The Reality Families Already Know

Why Inpatient Rehab Fails High-Functioning Individuals Alone.

Most families who call us have already done this before. Not once. Sometimes five times. Sometimes closer to fifteen or twenty, across some of the most well-regarded facilities in the country, each one a genuine, well-intentioned stay, and each one followed by the same collapse within weeks of coming home.

That isn't a failure of willpower, and it isn't a failure of the facility either. It's a structural gap. Inpatient treatment works by removing every trigger: the phone, the company, the access, the pressure to perform. It has to, that's what makes early stabilization possible. But the moment someone walks back through their own front door, every one of those triggers is waiting exactly where they left it, and there is no one standing beside them to catch the first wobble.

We built Epic Journey specifically for the part no facility can do: staying beside someone through the actual re-entry, in their actual life, for as long as it takes to hold.

The Epic Journey team together, real life not a facility

Clinical Pedigree

Clinical Pedigree Meets Real-World Accountable Mentorship.

Preston Durnford has owned and operated subacute detox and primary mental health stabilization facilities since 2015, founding Fresh Start of California and SoCal Mental Health, and working directly with complex, dual-diagnosis cases. That clinical foundation is real. It's also not the product.

The product is what happens after the clinical world's job is done. Treatment centers are built to stabilize. We're built to walk beside someone through the part that actually determines whether it holds: the return to a company they run, a family that's watching, a career with no room for a visible relapse, or a young adult who has never built a life worth staying sober for in the first place.

We build custom life architecture around the person in front of us. For the founder or executive who has everything except the ability to sit still with themselves, that means finding what real beauty looks like on the other side of performance. For the young adult who has nothing built yet, no direction, no structure, that means building it from the studs up, one real decision at a time, with someone standing right there when it's hard.

12+

Years, One-on-One Work

3,000+

People Worked With Directly

500+

Professional Interventions

2015

Founded, Detox & Stabilization

Preston Durnford · Founder, Epic Journey. Sober 13 years. Author of The Epic Journal. Built and sold multiple behavioral-health treatment centers before founding Epic Journey.

The Epic Difference

Why the Bond Is the Difference: Nature, Fun, and a Life Worth Staying Sober For.

Not every treatment center goes out and does the things we do, and that's exactly why people refer us. This isn't adventure therapy run by a rotating staff on a schedule. Preston does the surf session, the trail, the boat day, the sky dive, beside you, not from behind a clipboard.

The goal isn't to distract someone from addiction. It's to build a life so genuinely good that going back to the drugs simply doesn't compete anymore. When being fully sober and well feels this alive, this connected, this much like your actual life again, that becomes the real relapse prevention, not a rule you're white-knuckling.

Watch

Preston Durnford and a client, a real moment from an Epic Journey

This is why the results hold.

I've watched long-term recovery hold for client after client because we did the deeper work together, in real life, not just in a room. That's the difference a real bond makes, and it's why so many of the people I've worked with build recovery that actually lasts.

Preston Durnford skydiving over the coast — Preston, above the clouds

The Continuum

Our 3-Phase Continuum: Before, During, and After Treatment.

Our outcomes have shifted because of where we actually show up. We physically shield the transitions that break most people, and we remain by their side for months, not a check-in call every few weeks.

Phase 1

Before

We're often the first call, before any facility is chosen. We assess honestly, sometimes that means placement with one of our vetted partners is the right first step, and we say so. We help the family and the individual make that decision without panic.

Phase 2

During

We stay engaged as the liaison and advocate while someone is in treatment, coordinating with clinical teams, keeping family informed, and making sure nothing gets lost in the handoff between departments and providers.

Phase 3

After

This is where the real work lives. We physically shield the transition: discharge day, the first week back at the office, the first family dinner, the first business trip alone. We remain embedded, in person or by your side, for months.

Concierge care is based locally in Southern California and Newport Beach, and travels nationwide alongside clients wherever life actually happens.

Common Questions

Frequently Asked Questions.

What is a sober companion?

A sober companion is a trained professional who stays close during high-risk moments, early recovery, and travel. At Epic Journey your companion provides in-person or virtual daily support, real-time crisis help, and safe sober transport when you need it, serving Newport Beach and Orange County with travel nationwide. We coach, coordinate, and refer; we are not a licensed treatment facility.

Sober coach vs sponsor: what is the difference?

A sponsor is an unpaid volunteer from a 12-step program who shares their own recovery experience on their own schedule. A sober coach is a trained professional you retain for structured, on-demand support, accountability, and crisis planning whenever you need it. Many Newport Beach clients keep both: a sponsor for fellowship and an Epic Journey sober coach for professional, confidential guidance.

How much does a sober companion cost?

Sober companion cost varies with the level of care, from a few hours of virtual coaching per week to full-time in-person or travel coverage. Epic Journey is cash-pay and confidential, with clear day and week rates quoted on your free consult, no insurance billing and no surprises. We scope the right amount of support for your situation before you commit to anything.

When do you need a sober companion?

A sober companion helps most during high-risk windows: the first weeks after treatment, a return home, work travel, holidays, weddings, or any event with alcohol and old triggers. If you or a loved one feels the pull toward relapse and wants a trained professional in their corner, that is the moment to reach out. Epic Journey supports clients across Orange County and nationwide.

Do you travel with clients, including live-in support?

Yes. A concierge companion engagement can mean daily in-person support locally in Newport Beach and Southern California, or full live-in and travel coverage alongside a client on business trips, family events, or wherever a schedule requires it. We build coverage around your actual itinerary, including safe sober transport to and from appointments, airports, and meetings, so accountability never has a gap while you're away from home.

Is this completely confidential for executives and public figures? Do you sign NDAs?

Yes, and we mean it literally. Engagements are discreet by default, and formal NDAs are available and standard for executives, founders, and public figures who need one. There is no facility intake, no shared program roster, no insurance paper trail, and no disclosure to employers, boards, or family without your explicit consent.

Why does Epic Journey use nature, adventure, and shared experiences as part of recovery?

Because willpower alone rarely outlasts a life that doesn't feel worth staying sober for. Epic Journey builds real, shared experiences, surfing, hiking, travel, adventure, directly into the work, done alongside Preston personally rather than a rotating staff. The goal is a life so genuinely good that returning to substances stops competing with how good being sober actually feels.

Areas We Serve

Serving Tustin and Every Corner of Orange County.

Concierge care is based in Newport Beach and Southern California, serving Tustin in person and traveling nationwide with clients.

Sober Companion in Tustin, CA.