Episode #80: “Recycle your pain into power!” (Shelley Halligan and Daniel Intorella)

Shelley Halligan is the President of Speranza Therapeutics, nurse practitioner, keynote speaker, and subject matter expert in addiction medicine.Daniel Intorella is a fitness coach for busy executives, and kidney health coach, driven from his personal experience. Dan discovered he had congenital chronic kidney disease following extensive testing as a young adult, and shares how it has affected him. He encourages everyone to take ownership of their health. “You have to be your biggest fan, and your biggest advocate.” That includes doctors! Dan says things could be much worse; “I just live every day being grateful!” He gives a shout-out to his terrific nephrologists, and offers practical tips for 30-minute workouts, for doctors, or anyone else; “Movement is life!” Shelley shares the story of her near-fatal accident, and what sustained her during that time. She also speaks to her long-term addiction recovery, and how different things would have been had she not been otherwise healthy at the time of her accident. “Bones heal. Your body heals. Addiction never goes away. It’s a chronic disease that you have to keep at bay.” “Addiction is based in trauma...and every one of us has had trauma.” Shelley sends a shout-out to her orthopedic surgeon, emphasizing that words matter, and offers the one sentence he said that “completely changed everything for me!” Dan and Shelley’s personal and professional admiration and respect for each other shine through in this episode. Dan comments on the difference between transactional interactions, and those that build relationships that turn into friendships. We express our gratitude and support to doctors. In Shelley’s words, “We need to acknowledge that our physicians work so hard. We need them. And we need them (to be) healthy. When they need help, we need to be there for them because they’re there for us all the time!”