Sobriety House
As some may know, I share personal testimonials about mental health in schools and, occasionally, in workplaces. I do this through the Canadian Mental Health Association, and I’m always willing to tell my story if it can help someone dealing with their own mental health challenges.
It all ties in with the men’s group Mentalk / K’hommeunique, which I co-founded with Ivan Labelle six years ago. To date, I’ve spoken at about 145 events—but none prepared me for the talk I gave in Ottawa on March 4th of this year.
I had been invited to give a testimonial at a rehab home and speak with the men living there. Honestly, I felt unsure of myself going in. I’ve never been involved with drugs—not once in my life—and I’d never sat down with a group of 11 recovering addicts. It felt completely out of my comfort zone. But from the moment I arrived, I was greeted with friendly handshakes and warm smiles, and that helped put me at ease.
We started with coffee in a relaxed setting, which helped calm my nerves. When we moved into the meeting room, we all sat in a circle—shoulder to shoulder, equal in every way.
I began by sharing a disclaimer: the only addiction I’ve ever had was to cigarettes, which I quit 23 years ago. I told them I couldn’t fully understand what they were going through because, as the saying goes, we can’t truly understand unless we’ve walked in someone else’s shoes.
But despite our different paths, we connected. And when I say “we,” I mean the 11 men in that room and myself. We connected because I never tried to put myself above them—because I’m not better than them. I simply made different choices.
After I finished telling my story about mental health—which overlaps in many ways with addiction—I was asked a question that made my head spin. I had just said that cigarettes were my only addiction, but one of the men asked if I had ever considered whether I was addicted to power and prestige when I owned my own companies. Was that addiction the reason for my downfall?
I was taken aback, but he was absolutely right.
Back then, I was addicted to status. I constantly wanted more—to be on top. And when I fell from the top and hit rock bottom, it was my ego that dragged me to the darkest place in my life. Until that moment, I had never considered that addiction could take so many forms.
There are all kinds of addictions. What matters is how they end—and what we learn from them.
I want to thank the men at that home for two things:
- For allowing me into their safe space.
- For opening my eyes even further.
We all make mistakes. But mistakes don’t have to be the end. Sometimes, they’re the beginning of something better.
To the men I met that day—and to anyone else struggling with addiction or mental health—I wish you a strong, hopeful recovery.
