I’m on the Pain Train’: Dana Carvey opens up about son's tragic death as he makes heartfelt return to podcast

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Dana Carvey, the former 'Saturday Night Live' star, has spoken publicly for the first time since his son Dex died of an accidental overdose in November.

He joined his friend and fellow 'SNL' alum David Spade on their podcast 'Fly on the Wall,' where he thanked fans for their support and shared how he and his family are coping with the loss.

Dana Carvey says the podcast is a ‘great break’ from grief

Carvey decided to resume the podcast after taking a break from work and social media following his son’s death.

"I thought about this over the holidays and decided to come back to the podcast because I think, you know, it’s a long day when you’re not working and you get in your head," Carvey shared.

He said that doing the show with Spade would help him get out of his head and laugh.

“I think it’s going to be a great break, and I think it’s really cool to laugh,” he said.

Spade agreed and said that he also received a lot of love for Carvey and his family, including a letter from Chris Farley’s mother.

Farley was another 'SNL' star who died of an overdose in 1997. 

A few days later, Carvey confirmed he would be taking a break from acting and social media in the wake of the family’s tragedy.

 

“[We are] trying to figure out what life looks like now that we are a family of three,” he wrote in a post shared with X.

“We will heal the best we can and carry on. Our darling Dex would have wanted it that way.” 

Spade said that no one knows how to deal with such tragedies, but he was glad to do the show again with Carvey.

Dana Carvey opens up about his ‘private journey’ with his family

Carvey said that he and his wife Paula Zwagerman and their younger son Thomas, 31, are on a “private journey” as they grieve for Dex, who was 32 when he died.

He said that they are doing a lot of fun things together, such as hiking and going to church. “You just want to make sure you keep moving,” as Fox News reported

He also said that he appreciated the “outpouring” of support from his fans, but there was nothing that anyone else could do for him and his family.

He said that he was still “on the pain train” with millions of other people who have suffered losses.

“And you don’t know how long you’re going to be on it or when it will stop or when it will get better. But in the meantime, all of this kind of stuff is very healthy,” he said.

Carvey said he feels healthy with Spade as he asks him to ‘move on’ 

Carvey and Spade, who have been friends since their 'SNL' days, said that they were happy to be back on the podcast and riff with each other.

"Doing this and riffing with you is going to be very healthy for me as I recover..." Carvey added.

Even amid the grief, Carvey said that being on the podcast was "kind of stuff is very healthy.”

“Things in life happen, but we can move on,” Spade said.