As the gaming industry continues to expand and continues to bombard the public with massive advertising campaigns promoting gambling, more and more people from all walks of life are starting to develop problems. All too often they do not see the harm that gambling is causing for themselves and those close to them until it is too late. There is a thin invisible line that separates problem gamblers from compulsive gamblers. But once they cross that line they lose all sense of logic and in their desperation they disregard consequences. They find themselves on an emotional rollercoaster and believe that if they can just make one big win that all their problems will be solved. However, that big win rarely comes and if it does they tend to gamble even more often and for larger amounts. They fail to realize that it is their behavior that has to change in order to cope with this illness. Compulsive gambling is an illness that can never be cured but can be arrested. Over any period of time it gets worse, never better. Compulsive gamblers need to seek help from professional counsellors or by attending self-help groups such as G.A.

As parents of mature children we sometimes overlook signals that there is a gambling problem, and we help them out every time they come to us with financial problems. Compulsive gamblers are very creative people and will often lie in order to get money with which to gamble. These are called bailouts, and to a compulsive gambler it’s almost like a win. Even when money is borrowed with which to pay bills, the compulsive gambler will use some of it to try to make a win and quite often will chase his or her losses until it too is all spent. Compulsive gambling can affect anybody and it does not discriminate. It affects people from all walks of life and can defy the most intelligent minds. Compulsive gamblers are not bad people; they are merely people who are victims of a disease. A very treatable disease but first we have to recognize it, and the gambler has to admit that they have a problem.

As grandparents, we need to realize that some of our seemingly innocent actions can lead to future problems. By putting lottery tickets in a birthday card we are sending a negative message. We are developing a "something for nothing attitude" in our children. By sending them to the store to buy our lottery tickets, we are starting them down a bad road. Most adults in recovery trace their first gambling experience back to childhood. Studies carried out both in Montreal, Edmonton and many U.S. cities show us that the average age at which young people begin gambling is 10.5 years of age. Studies show us that approximately one in twenty adults has a gambling problem. That is to say five percent of all adults have a gambling problem to some extent. Moreover, adolescents twelve to seventeen years old who have gambled in the past twelve months were tested and the results were eye opening. Eight percent are problematic and fifteen percent are at risk or borderline. Laws have been recently legislated to prevent under eighteen years old from buying lottery tickets and other on-line games but we, as parents need to understand the reasoning and to discourage gambling among our youth. As well, we need to keep an alert mind and heed the warning signs when our mature children are always short of money for household expenses or often absent from family functions.


Here are some tips on preventing gambling problems:

Never gamble when you are ill, tired or depressed.
Always set a prior limit on your losses.
Don’t chase your losses.
Never gamble with money you can’t afford to lose.
Set a limit on the amount of time you intend to gamble.
Don’t gamble alone.
Learn more about gambling i.e. the odds of winning.

If you think that gambling is becoming a problem for you or someone you know, information is available from the library or by contacting Viva Consulting. Get a complete picture of gambling and problem gambling. Confidential help and referrals are available free of charge.

Sol Boxenbaum
CEO
Viva Consulting