Multihyphenate Mike Reed knows the value of keeping busy for creative fulfillment and mood therapy. The drummer-bandleader-entrepreneur owns two celebrated local music venues, Constellation and the Hungry Brain. He also cofounded and produces the Pitchfork Music Festival. An acclaimed jazz musician, he travels a lot, although he doesn’t love to fly. “I’m still kind of edgy,” he admits. “This is counter to a traditional wellness program, but Xanax and Maker’s Mark on the rocks help for getting on the plane.” The 49-year-old Avondale resident has plenty of strategies for healthy living, though, including making music: The Separatist Party, his newest release, is the first of a three-album cycle.

First things first

“When I wake up, I drink coffee and try not to look at email. I do my workout before anything else. If I wait, the willpower is gone. I have stuff at home: elliptical, weights, yoga mat. I try to make it super simple.”

Mood mindfulness

“I guess it’s just my brain chemistry, but I have a touch of the melancholy, I suppose. It ebbs and flows with seasons. There are times it can get really bad. Ten years ago, I got diagnosed with an intense vitamin D deficiency, which is associated with mood, so I take supplements. I tried antidepression medication, but it didn’t work. I’ve tried transcranial magnetic stimulation — a therapy where they put a helmet on you and zap you. It’s kind of like getting hit in the head by a woodpecker. It’s an intense regimen: every day for six weeks.”

Each day is different

“This brain space can be so isolating. But it’s not necessarily associated with suicidal thoughts. People bring that up, and my answer is, ‘You know, we’re all dying in a godless universe, so you might as well take the long way. Because you might be wrong, and tomorrow might be really cool, so there’s no reason to go to that extreme.’ This is just my thing. The same way somebody might have psoriasis, I’ve got this depression thing that sometimes acts up. I just have to figure out how to work with it.”