"When it comes to my addiction recovery, I needed to first focus on my physical cravings and use. I needed to learn how “not to pick up”.  Remove the substance and things will inevitably get better right? They did for a long time… and then they didn’t. That is where Mike stands out to me as a recovery coach and sponsor. Not only did he get me through (compassionately) those first few months when the fog was lifting but after the fog lifted he had a game plan to get my emotional and spiritual health back on track. First we did a second inventory and went over all those haunting and icky character defects, shameful actions, and sour relationships. He had a gentle and loving approach that didn’t excuse my actions but framed them in a way where I understood that I was doing the best I could with the tools I had. He made me feel safe and secure enough to forgive myself for all those things that if left unforgiven would probably take me back out into my addiction.

I could go on and on but Mike really simplifies this recovery game down to a unique and accessible path. First let’s get the bottle or pipe out of your hand and let the fog lift, then let’s examine that dark shame and trauma filled past through lenses of compassion and forgiveness. If Eckhart Tolle, Don Miguel Ruiz, and Bill Wilson got put in a blender; you’d get a Mike smoothie. He makes these lofty recovery and spiritual principles and practices easy to digest…. And he loves you till you can love yourself. He is a gift to all who cross his path."

"Working with Mike has been incredibly helpful throughout my personal journey in healing and self-discovery. My first experience with breathwork rocked my world and truly gave me profound insight into the core of what was going on with me. I wept for the first time in years and felt the sadness I had been pushing down my whole life around my childhood as well as self-hatred I had been wrestling with for some time. He has also gently, consistently, and firmly when needed, guided me towards new thoughts, actions, and beliefs about myself. I have learned that there is no benefit in getting lost in the downward spiral of guilt and shame, and that self-love and compassion is the true state that we need to relearn to heal. He also has taught me that healthy behavior can be integrated with simple shifts in action and perspective instead of following the impulse to create crisis and drama.

I owe the wisdom, peace, and joy I have cultivated working with Mike has so generously passed on to me. We can all learn this way of life, and what a blessing it is to have access to the support, education, and example to help us do so!"

"I’ve never been good at this. The circumstances of my youth made me insular and private (and a lot of other things). I tend to deal with things on my own and I am utterly terrible at reaching out to others for help when I should. Cut to this past weekend. Roz was up in LA looking at wedding dresses, I was home alone. I decided to spend some time in quiet meditation doing some internal work. This new chapter of my life is unfolding in an amazing way and I want to make sure I’m continuing to do my own work so I don’t fuck it up. So, I decided to do a deep dive into some dark places and shine a light into some dark corners. 

I might have been a little over zealous, because I got in a little deeper than I intended. I was struggling, hard. I started off doing what I always do, and steeled myself against the struggle. I can handle this, I thought. But it was too much. I held on for a long time, but ultimately called Roz and interrupted her appointment at a dress shop. It must have been quite the call because I was in tears. 

She couldn’t do much to help me being so far away, so she suggested I call a friend of ours, Mike Callahan.The call I made to Mike was one of the most transformative of my life. I never do this, I never reach out to someone in need. I’m as stubborn as chewing gum stuck to the arse of a mule. I’m really glad I did though. Mike was also far away, in Mexico in fact, so he couldn’t come over but he did talk me through what I was going through. I felt like I was interrupting him, but he assured me it was ok to talk. He was there for me, he created a container for me, he gave me permission to express myself and share my struggle. 

I don’t know how long we talked for, but we got a lot done. I realized a lot about what I hold on to and how it affects me. I realized what my stubbornness costs me and how much better I am when I share. The interesting thing is, if Mike had called me in the same situation I would have done the same thing for him in a heartbeat, but I struggled to ask him to do it for me. It all came down to my sense of self worth, and Mike said some pretty amazing things to help me realize that I’m so much more worthy then I could ever have believed. His act of kindness and open generosity showed me that I was worth his time. 

We’ve agreed to work together more to understand the bigger picture at play and I’m really excited about what we can achieve together, the freedom I can find with his help. Mike’s been through it all, he just celebrated 31 years of sobriety and now works with men (and women) to help them find freedom from shit that happened to them when they were kids, specifically through ACA (Adult Children of Alcoholics). He’s started a group called Inner Child Tribe and I really hope I get to help others in the way he’s been helping me.

The lesson I want to get across here is us men tend to be pretty fucking useless when it comes to asking for help. We’re almost bred to feel like we have to handle things alone. Problem is that when we do we tend to bottle things up and then they express themselves in other, more unexpected and more harmful ways. I discovered through that conversation with Mike, as uncomfortable as it was at first, that we are so much better when we share. That it’s ok to share. That there are people out there willing to help. That we are worthy of that help.

I’m starting to truly understand the need for community and how much modern life is stripping us of it. How technology is isolating us. We need to come together now more than ever.

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We can do this."

"My journey with Mike began by growing up in an alcoholic home.  I had become debilitatingly shy, feeling unable to trust hardly anyone.  My dad was not emotionally mature enough to show me how to be a man, so I sought this person in my friend groups.  I never made any real connections during this time, and was bullied by those I thought were my friends.  Towards the end of high school I knew I wanted to make some drastic changes in my life, but I didn't know how.  I attended therapy at first, but ultimately ended up in Al Anon exclusively.  That's where I met Mike.  He became my sponsor, and we worked the steps together.  I was able to trust him fully, and after numerous personal inventories - recounting the most influential events in my life that were the underlying cause of my issues - I was able to let the past go, forgive my perpetrators and begin a new life where I chose the kind of people I wanted to be around.  The work has reached many other areas of my life as well, inspiring self-confidence that ultimately helped me out in my career, my romantic life, interacting with family, and many others.  However, I think one of the greatest changes has been the ability to love and trust myself."