doctor promptly—don't wait for pain to force you. And yes: Obama really did say there may be aliens.