I recently reached out to a dear
friend of mine in LA when I wanted to do research on the recovery companies in
New York for an article on the opioid crisis.
I’d seen a major financial outlet cover Sober Livings and aftercare in
the surrounding areas, but nothing in New York City itself. Being America’s largest city, I started to
think about what getting sober, or attempting to, would look like in the
concrete jungle. “Does anyone stay in
New York when they’re trying to get sober??” I asked my friend Kevin and he
said “If they are, I hope they’re working with Matt Blondell, he built NY and
he’s as committed to this crazy business as anyone I know on both coasts”. A
quick internet search brought up exactly….zero about this person. I found some employees on LinkedIn for City Recovery
and reached out to some of them. They
all politely refused saying that it would be against company policy to talk
about the work they do. As a journalist,
and as someone affected directly by the opioid crisis, I was intrigued. A few weeks later, after Kevin convinced Mr
Blondell to sit down with me, I’m having lunch with a charismatic, 6’2, mid-40’s executive wearing a tailored
suit and glasses in small Italian bistro in Tribeca-not what I was
expecting. I was immediately struck by
his friendliness and his intensity at the same time, but I wasn’t sure if I was
totally sold on this guy. He quite
honestly could have been running a hedge fund from the looks of it, was he
really the answer to this issue in the toughest city in the US? Maybe this works in New York, I thought, or
maybe he’s a finance guy running a business in a lucrative industry. After some
polite small talk, we got down to the real issues.
Matt Blondell |
ANGELA RODRIGUEZ:
So Matt how would you describe what you do on a day to day basis? As Ceo are you just rolling calls and running
numbers or do you involve yourself with your clients?
MATT BLONDELL: I have a great team,
but I have my hands in everything. I
started this business almost 10 years ago with 4 beds and have done every
single job from the start. I’m the sole
owner and I have no business partners so all the risk and all the “buck” stops
with me. I still like to oversee
everything, although some things I try to stay out of, like our women’s
program, I have an incredible female staff and they don’t usually need my two
cents. Most days I have contact with the male clients and all of the families
we work with have my direct cell number so I do manage a lot of those issues
when they arise. I’m not one of these
companies or groups that have hedge fund money or silent partners that fund
them or have a few years sober and think this would be a great way to make
money. I’ve been working with people in
recovery for 15 years, it chose me, not the other way around. Its what gets me
out of bed in the morning.
Matt Blondell |
AR: What’s the hardest part of your job?
MB: Well a lot of people might not
like this or even agree, but the hardest part of my job is working with people
in the industry. Not all people, there
are some great ones, but most “experts” I’ve come in contact with or treatment
centers I’ve met with have a certain way of thinking about things in a very one
dimensional way. I guess that’s the nicest
way I can put it. Some would call it
medical malpractice…
AR: Wow. That’s quite a statement right
out of the box. What makes you an
expert?
MB: Well Malcom Gladwell says it takes
about 10 thousand hours, I’d say I’m at about 20 thousand. But I don’t hold myself up as an expert. The minute I do that I stop thinking of my
clients as people and start referencing what I know instead of listening to
what they’re going through. Just
listening to people can help someone. That’s what I tell people who ask me how to
deal with their friends or family who are addicts or actively using. I say when was the last time you asked them
how their day was or how they’re feeling and really listened. Or just responded with ‘How can I help’ or
‘I’m sorry you’re going through that’. That doesn’t mean I don’t use all 20
thousand of those hours to help people or don’t provide what I think is the
best care possible in this industry, I just don’t lead with that. I train jujitsu and I try to always have a
“white belt” mentality. Because anything
can happen and the minute you think you’ve seen it all or you know what someone
needs, that’s when lives get lost.
Matt Blondell |
AR: I see. Speaking of lives lost, what does that look
like for you? Is that even something
you’re willing to talk about? Sober
livings have a bad rap-clients die and employees use drugs with them, I’ve
heard a lot of stories.
MB: Well, first of all, I’ve never had
anyone die or overdose or use with staff in any of my locations for the 10
years I’ve been operating City Recovery.
Secondly, I don’t consider my company a Sober Living. We’re a full service recovery company. And now that we’ve added medical detox and
we’re opening a treatment center in Chicago, I’m the furthest thing from that
business. I trained a lot of people, in
fact half the entire New York sober living business are former clients and
employees, and I’m sure they can help people, but what I’m doing you can’t just
take out a lease or get a check from your parents and start a business. I’m changing the recovery industry forever.
Matt Blondell |
AR: Changing the recovery industry
forever? That’s ambitious! Do you
consider yourself a disruptor?
MB: I don’t consider myself anything
other than completely psychotic about people’s recovery. I’m sure there are a lot of people who’d like
to consider me a lot of things, (laughs) and I’ve heard them all, I just don’t
care. I’ve seen the best and worst of recovery
treatment and services for 15 years.
I’ve seen every trend, every bubble, every top doctor and therapist of
the moment, every new modality and treatment approach. With the clientele I’ve had for the last 15
years I’ve been in a unique position that I don’t believe anyone else has been
in-I’ve worked with the best and the people who used to be the best and I know
what works and what doesn’t. There’s
been guys on TV and top talk shows that are out of this business now. It isn’t about one person being the
best. I get clients and families asking
me all the time “Who’s the best, Matt.
Just tell me who the best is and I’ll pay them anything to help my
kid/wife/sister.” And I have to tell
them I don’t know. That nobody is the best.
And if they tell you they are, don’t use them.
Matt Blondell |
AR: So how can you say you’re changing
the industry forever? If you’re not the
best?
MB: I don’t need to be the best. I just need to change a broken industry. I need treatment centers to start telling
families the truth, which is there is no one answer. You only have to change one thing to get
sober, you know that right? And that one
thing is everything. And that takes
time-it takes a hell of a lot more than 28 days or even 90. Its a start, but it isn’t even the best
start. People send their loved ones away
to a place where they’re going to be the most vulnerable they’ll ever be and
they’re going to battle a disease that kills more Americans under 50 than any
other thing and they’re told if it doesn’t work its because they didn’t want it
or they didn’t try hard enough. And then they’re given a piece of paper and
sent back to their broken lives filled with all the reasons they needed drugs
or alcohol in the first place-some of them through an airport with bars
everywhere and on a plane where the first question they ask you is what do you
want to drink and somehow that’s our best solution? That’s the best medical solution for this
disease. Please.
Matt Blondell |
AR: So what’s the answer?
MB: Be willing to admit you’re doing
it wrong and keep working until you find another solution. Did you know that there has never been a
comprehensive study done by any institution on how well rehab actually
works? You know why? No treatment center would EVER allow a
university to report that they have a failure rate of 70-90%. What doctor would ever stay in business if he
had a 70-90% failure rate? Its
laughable. Except its about the least funny thing any family or individual can
go through. Try doing a google search
for success rates of rehab. You know
what you’ll find? A lot of links to a
lot of treatment centers websites that don’t answer that question. Their SEO firm they pay hundreds of thousands
of dollars a month to buries that question in industry friendly links to keep
you from finding the truth. How can
anyone trust that company will tell them the truth about their child or
husband? It’s actually crazy. That’s why I’m putting myself out there more
and creating a top study with a renowned University that will be completely
transparent with the results. If nobody
else will try and tell the truth, I will.
Because I actually want to know
how to help people and I don’t just want to guess or think that I know what I’m
talking about, I want it proven by science.
And then I want to share it with the rest of the industry and see what
they do with it.
AR: Ok so before this study comes out,
that’s probably going to take a few years, what are you planning to do
differently?
MB: Well I compare my company to a
navy SEAL Zodiac and treatment centers are like battleships. They can’t move as quick as I can, they aren’t
the special forces. I am already working
with unbelievable doctors and PHD level therapists on the latest treatments. When they come out, I actually try them on
myself first before I’d ever recommend it to others. I think working with MDs and PHDs is the only
way. You have to look at someone from a
medical perspective first. Not just in a
medical clearance you will live for the next 28 days and not drop dead from
other causes way, but in a way of one on one medical treatment on a daily
basis. If you don’t look at what is
causing the pain, or the anxiety or the depression from a medical standpoint
first, then you’re just treating the symptoms and not the cause. Secondly, you have to work with PHDs to
tackle the mental health side. You need
that level of education and attention in the triage of addiction. Rehab is the ER, you don’t want an intern or
a receptionist operating on you or someone during their residency. They’re all very nice people I’m sure, but
that doesn’t make them qualified after 4 years of school and a test. Mental health is the number one issue right
now in addiction. Too many people are
going undiagnosed and self medicating into full blown addiction because they’ve
met the wrong people and gotten the wrong diagnosis for too many years. Trauma, PTSD, bi-polar one and two, these are
real diagnosis’ that must be addressed first and foremost. Because the industry only treats “addicts”
one way and they expect it to work for everyone and when it doesn’t they don’t
look at the treatment as broken, they blame the patient. Once you’ve had those two major factors
addressed by doctors, then you’re ready to be in groups and social settings and
dealing with family and outside forces that trigger your issues and the desire
to use. I could go on for hours here but
you get the picture. I’m not reinventing
the wheel, I’m just using all the tools available and putting it together more
concisely and moving to something else when it isn’t working and being honest
with families the entire time. And I’m
working with people that I’ve personally seen have unbelievable results and who
are willing to admit there are things they don’t know and new things they can
try. Doctors and PHDs that listen to their patients.
Matt Blondell |
AR: All of this makes so much sense when
you’re saying it. What’s the
downside? What’s keeping this from being
a reality?
MB: Well the downside is this disease
is a real killer. You can’t guarantee
everyone will survive this. What’s
keeping this type of treatment from being a reality isn’t much, it will be
reality soon. I’m making it happen and
then what I expect to be the success of my programs will lead others to follow
suit. Then the study will come out and
we’ll see if I’m completely wrong or if the numbers and science back up what
I’m saying. So it isn’t gong to happen
tomorrow but it will happen. I’ll bet my
life on it.
Matt Blondell |
AR: Thanks for sitting down with me and
agreeing to this. I feel like theres so
much more we could talk about here. My
last question is are you worried that what you’re saying will cause a backlash
from critics and industry titans? This
is a multi-billion dollar industry you’re talking about.
MB: A great sports figure that I
happen to love, Conor McGregor, recently quoted someone I’m not sure who, I”m
not on social media, but he said “they don’t raise statues to honor critics”. I
don’t need a statue but I definitely don’t care about critics. And if I’m really committed to what works
best, let it rip, I’m open to being wrong and learning something new. Critics should try that first and then come
talk to me.