About Patrick
Patrick’s story is one of grace. He was born in Charlotte in 1982, and grew up in both Myers Park and Quail Hollow while attending Charlotte Country Day School from Kindergarten through 12th grade. When Patrick was in middle school, he started experimenting with alcohol, and by the time he started 9th grade, he had developed a dependence to prescription painkillers. Patrick’s substance use progressed through high school but unfortunately was overlooked by his social activity, athletic achievements, and lack of insight into the process of addiction.
After he graduated from Country Day in 2000, Patrick left Charlotte to attend North Carolina State University. While there, Patrick’s substance use took precedence to academics, and he moved back to Charlotte after failing out of school half-way through his junior year.
Patrick’s ability to hold a job or function as an adult in society was rapidly declining. His substance use was at an all-time high, and his family decided to stage an intervention. Patrick ended up in a 28-day hospital-based program in Monroe, NC, where they introduced him to the recovery process for the first time. He was internally motivated, overly compliant, and believed he was ready to stop using substances forever. Within two weeks of leaving treatment, he was using again. Patrick had underestimated his addiction and was unprepared for the thoughts, feelings, and stressors associated with early recovery.
Patrick used substances around the clock for the next two years. In 2011, through a series of unforeseen events, Patrick found himself in a 90-day dual-diagnosis residential treatment program in Delray Beach, FL. He weighed 125 pounds, was addicted to heroin, cocaine and alcohol, and was in a drug-induced psychosis. After receiving proper treatment, immersing himself in the recovery community, and gratefully accepting his family’s unwavering support, Patrick found sustained recovery.
When Patrick experienced remission, he felt a deep responsibility to share what he had found. He started working in addiction treatment in 2012 and returned to school to study counseling.
After working in several different supportive and clinical roles, Patrick accepted a primary counselor position in a small outpatient program in FL. Over the next four years, Patrick worked as a counselor in every level of care before founding Sana in 2017.
Through his professional experience and own personal recovery journey, Patrick has had the opportunity to join forces with some outstanding organizations. Patrick currently serves on the Behavioral Health Committee at Atrium Health Foundation and on the Advisory Board of For Students, a non-profit organization that helps schools facilitate essential conversations around mental health. He is on the Board of Directors of both, Emerald School of Excellence, the Carolina’s first Recovery High School, and Pivot Point WNC, a non-profit in Asheville, NC, that offers therapeutic wilderness experiences for at-risk youth.
You can also catch Patrick on the air waves, as the co-host of Champagne Problems, an award-winning podcast that examines the normalization of alcohol in our culture. You can listen on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
In 2022, Patrick saw a need in the Charlotte community for a high-end recovery residence for young men. Soon thereafter in early 2023, Sana House was born. Sana House is a recovery residence and community for young men 18 and up that provides mentoring and 24/7 individualized recovery support with the purpose of bringing recovery to life through community. It has a maximum capacity of only 5 men. All medical and clinical services are delivered by some of the most well-respected practitioners in the region and this intimate group is supported by several incredible partners in the Charlotte community. Learn more about Sana House and their community partners here.
In Patrick’s free time he enjoys playing basketball, practicing meditation and studying anything he feels may expand his ability to live a more love-filled life. He lives in Matthews, NC, with his wife Anya and their three young children.
For more information on Patrick’s story, connect with any of his affiliated partners, or book Patrick for speaking engagements, podcasts, or media appearances, please reach out to him via email at
[email protected]