Matt Blondell Interview: Is New York City The Unlikely Basecamp of A Revolution in the Recovery Industry?

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.