Jeff Jay, BSc, CADC, CIP

President and Co-founder, Love First

Jeff Jay is a nationally recognized clinical interventionist, author, educator, and co-founder of Love First. For nearly four decades, he has helped individuals and families achieve lasting recovery through compassionate, evidence-informed intervention and long-term family support. As President of Love First, he oversees the organization’s day-to-day operations while continuing an active intervention and consulting practice.

A Life Shaped by Recovery

Jeff often says, “Intervention saved my life.” His personal recovery began on October 4, 1981, and that experience has shaped every aspect of his professional career. Having experienced the transformative power of recovery firsthand, he has dedicated his life to helping others discover the same hope for themselves and their families.

Author and Educator

Jeff is the co-author of Love First: A Family’s Guide to Intervention (Hazelden, 3rd edition, 2021), the most widely-used books on family intervention. He is also the author of the recovery memoir Navigating Grace: A Solo Voyage of Survival and Redemption and co-author, with Jerry Boriskin, Ph.D., of At Wit’s End: What You Need to Know When a Loved One Is Diagnosed with Addiction and Mental Illness. He was also a contributor and associate editor for Human Development magazine. Throughout his career, Jeff has written extensively on the spirituality of recovery, the Love First model of intervention, and the principles that support long-term recovery.

Clinical Leadership

Jeff has worked full-time in the addiction treatment field since 1986. His clinical experience includes the Hazelden Foundation and Sacred Heart Rehabilitation Center. He served as president and CEO of the Borden Cottage treatment facility, and director of program development for Brighton Hospital. At Love First, he has helped shape one of the nation’s most respected intervention practices, emphasizing dignity, family involvement, and sustained recovery.

Recognition and Service

In 2026, Jeff and Debra Jay jointly received the National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers (NAATP) Michael Ford Journalism and Writing Award in recognition of more than three decades of writing, teaching, and innovation that helped establish families as essential partners in addiction treatment and recovery.

In 2025, Jeff and Debra Jay were jointly honored by The Retreat with the George Mann Spirit of Community Award in recognition of their lifelong contributions to families affected by addiction.

Besides his writing and activities at Love First, Jeff currently serves on the board of the Association of Intervention Specialists and on the advisory board of Jefferson House in Detroit. His previous leadership roles include service as president of the Terry McGovern Foundation, in Washington, DC, trustee of the Michigan Association of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselors, Dawn Farm Treatment Center, and the Employee Assistance Professionals Association of Greater Detroit.

Guiding Philosophy

Jeff believes that recovery is built on hope, honesty, compassion, and action. His work continues to reflect his conviction that families are among the most powerful forces for healing and that intervention, when practiced with skill and love, can open the door to lasting recovery.

$36 per family