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With me today is Michael, who is here to speak loud about something not many people speak about. Michael is dedicated to ending the silence around male sexual abuse survivors, after a harrowing journey with sexual abuse, alcohol and drug addiction and mental illness.\\xa0

Michael grew up in a violent, emotionally and physically abusive household, because of his mother. At 14, he entered a sexually abusive situation with an older woman. He was obsessed with her, unaware of the negative impact the situation was having on him.\\xa0

When a family counselor unearthed the truth, neither they nor Michael\\u2019s parents addressed the abuse. Instead, he was grounded. He began drinking and experiencing mental health spirals that led to a brush with suicide. \\u201cI was wild, disruptive, like a grenade without a pin,\\u201d Michael says. \\xa0

After high school, Michael was in the bar business for 27 years, with unlimited access to alcohol and compulsive sex. At 22, his father passed away, and Michael developed the mindset that good people, like his father, weren\\u2019t rewarded in the long run, and no one went out of their way to protect vulnerable people.\\xa0

After losing his job, his house, and nearly his life to alcoholism, Michael was placed in a rehab facility where he could safely quit drinking. Through therapy, he uncovered the serious effect the abuse had on him, and decided to seek legal action against his abuser. Michael was met with confidence that she would face charges, but after three days was told no action would be taken, \\u201cbecause [he] was fourteen and not thirteen, and the sex was consensual.\\u201d Once again, Michael\\u2019s abuse was trivialized and ignored.\\xa0

Michael used research as a tool for his anger, and found that women make up 20% of sexual abuse. He also found that 67% of men who reported sexual abuse to hotlines were told, \\u201cWe only help women.\\u201d Michael began posting the information he found online. He gained traction and support, and was a guest on many podcasts like this one.\\xa0

Michael is now working on his own podcast, where he plans to interview other survivors, as well as mental health professionals, researchers, detectives and attorneys. He\\u2019s adamant that male and female victims are in this together, and he hopes that listeners do something positive with their anger. He encourages listeners to reach out if they have a story, need to talk, or have a loved one that needs help.\\xa0

Listen in to learn more about Michael\\u2019s experience as a foster parent, his journey with rehabilitation and therapy, and statistics surrounding male sexual abuse.\\xa0

Resources Mentioned

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