This week, we're sitting down with two people who've walked through the fire of addiction, trauma, and codependence β and came out the other side not as experts, but as wounded healers.
We're talking about embodied recovery, the difference between fixing people and serving them, why your work can't be your healing journey (even when you desperately want it to be), and what it really takes to break generational trauma.
π Part 1 drops Tuesday, February 17, 2026, at 3 AM ETβ π Part 2 follows on Thursday, February 19, 2026, at 3 AM ET
Set your alarms, settle in, and get ready to meet Greg Vorst and Michael Nolan β co-founders of Embodied Recovery, wounded healers, daily practitioners, and two humans who understand that you can't give what you don't have.
π§ This Week's Episodes:
Greg & Michael on Embodied Recovery: Healing Addiction, Trauma & the Inner Childβ βGreg & Michael on Parenting, Anxiety & Breaking Generational Trauma
This week, Greg Vorst (LMFT) and Michael Nolan (CADC-II, ICADC) β co-founders of Embodied Recovery in Los Gatos, California β take us deep into what it actually means to embody the recovery you're teaching. They get unflinchingly honest about codependence, the power of daily rituals, why working in recovery can never be your recovery, and what it looks like to build a treatment center grounded in the wounded healer model rather than expertise.
Greg and Michael share their journeys through addiction, trauma, 12-step work, Sundo practice, and the moment they realized they needed to free themselves from codependence before they could truly serve others. They talk about parenting, breaking generational trauma, marmots eating watermelon, and why the word "whatever" makes them bristle.
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π What's Up with G-Rex & Dirty Skittles
It was a beautiful weekend here in Upstate New York. The sun finally came out, we got almost to 40 degrees, and I'm going to call that a win after what seems like day 487 of winter.
It was also Valentine's Day, and as you know, that day is complicated for me. It was the day in 1997 I buried my mom, and it was also the anniversary of us launching our podcast. As I was coming out of my mental health breakdown fog, we chose Valentine's Day as our launch because I really wanted to change the trajectory of that day. The symbolism makes me smile when I go back and think about it.
I'm counting down the days to spring, but I also know we could get more snow any day now. I'm fine if the snow that we have on the ground melts β it has literally been here for a month.
Dirty Skittles is living her best life in Georgia. She's on a family trip for the week, and it is exactly the break she needed from the normal grind. The pictures she's sent me show how relaxed the family is. A vacation is a vacation, even if you vacation in the state you live in.
All in all, we are good and we are so thankful to have you here.
π Special Programming Notes
We need your help!
We've been shortlisted for the Podcast Awards Best Mental Health Podcast, and the winners will be announced on February 28, 2026.
If this podcast has ever made you feel less alone, helped you understand someone you love, or gave you the language to ask for what you need β please take 2 minutes to vote for us.
You don't need to sign up for Patreon. Just hit submit and your vote is in.
Also: This is a two-part episode, so you're only getting one newsletter this week. Part 1 drops Tuesday, Part 2 drops Thursday, and we'll be back with a full newsletter next Monday.
π§ We're Moving to Substack!
This will be the last email you receive from Kit.com.
Next week, we're migrating to Substack, and when I import your email address, you'll get an email letting you know it's been imported. We're also in the process of moving all 123 newsletters from Kit.com to Substack β it's a substantial task, but we're excited to form more of a community for all our followers and subscribers.
Just so you know, we will have the pledge option on Substack, but it is NOT a requirement to get the newsletter. Your newsletter will remain 100% free.
π‘ Mental Health Quote of the Week
"Just because you're working in recovery, that can't be your recovery. Working in treatment can't be my healing journey."β β Michael Nolan
Use this worksheet to explore what embodied recovery means in your life, how you can build daily practices that actually stick, and what it looks like to free yourself from codependence.
π€ Episodes Highlight
Some conversations hit differently when you're talking to people who've lived it.
Greg Vorst and Michael Nolan didn't meet in a textbook or a training program. They met in the crucible β working at treatment centers where talented people weren't solid enough in their own recovery to consistently support others. They watched programs suffer. They watched people get hurt. And they made a decision: if they were going to do this work, they were going to embody it.
That's where the name Embodied Recovery came from. Not as a brand, but as a commitment.
Across these two episodes, Greg and Michael take us deep into the wounded healer model versus the expert model β the difference between "I'm a professional with clinical training who fixes people" and "I've been so broken that I intimately know what it feels like to want results you can't get, and I've done the work to find another way."
They get unflinchingly honest about codependence β the exhaustion of needing clients to like you, the burnout of needing them to get better, the drain of being pulled into someone else's system. They share the wisdom that one of Michael's mentors gave him when he became a counselor: "Just because you're working in recovery, that can't be your recovery." Your work can teach you, but if you're using your professional life as your healing process, you're putting the expectation on others to be of service to you β when it's supposed to be the other way around.
Greg and Michael also explore parenting (both literal parenting and working with young adults in treatment), breaking generational trauma, and the daily practices that keep them grounded. They introduce the concept of the Β£10,000 phone β the idea that if you're not in the habit of calling people every day who support your recovery, it becomes almost impossible to pick up the phone in crisis and say, "I'm struggling."
By the end, you'll walk away knowing that recovery isn't a destination. It's a daily practice. It's embodiment. It's the willingness to keep showing up for your own work so you can show up for others without getting drained, burned out, or lost in codependence.
At the center of these conversations is a truth most helpers learn the hard way: the moment you start needing something from the people you're serving, you're no longer in service β you're in codependence. Greg and Michael name this with brutal honesty. If you're needing clients to like you, fix you, validate you, or get better on your timeline, you're asking them to carry weight that isn't theirs to carry. And codependence doesn't just drain you β it ultimately hurts the people you're trying to help.
What makes these episodes so powerful is the shift they offer from expertise to embodiment. It's not about having all the answers or being further along the path. It's about being actively engaged in your own healing work so you can show up grounded, present, and available. The daily rituals aren't about perfection β they're about building the muscle memory of reaching out, regulating, and returning to center before crisis hits. Small, steady commitments create the foundation that makes the hard moments survivable.
π« A quote that stuck with us
"If you're a therapist or a counselor out there and you're finding that you're drained after sessions, that's a really good sign that your own inner work needs some support. What ideally we should feel is very alive, because it's a very creative, dynamic experience." β Greg Vorst
ποΈ Real Talk from Us
"When Greg and Michael talked about freeing themselves from codependence before they could truly serve others, I felt that so deeply. I've spent so much of my life needing people to like me, needing validation, needing proof that I'm doing okay. And hearing them name how exhausting that is β and how it gets in the way of actually being present for someone else β hit me hard." β G-Rex
"The Β£10,000 phone concept blew my mind. The idea that you can't just call someone in crisis if you haven't been calling people regularly. You have to build the muscle of reaching out when things are okay, so it's easier to reach out when things aren't. That's brilliant. And honestly, it's something I need to work on." β Dirty Skittles
π Reflection Prompts to Sit With
Where in your life are you using your work, your role, or your service to others as a substitute for doing your own inner work?
What daily rituals or practices do you need to build the muscle of reaching out before crisis hits?
Where are you still caught in codependence β needing someone to like you, get better, validate you, or prove you're doing okay?
What would it look like to free yourself from that need so you can actually be present for the people you love?
π± Gentle Reminder
Your work is not your recovery. Your service is not your healing. And the people you're showing up for β whether that's your kids, your clients, your friends, or your family β are not responsible for making you feel okay. You have to do that work yourself. And when you do, when you build those daily practices and free yourself from codependence, you'll find that showing up for others becomes enlivening instead of exhausting. You'll feel alive, creative, grounded. And that's when the real magic happens.
Greg Vorst is the CEO and Co-founder of Embodied Recovery, an innovative, holistic treatment center in Los Gatos, California. He and Co-founder Michael Nolan created the Empowered Living Teaching Series, a collection of 12 core teachings designed to facilitate psychological maturation and spiritual fulfillment.
As a therapist, Greg draws upon depth, experiential, psychodynamic, internal family systems, and humanistic approaches to psychology. His work is complemented by teaching Sundo, a Korean Taoist form of embodied breathwork, yoga, and meditation that helps clients restore their nervous system and develop greater capacity to be present with their feelings.
Greg's personal healing journey was initiated by a failed surgery that led to prolonged suffering. His recovery included therapy, 12-step work in ACA and CoDA, inner child intensives, ecstatic dance, and two decades of Sundo and A Course in Miracles practice β all foundational to his capacity to support others.
Greg received a B.A. in Social Sciences from University of Southern California and an M.A. in Counseling and Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute. He was also a resident artist at the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia and performed as a soloist for companies including Santa Fe Opera and The Philadelphia Orchestra.
Michael Nolan, CADC-II, ICADC β Co-Founder, Chief Operating Officer
Michael Nolan is the President and Co-founder of Embodied Recovery. After struggling with addiction and anxiety for years, Michael entered treatment at The Sequoia Center in 2007 and has maintained continuous sobriety since August 8, 2007.
Michael completed his recovery work through Alcoholics Anonymous and the 12 steps. He was introduced to Sundo in 2017 when he met Greg, but didn't begin practicing regularly until Embodied Recovery was formed in 2019. Despite his previous years of sobriety, adding regular Sundo practice brought an experience of inner peace and deep connection that 12-step recovery alone hadn't touched.
Michael completed Bethany University's Addiction Studies program in 2010 and became a certified addiction counselor level II in 2012. His work has been inspired by pioneers including Dr. Barry Rosen, Bill Wilson, John Bradshaw, Jon Kabat-Zinn, Pia Mellody, and Eckhart Tolle.
In his own words: "In recovery I have been blessed with marriage, three beautiful children, a reconstituted relationship with God, and an experience of self-love that eluded me for years. I hope to pass along the wisdom that has been shared with me and support others who are courageous enough to surrender to a process of recovery."
Embodied recovery means you can't give what you don't have β you must do your own work to serve others.
The wounded healer model recognizes lived experience as foundational, not just clinical expertise.
Freeing yourself from codependence is essential to showing up for others without getting drained.
Daily rituals and practices create the foundation for handling life's challenges.
Your work cannot be your recovery β keep your professional life and healing journey separate.
The Β£10,000 phone: build the habit of reaching out daily so crisis calls are easier to make.
When you're grounded in your own work, serving others feels enlivening, not exhausting.
πͺ Actionable Steps
Identify one daily ritual you can commit to for the next 30 days (morning practice, gratitude, calling a friend, making your bed).
Practice "playing the tape through" when making a decision β walk through each step and consequence before acting.
Ask yourself: Where am I using my work or service to others as a substitute for my own healing?
Build the Β£10,000 phone muscle β reach out to someone in your support network today, even if you don't "need" anything.
Check in with your energy β if you're feeling drained after helping others, that's a sign your own inner work needs attention.
Explore breathwork or embodiment practices like box breathing, Sundo, yoga, or meditation to regulate your nervous system.
π¬ Listener Engagement
What part of Greg and Michael's story resonated with you?
Did the wounded healer model land differently than the expert model? Did the Β£10,000 phone concept change how you think about reaching out? Did their honesty about codependence hit home?
Reply to this email or tag us on Instagram @grex_and_dirtyskittles with your reflections.
We read every message β always.
β Subscribe, Rate & Review
If Greg and Michael's story helped you understand the difference between embodiment and expertise, reminded you that you can't give what you don't have, or gave you permission to separate your work from your recovery β please subscribe, rate, and review on Apple or Spotify.
Your words help others find the stories that might change their lives.
β€οΈ Closing Remarks
If you're reading this and you've been using your work, your service, or your role as a parent, partner, or helper as a substitute for doing your own inner work β
You're not alone.
And there's no shame in it. Most of us do it. We think that if we can just help enough people, fix enough problems, show up for enough others, we'll finally feel okay. But it doesn't work that way.
Greg and Michael remind us that you have to do your own work. You have to build your own daily practices. You have to free yourself from codependence. And when you do, when you stop needing validation from the people you're serving and start grounding yourself in your own recovery, everything shifts.
Service becomes enlivening instead of exhausting. Presence becomes possible. And the people you love get the best version of you β not the version who's desperately trying to prove they're okay.
Wherever you are right now, whatever you're carrying, we're proud of you for being here. Proud of you for showing up. Proud of you for doing the work.
We're walking this messy, beautiful world right beside you.
With so much love, βG-Rex & Dirty Skittlesβ βChanging the way we talk about mental health, one real convo at a time.
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G-Rex & Dirty Skittles
It's ok to be not ok, just make sure you're talking to someone
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