Joe Rogan rarely holds back, but every now and then, he tells a story that surprises even long-time listeners. On episode #2312 of The Joe Rogan Experience, while speaking with Hollywood actor Jeremy Renner, the UFC commentator revealed something profoundly personal: his experience with painkillers following surgery. It’s not the type of chat that typically generates headlines, but Rogan’s admission was brutally honest and all too real for many. He described a decision he took in his early thirties that left him feeling out of control, muddled, and—in his own words—”stupid.”
The story goes back to 1993, following his knee surgery. Like most patients, the JRE host was given pain medication—he believes it was Percocet or Vicodin—but the instant he took it, he felt something was wrong. “I took it one time, and I felt so bad,” he stated. “I remember being in my apartment in New York, just feeling so dumb and just thinking, ‘I’d rather be in pain.’” That one dose was sufficient. The next day, he decided he didn’t want to deal with it anymore. In classic Rogan fashion, the story took a wild turn, with him selling the remaining pills to a shady acquaintance from the pool hall. “He had a bandana, long hair, a total hippie. He always sold drugs,” Rogan said, laughing. “I sold them to him. He says, “I’ll take it; what do you got?’”
The moment, however, stayed with him for the rest of his life. A decade later, in 2003, Joe Rogan underwent another knee reconstruction—this time on the other knee. Only now, he wasn’t interested in any sort of pharmaceutical help. No opioids, no anti-inflammatories, nothing. “I didn’t take anything,” he informed Rener. “I’m just like, ‘I don’t want nothing. I’m just going to deal with it.’” When Rener asked if he considered something milder, such as anti-inflammatories, the JRE host responded, “I didn’t even take that stuff… You’re going to be in pain no matter what. It’s just going to dull it a little bit. I’d rather feel it all than just get accustomed to it.”
MMA: UFC 274 – Weigh Ins, May 6, 2022 Phoenix, Arizona, USA UFC announcer Joe Rogan during weigh ins for UFC 274 at the Arizona Federal Theatre. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports, 06.05.2022 15:07:43, 18218608, NPStrans, UFC, Joe Rogan, MMA PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xMarkxJ.xRebilasx 18218608
Some may find Rogan’s point of view too aggressive, yet the underlying message is difficult to deny. His narrative reflects something very real: how rapidly pain medications, even when prescribed, may take individuals down the wrong path. Millions of people in the United States have developed prescription narcotic addictions. Joe Rogan’s decision to say “no” may not appeal to everyone, but it is certainly based on personal experience. In a world where addiction often starts slow, his narrative feels like a warning and a wake-up call—one that many people may benefit from hearing. However, it is worth noting that Joe Rogan isn’t just strictly against such chemically made pain medications; he is equally against marijuana after his really bad experience with it.
When smoking pot gave a major fear to Joe Rogan
That wake-up call Rogan spoke about? It isn’t restricted to pills. Despite his strong position against pain medicine, Joe Rogan admits to having experimented, just not with what most people would think. Marijuana, a narcotic that many in the creative community regard as harmless or even beneficial, proved to be his own version of a lesson. While some swear by it to relax or inspire creativity, the JRE host had a quite different experience with it. If anything, weed didn’t give him an escape. It gave him fear.
He revealed this in a recent conversation with fellow comic Bobby Lee, as the two discussed Pablo Francisco’s untimely death. Joe Rogan had originally envisioned Francisco as a future comic titan—someone with incredible talent and enormous potential. But narcotics threw him off course. And that’s when Rogan confessed something surprisingly honest: he was fortunate that marijuana was the only thing he ever leaned into. It scared him straight, not because it helped him. It shook him up, made him apprehensive, and took away his sense of boldness. “It was the opposite of giving me courage,” Rogan explained. “It made me feel like courage was foolish.”
In a bizarre way, that discomfort may have saved him. The UFC commentator refers to marijuana as a “courage killer,” almost with relief rather than remorse. It stripped him down, made him hyper-aware, even paranoid—and that feeling, as awful as it was, may have been what kept him from going farther. He never romanticizes it in the same way that other artists or performers do. Marijuana wasn’t Joe Rogan’s muse. It was a mirror. One that didn’t flatter but revealed. And maybe that’s why he talks about it so openly—it didn’t numb him. It woke him up.
The post “I’d Rather Be in Pain”: Joe Rogan Confesses Regret Behind “Dumb” Decision After His Knee Surgery appeared first on EssentiallySports.
