BONUS EP |Drugs, Addiction, Trauma, and Natural Recovery | Michael Galipeau

The Social Exchange

We wish you a HAPPY NEW YEAR!

In the spirit of overcoming difficult times, I'm sharing an interview that I conducted with a man named Michael Galipeau (AKA Mikey G)-- the interview was a segment of the LPP Podcast (which you should check out on YouTube or audio podcast)

Mikey was raised in a state-run institution which was traumatic in and of itself and led to years of homelessness and a lot of destructive-- even suicidal-- behavior.

He also developed a relationship with legal and illegal drugs-- drugs he used as coping mechanisms.

But Mikey doesn't tell a "the drugs hijacked my brain" story.

In fact, he believes that drugs probably saved his life, and there were many times through the course of his life that he used illegal drugs responsibly. There were also times that he used drugs destructively.

He says he is "recovered" by which he doesn't mean "no longer doing dugs" but that his life was once out-of-balance but is now more-or-less balanced and is one full of meaning, purpose and connection.

Once homeless and down on his luck, Mikey is now:

- Co-Producer New York Harvest Festival and Cannabis Freedom Rally Recovery Advocate Dutchess County Behavioral and Community Health Department

- CEO, MG Consulting

- MSW Intern, Urban Survivors Union

- Executive Consultant, Tennessee Recovery Alliance

- New York State Lead, Recovery Advocacy Project

- Trainer and Co-author, Recovery Coaching A Harm Reduction Pathway

- Co-Founder and CEO, Heady Krew Productions.

Enjoy this story, and let your new years resolutions reflect Mikey's. My suggestion: rather than being a slave to a series of prohibitions.

INSTEAD OF "I won't drink"; "I won't eat sugar"; "I won't be an angry person" (all of which have merit and probably have utility in many lives)....

TRY "I will form a healthy relationship with alcohol"; "I will develop a healthful eating routine"; "I will find greater joy in life"

Happy New Year! Enjoy this incredible story with my new friend Mikey G.