Proud Voices

This week's guest, Allyn's energy is infectious as she chats about how to keep a positive attitude while being uncomfortable in early recovery. She takes a deep dive into some existential questions such as: How do we measure success? How do we work through our personal struggles in sobriety? How do we stay honest with ourselves and others? Allyn has been sober since 1/4/2022.

This week's guest Joey heard about Pride Institute through a support meeting at the age of 16. He first started using at 10 years old. One thing that is immediately apparent when hearing Joey's story is the optimism he's gained from his sobriety. Joey has been sober since June 2, 2021. 

This week's guest, Jacob, had gone to AA meetings for years prior to attending treatment for the first time. He came to Pride after his family did an intervention with him on what he thought was his uncle's funeral. Jacob got sober on January 18, 2022. 

Terry has been to Pride four times. The first time was after he graduated from college in the 90s when meth was still kind of new to the queer community. As the years went by he saw the drug begin to consume the community, his friends, and even himself. Terry speaks about career loss, financial devastation, homelessness, and how he was able to survive through sobriety. Terry has been sober since August 8th, 2021.  

This week's guest, Pinki, came to Pride from Seattle, Washington. A Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselor (LADC) by background, Pinki was working as a Case Manager when he had a six month relapse during the pandemic. Pinki also struggles with Bi-polar disorder and talks at length about the co-occurring disorders and poly-use as a means of self medication. Pink has been sober since May 24, 2021.

This week's guest, Miles, felt out of place when he first came to Pride Institute back in 2013. He was addicted to Adderall, a substance he used to treat his body dysmorphia, when most of the other clients used meth. He remembers others in the community telling him, "If you like Adderall, you better stay away from Meth," and while he never intended on using meth, it wasn't until a few years after his first stint in treatment that he found his new vice. Miles has been sober since September 9, 2021. 

This week's guest, Jenny, struggles with patellofemoral syndrome, a knee condition due to cartilage damage. To manage the pain, she was prescribed Percocet, in addition to the Vicodin she was already taking, and before she knew it; one pill turned into two, turned into four, and eventually turned into 30 to 50 pills a day. Jenny came to Pride twice, the first time to get sober, and the second to taper off of suboxone. She has been clean and sober since 2017. 

This week's guest, Shana, found out about Pride Institute from a fellow inmate while serving an eight-month sentence in prison. Following her release from Prison, Shana continued to use for the next year or so before finally admitting to our program. She credits the program, the sober connections she's managed to make, and her 96-year-old grandmother who she describes as being the most godful inspiration in her life. Shana has been sober for five years.  

This week's guest, Mal, has battled with both substance use addiction, as well as an eating disorder. Her eating disorder started at the age of 14, and she had her first drink at 16. The two went hand-in-hand starting around the age of 16 until eventually, she sought treatment 12 years later. Mal has been sober since January 26, 2016.

Jay first started using meth when he was 38 years and heard about Pride from someone he was using with at the time. Having spent several years working in the entertainment theatre scene, he describes his drug use as being one of the few things he could use to silence the noise that surrounded him. He has been sober since April 1, 2019.

Connor describes his twenties as being a period of time that was intoxicating in many ways. Having lived in cities like Chicago, Los Angeles, and Washington D.C, he realizes many of his relationships were centered around drinking, superficiality, and a lack of sober people in his life. Like so many before him, Connor struggled with relapse, and talks about how he used to stop at liquor stores on his way home from outpatient treatment. Today, he does his best not to focus on external factors like "living in the cool neighborhood" or staying busy just to stay busy. Instead, he tries to focus on inner peace and connection to oneself. Connor has been sober since February 11, 2021.

This week's guest, Eddie has been to 55 treatment centers. Previously, Eddie worked as a teacher and basketball coach for a catholic school in Maryland  where he was named teacher of the year. He describes his relationship with drugs as a solution to a problem he couldn't find. Eddie has been sober since May 22, 2021. 

This week's guest, Jim, is the CEO of one of the country's top addiction treatment centers. Jim grew up in New York and came out in 1981 at 15. A survivor of childhood sexual assault, Jim began using at a very early age and first came to Pride in 1996 and again in 1999 after a relapse and arrest. Through humor, humility, and community service, Jim has captured 23 years of sobriety. He got sober on February 5th, 1999. 

This week's guest, John, was first introduced to crystal meth through his boyfriend. In a three-year span, he lost his partner to an overdose, his mom to natural causes, and his best friend to suicide. While John has had many "downs" in his life, he lives today focusing on the "ups." Today, John is newly married, works a job he likes, and actively gives back to charities he is passionate about. John's sobriety date is August 13, 2017. 

This week's guest is Ryan Berg, Program Manager of Avenues for Youth, a Minneapolis-based non-profit, which for more than 25 years has supported homeless youth ages 16 through 24 in Hennepin County. Berg is also an author and wrote the non-fiction work No House to Call My Home: Love, Family, and other Transgressions off of his experience working as a caseworker in a group home for disowned LGBTQ teenagers in New York City. If you'd like to make a donation visit avenuesforyouth.org or call them at 612-522-1690.

This week's guest, Beck Gee-Cohen is the Director of LGBTQIA+ Programming at Visions Teen in Malibu, California. Beck is a master's level clinician and has worked in the mental health and substance use field for over ten years in various capacities (including supervisor of Pride Institute's Intensive Outpatient Program.) He talks about the unique challenges queer adolescents face today and how awesome Gen-Z is. 

This week's guest, Patrick, didn't have his first drink until he was 21 and went through seven treatments (two of which were at Pride) before he got sober. He considers himself a "black-out drinker" and was recently diagnosed with Asperger's, a form of Autism Spectrum Disorder, and talks about the relief he felt post-diagnosis and how it may have contributed to his substance use. Patrick is just shy of seven years sober. 

Wright was born in Texas and struggled with his sexual identity growing up. He came to Pride from Denver, a more diverse city, in 2016 after his boss in Corporate America had given him the ultimatum between going to treatment or being terminated. To this day, he credits his boss as being a massive factor in his getting sober. Having gone through relapse and a few treatments in between, Wright returned to Pride and has been sober since October 2019. 

Tom has been in and out of recovery for the last 32 years and lives in New York City. Tom was able to string together 10 years of sobriety before his first relapse, garnering two master's degrees along the way. Tom came to Pride having never really addressed his sexuality in prior treatment stints. He noted "The Velvet Rage" as being a book that was instrumental in his sobriety, going as far as to say, "it was the first time in his life where he felt seen." Tom has been sober since September 21, 2014. 

This week's guest, Marc, talks about the paranoia of addiction, the stigma and shame of experiencing homelessness, and addiction's toll on loved ones. A professional truck driver, Marc, talks about the primarily male-dominated, heteronormative standards he has to live up to in his profession and has to hide from most of the time. Mark has been sober since November 28, 2020.

Rachel describes her drug use as having created a numbness she had been seeking her whole life. Before treatment, she was homeless, living out of a storage unit in Fargo, North Dakota, and in full psychosis. Temporarily estranged from her daughter, Rachel now refers to her daughter as her best friend. She got sober on December 9th, 2020.

Matt and James from the Aliveness Project share what their organization can offer to the community, who can access their services, benefits of harm reduction and syringe exchanges, combatting shame and stigma for people living with HIV, safe sex and how someone can start on PrEP. 

Gavin got sober from drugs in his early 20's before relapsing later on alcohol. He came to Pride from Atlanta, Georgia, having lived in several different places throughout the United States, because he wanted to be surrounded by other queer folks. He decided to stay in Minnesota post treatment because of the thriving LGBTQIA+ recovery community. Gavin has been sober since November, 2015.

Rodney, a former school teacher, first picked up drugs in 2008, and after having spent several years sober, relapsed at the start of the pandemic. An IV user, Rodney speaks of the instant relief he was able to get from his use, as well as the eventual consequences. He talks about ego, the armor we put up, and the spiritual components of recovery. Rodney has been sober since May 25, 2020. 

This week's episode features Pride Institute Director of Clinical Services Todd Connaughty, who was recently named Supervisor of the Year by the Minnesota Association of Resources for Recovery in Chemical Health (MARRCH). Connaughty discusses the importance of culturally competent care, minority stress theory, struggles the LGBTQIA+ community still faces today, and tips for how other organizations can be more inclusive. Connaughty has been with Pride Institute for 16 years. 

Will came to Minnesota from Washington D.C. and went through Pride twice; the first time for alcohol and opioid use in 2015, and the second for Chrystal meth in 2017. He talks about imposter syndrome, ego, judgement, and the hopelessness of early recovery. Most importantly, having failed taught Will how to succeed. Will has been sober since October 8, 2017.

This week's guest, Howard, grew up in a religious family that taught him to hate his queerness. He talks about internalized homophobia, peer pressure to drink in order to fit in, and social anxiety of bars. Howard has been sober for just shy of three years.

Kathy Jo had her first drink when she was 8 years old because she wanted to get drunk like the grown ups, and found herself in her hometown jail at age 12 for public drinking. She refers to herself as a "blackout drinker" and craved the feeling she got after having a third drink. She recognized fairly early on she was different, but having grown up in a small town, didn't know being a lesbian was a possibility. Kathy Jo become sober on January 4th, 1980. 

Tom started drinking heavily when he was in college and continued to throughout the rest of his early adult life. He came through Pride's doors in 1987 and expected a prison-like atmosphere, but was pleasantly surprised to see for the first time in his life, LGBTQIA+ people living out loud authentically during the HIV/AIDS crisis of the 1980's. Tom got sober on October 3rd, 1987.

This week's guest, Ross, identifies as Queer and demisexual, which means only feeling sexually attracted to someone with whom they have an emotional bond. Ross came to Pride from New York City with zero dollars in his bank account. His drug of choice was meth, which he notes helped him have intense spiritual, emotional, and physical connections with others. He discusses the Party & Play scene (also known as chemsex), the era of HIV disclosure and the stigma that came with having a positive status, and the importance of “bumper sticker” sayings in recovery. Ross is currently pursuing his Master's in Counseling Psychology. He became sober on February 3, 2009.

This week's guest, John, became intertwined with Pride by attending the “famous” Friday night AA meetings at our residential location. Through this, he was able to network with other liked-minded people who were both members of the LGBTQIA community and sober. John speaks about his first experiences drinking, which involved going to the hospital to get his stomach pumped, and the stigma of growing up gay in a heteronormative society. John has been sober since 2001. 

This week's guest, David, is a medical professional who at one point in time had his practice suspended due to his substance use. Growing up, he always thought being a man meant having a nice house, a good job, and a drink in his hand. He talks about the social pressures of drinking and how it made him feel more accepted by his peers at school, as well as his family. David is currently a Medical Director at Twin Cities-based behavioral health organization and has been sober since April 9, 2018.

This weeks guest, Jeremy, discusses what life was like growing up gay in a roman catholic family in New Orleans, where gay life is centered around Bourbon Street and bars are safe havens for gay men. Jeremy touches on staying sober in a new city, how to disengage from previous survival skills, and what sober fun looks like for him today. Jeremy has a little over two years of sobriety under his belt. 

Alex came through Pride's doors in 2019, which he describes as the deepest, darkest time of his life, having sought treatment while simultaneously operating an addiction treatment center in North Dakota. He discusses his childhood trauma, the importance of family, relapse, 12-step meetings, and maintaining his sobriety during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

AJ discusses her experience with how legal trouble, her relationship with her wife, internalized homophobia, bullying, microaggressions, and living a double in life small college town impacted her use. She touches on what clicked at an LGBTQ+ specific treatment and how that changed her perspective about being apart of the LGBTQ+ recovery community.  AJ has been sober since 9/17/2017. 

This week's guest, Duane, talks about how his spiritual upbringing left him trying to fill an emptiness by overeating, drinking, or having sex. Duane talks about his dual substance use disorder and eating disorder, along with his bout with homelessness, joblessness, heartbreak, and mending relationships with his family. Duane became sober on March 13, 2020.

This episode features the “rebel priest” Father Harry Hartigan of St Theresa's Catholic Apostolic Church. Harry talks about his involvement spiritually counseling members of the LGBTQ+ community, the difference between his church and the Roman Catholic Church, his experience as a gay man and the lack of visibility for older people in the community.

Trevor is a well-known Twin Cities-based drag performer and hair stylist who sought treatment after living a fast-paced lifestyle in New York City. Trevor channels his "inner Oprah" and talks about his experience working in bar scenes while sober, queer people's desire for communal acceptance, and the societal misconceptions of people who use and abuse drugs and alcohol. Trevor has been sober since March 26, 2014.

Kenn found himself in and out of several treatment programs and talks about his experience using while working as a Registered Nurse. He goes into great detail about the first time he discovered meth at 57 years old and how he has been able to maintain his sobriety since.  Kenn became sober on August 5th, 2012.

Because addiction recovery is different for everyone, Pride Institute offers multiple levels of care to address the severity of every client's situation. Our Intensive Outpatient Counselor, Dan, talks about the importance of "stepping down", or transferring to less intensive levels of care as treatment milestones are met. Dan has been with Pride since January 13, 2020. 

Our guest Rik talks about his early life experiences growing up in an orphanage, not fitting into various religious settings, his coming out experience during the 1980's, and the day he found out he was HIV+. Rik became sober on November 7, 2017.

J went through Pride Institute twice: the first time when they were in their early 20's, and the second time after a relapse 20 years later. They identify as gender non-binary and discuss how obstacles with their gender identity growing up impacted their substance use disorder. J also discusses their life as a college athlete and musician. They currently work in the behavioral health field and live with their partner and doggos.

This episode features Pride Institute's Outpatient counselor, Graham Waitt, who discusses Pride's specialized sexual health program, the process of untangling sexual problematic behaviors, and the nuances of co-occurring addiction disorders. 

Al, previously a business owner, who opened and ran a few local wine bars in Minneapolis, as well as a catering business, discusses how his use was propelled by his busy lifestyle. He talks about the importance of mentorship, spirituality, service work, and sober housing. Al became sober on October 10th, 2002.

Kaylee and Luke are joined by one of Pride Institute's mental health therapists, Jo Ellen Diers, MA, LPCC. Jo Ellen was the first therapist in the state of Minnesota to practice Rapid Resolution Therapy (RRT), which aims to help individuals permanently overcome trauma. She talks about the specifics of RRT, how it is used in Pride's Kindred Family Program and the escalation of mental health issues among humans in the modern world. Jo Ellen has been with Pride since March of 2019. 

Our guest Jessica talks about the intricacies of being pansexual in a heteronormative society, discriminatory room & board hospital policies, and feeling "othered" by religion. This episode was released on Jessica's sobriety anniversary. She has been sober since April 15, 2019.       

Our guest Jon talks about his time using while working a fast-paced media job in New York City. What started out as social use evolved into daily use, and later drugs like cocaine, ecstasy, and meth. We talk about the interconnectedness between sex and meth use, spirituality blocks, and resistance to working the program. Jon became sober on September 3, 2006. 

Our guest Anthony talks about the challenges of growing up gay in the 1980s in Long Island. In this episode, he takes a deep dive into why he sought treatment, sober housing, and how he has been able to maintain sobriety today. Anthony became sober on March 20th, 2013.