Billy Gregg Family First Intervention Recovery in Motion, Intervention 911 Billy Gregg is a fraud that preys on the fear of vulnerable families Nationwide
My family saught Billy and Family First out after learning that I had begun using hard drugs (I write this having 70 days of sobriety under my belt). My sisters and mother were afraid for my life and had no idea where to turn. After hours of online research, my sister found Billy and was convinced that he would be the best person to help stage an intervention and coach my family through everything that followed the intervention. The intervention was a spectacular failure. My poor family went along with Billy’s “wise” guidance and decided to ridicule and shame me. They thought that they were doing what they were supposed to. I (like most addicts) responded very poorly to that approach. Feeling traumatized and ridiculed, I immediately took a bus back to New York City (where I lived alone). I shot up meth the moment I returned to NY, sheerly out of spite. What followed was the worst four months of my life. Prior to Billy’s intervention, my drug use was socially (once or twice per month). After I was shunned and felt abandoned by my family (thanks to Billy’s advice), it became daily. I returned from my intervention a full fledged junkie—with a degree from a prestigious university and priorly holding a well paying job.
I tried to constantly work with my family and tell them I would go to treatment, but I wanted to talk about and have some input on my own treatment first. Billy would not even allow my family to speak a word to me, unless I was on a plane to the facility that he recommended in Texas. This resulted in a four month standoff between me and my family, because I wanted treatment—just not at the flop-house treatment center that Billy had chosen for me in Texas. I was BEGGING my family for treatment, but was too perplexed by their instance that I go to Texas to give in to their demands. Had they not listened to Billy and worked with me to compromise, I would have gotten the help I needed much sooner. But why was my family’s only option Texas? My mother and sisters pleaded with Billy several times to let them work with me to mutually agree on a treatment center. Billy explained that I was a selfish addict and that if they allowed me to get “my way”, then I would never recover and I would surely die. He also said that the place in TX was the ONLY facility that would accept my insurance (Aetna PPO, accepted almost everywhere). My family, out of fear and desperation, agreed to give him full control and were at his complete mercy. Billy said that he operated this way, because he was once an addict and he “saw so much of himself in me.” Billy had never met me, spoken to me and knew very little about me or my situation (my sister wasn’t even sure if he remembered what drugs I was using).
No, like all addicts/former addicts, Billy is a master manipulator. Like most people that own facilities or programs in the recovery industry, his primary motivation is financial—he would rather make a buck than save a life. It’s quite obvious that Billy would get a financial kickback from the facility in Houston, Texas (named: Into Action Recovery) from the $60,000+ that they would end up charging my insurance. While Billy was coaching my family and charging them pricey rates by the hour for his services (he lied to my best friend, who he also puppeted, and said he was working for free), he gave them extreme advice that many industry experts and psychologists said was flat out wrong and damaging. He led a group text among my concerned family and friends, where he would publicly shame people in the group if they disagreed with anything that he had to say. Several times, my family and friends tried to go with their instinct and work with me to get the RIGHT kind of treatment and Billy blocked them each time. Only I can take responsibility for my actions and the fact that I was using drugs when I did. However, I can say with unwavering confidence that Billy’s unspeakable actions and hardline approach prolonged my drug use and delayed my treatment. I am lucky I didn’t die in those four months that Billy had brainwashed my family. Had my poison been heroin or alcohol, I may not have lived to warn people about this awful man—Rasputin as I now call him. I am alive today and 70 days sober because of my own will. I did my research and bypassed my family to find the right treatment center and level of care that fit my needs—and didn’t line Billy’s pockets. I found out that Aetna PPO covers almost any treatment center, not just Billy’s friends’ flop house in Houston. I am getting family therapy sessions each week via conference call and working with family and friends to rebuild what Billy helped tear down (part of why I chose where I am at is the family therapy program). I am very strong in my recovery and starting to regain control of my life. If this review saves just one person or family from Billy’s deceptive manipulation, it will have been worth it. Vince New York, NY
6 Updates & Rebuttals
Anonymous
Cincinnati ,Ohio,
United States
Not the only one. Contact your local police department. Get all the information you can
#7General Comment
Mon, June 03, 2019
This man defamed and harassed someone and his girlfriend when they needed help.
Mike
Mokena,United States
Rebuttal
#7REBUTTAL Owner of company
Sun, November 12, 2017
Thank You Alison, now he’s saying your not his sister. If and when anyone reads this I’ll have them contact you and your mom for clarification. If this continues I will be taking legal action against Vince. Thank you again for your kind words yesterday from both you and his mom. Anyone who is sober and working a program doesn’t act like this.
Vince
Vista,California,
United States
Fraud
#7Author of original report
Sat, November 11, 2017
It seems that the owner of this business is going through serious, yet fraudulent, lengths to try and protect his reputation. I am the author of the original report and I do not have a sister named Alison. The above comment was likely written by someone on their PR team to clean up their dirty mess. It’s truly unfortunate that they have to go through such lengths to protect their fraudulent business. I will leave my report as is and let the readers decide. I no longer want to dwell on this horrific experience. People deserve to know when wrongs have been committed.
Alison
Massachusetts,United States
Clarification on Billy Gregg and Family First Intervention
#7Consumer Comment
Sat, November 11, 2017
To Whom it May Concern,
I am a family member of the individual that filed this complaint. First to my brother, this was not necessary to do! I am glad that you are doing well in your recovery but I do not support you attacking an organization and specifically an individual that has done nothing but support our family in this very difficult process. I know you are angry and are looking for someone to blame but what you are not aware of is all the support Billy and Family First has provided to us. Just because you do not agree with how this was organized, since you had wanted things done on your terms, does not mean that Billy and his organization had any ill intent. What you did not see was everything that went on behind the scenes to help you get treatment. We chose the approach to deal with your addiction, never did Billy or his team coherce us into doing anything. They spent countless hours of their own time going above and beyond to provide assistance. This was not in order to get any additional payment from our family or from other sources, as truthfully they put in more hours than what was paid, but because they cared about getting you help. Billy and Family First Intervention genuinely care about the families they help as well as the individual. Not once did I ever feel taken advantage of given the terrible situation everyone faced. Never once did we feel manipulated. If anything we felt supported!
I am sorry that my brother does not see this. I think from his prospective given that he too was facing addiction head on as the addict, he was angry when our family chose (not coherced) to "cut ties" because truthfully we felt we had no other choice. He at the time was not well enough to give us one. What he didn't see was all the compassion and hard work Billy put into helping us. But really into helping him. I do not believe this review from my brother is fair at all because my brother never had an direct part in the process because he immediately rejected it. That's ok because he was sick. Maybe one day he will understand all the effort that was put in by the team of family first and specificially Billy to try and help a person that they never met but cared about from the start. To my brother, they did not brainwash me or our family. I know you know this. You need to focus on your recovery and stop blaming others. I love you but this needs to stop. If anything Billy Gregg was someone that has helped all of us in such a major way that unfortunately you did not see. He always had your best interest at heart and I know this. Thank you to Family First Intervention and specifically to Billy. I know my brothers review affected you because I know you you put your heart into your work and care about helping your clients. Do know that you have helped us beyond belief and we are truthfully grateful!
Regards,
Alison
Vince
Malibu,California,
United States
Lies and Lawbreaking
#7Author of original report
Thu, November 09, 2017
The owner of the business has responded with a complete fabrication, in order to protect his own interest. None of this response is even true. My relationship with my family and life in sobriety could not be better. Whether or not his response has any factual basis, it is an extreme violation of HIPAA and patient confidentiality. The owner of a "family first” treatment business should never be sharing a patient history in an online forum. This unprofessional and highly illegal behavior says a lot about how they operate as a business. Their lack of regard for ethics and the law just further supports my original claims. Read everything and be the judge yourself.
Mike
Mokena,Reply
#7REBUTTAL Owner of company
Thu, November 09, 2017
This person is not the client. The family is very happy with our services and nobody is making them do anything they do not want to do to protect themselves from this persons very abusive behavior. He was asked to leave several treatment centers and is upset that his family is done with his addiction and will not communicate with him until he is sober. This person continues to harrass us as well as his family and is not welcome back at any of the centers he was at due to his behavior. Our counselors were successful in getting the intervention completed resulting in him going to treatment. As he struggles in his addiction he continues to behave inappropriately.