Hello World
#followme #72DWC #changeyourstory #progress
Hello World,
I’m Danny and I’d like to invite you to share a journey with me. That’s about the best way that I know how to start my blog. My life is OK right now, not great, but there isn’t so much to complain about beyond the fact that I feel that I have not actualized anywhere near my potential. This wasn’t always the case though.
I’ve had the pleasure of dealing with something that is called dual diagnosis. This is a combination of a mental health issue, Bipolar Type 1, combined with substance abuse. The first is genetic and the latter is a matter of poor choices beginning when I was 17. Most of my twenties, and the first year of my 30’s was spent trying to get by while figuring out how to address these demons. I made some progress and did well after everything is considered. I obtained my first degree a year after my initial diagnosis and a few weeks spent in a hospital. I’ve worked full time except for a 7 month stretch from the end of 2015 to mid-2016 and even gained 71k votes in a bid for the House of Representatives in the 2016 election.
Each step forward though seemed to be followed by a step back. I figured out how to manage my bipolarity a few years ago and it has not really been an issue since the end of 2014. However, my drug use really took off in the spring of 2015. After trying on my own with some success to battle this challenge with the help of a 12-step program, a 6-month relapse sent me to rehab this March. The good news is that after redoubling my efforts, truly getting sick and tired of being sick and tired, and focused work in my continuing recovery, I’m sitting here a few weeks shy of 9 months clean.
The goal of this blog is to help me transfer from getting even in recovery to thriving in life while continuing to make healthy decisions. Oh, and share my progress with the world. I’ve decided that the best way to do this is to work on building a tribe. A following that will inspire me to try to new things, take risks, and lose the fear to put some of my ideas into action. There are businesses I want to launch, books to write, and new experiences that I can’t conceive of now but that I know will present themselves if I make an honest effort to grow. Hopefully along the way I’ll be able to inspire others out there, whether struggling with their own demons or just feeling unfulfilled, to act to change their lives by changing their story.
I’m kicking things off with what I call the 72-day writing challenge. It’s just about what it sounds like. I will be posting once a day for a little more than 10 weeks starting today. I figure it’s a good way to introduce myself to the world while getting in the habit of putting in some work each day on building my tribe. It’s a bit of a hack to keep me accountable to myself and the world. It is inspired by a post I read on LinkedIn a few years ago by James Altucher, @JAltucher. I’ll be writing about my story, random insights I’ve gained here and there, and anything else that comes to mind. I’m always open to suggestions so if you have any ideas for a post leave a comment.
Not a flashy start I know, but I’m hoping that this project will grow into something beautiful. I’ll be back tomorrow, and I think I will talk some more about the last few years. As for now, I’d like to thank you for taking some time to look at my thoughts and sharing some love.
Ps. I’d love a little help getting out there so take a moment to share this post on social media, follow me(@dannyreidturner) and, and sign up for my newsletter. I’ve got some things in the works to make it worth your while 😉.
Cheers,
Danny