Episode 325: Stephen Kavalkovich. Sharing Pain. Honoring Strength.

Stephen is a long time NJ resident who has been given the gift of many experiences in life. For most of his adult life, he served as Paramedic for 15+ years in many jurisdictions in NJ, PA, and DE. He also had the honor of serving as a rescue worker at the World Trade Center on 9-11-01 in NYC. Stephen has seen tragedy and suffering first hand. While saving countless overdose victims in his career, he always felt a pang of sadness when his colleagues would treat a hurting person poorly due to their ignorance of the problem. Little did they know that he soon would be no different than many of his patients and that he was the one who needed the saving. It took him overdosing multiple times and having been revived by former colleagues, losing his certification, career, marriage, and children to finally stop Stephen from working towards his grave and start working a recovery program. His focus is to open up the conversation about addressing the underlying pain, trauma, or lack of coping skills that makes one decide to self-medicate in the first place. If it can happen to the rescuer himself then who perhaps “should have known better”, thus showing proof that no one is immune to the disease of addiction. Stephen’s story has to be told to give others the courage to voice their pain. Pain shared is pain lessened. He has expertise in Emergency Medical Care, First Responder PTSD and Substance Abuse issues, Recovery Coaching, Intervention, Leadership, and Spiritual Studies. He is also a charter member of the Southern Delaware Toastmasters International Club. He is available for coaching, mentorship, speaking engagements, guest interviews, content production, and consultation services. Stephen is proud to be the host and creator of the Rescue the Rescuer show, the only show in the world geared towards first responders who battle mental health issues including PTSD, Substance Abuse Disorder, and more. His show is hosted on the Mental Health News Radio Network where he also serves as the Director of Network Compliance. Stephen is regularly sought out for national and international TV, podcasts, and print media for his expertise. He welcomes you to book him for a free consultation, so we can devise a plan to meet your unique needs.

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