It’s labeled as an addiction.
Baltimore, Md (KM) Problem gambling is often called the “silent disease,” according to Carin Miller, a Western Maryland Certified Peer Support Specialist with the Maryland Center for Excellence on Problem Gambling. “Prior to 2013, this was not considered an addiction. It was considered more of a disorder,” she said. “And after many years of research by colleges, universities and researchers, they found that this is indeed an addiction, and that it can be treated.”
Miller says some of the signs of a gambling addiction include “becoming compulsive with gambling. And lying and cheating, and trying to figure out how we can manipulate into gambling,” she said. In addition, a problem gambler is always borrowing money to continue their gaming activities.
For more than a decade, Miller says she was a gambling addict, and it took a toll on her life. “We lose self respect. We lose control. And we lose time with our family. I’ll never get that time back with my family which is one of the most heartbreaking things. about my addiction is my children. I wasn’t there for them a lot of the time,” she says.
But there is a way out of a gambling addiction. Miller says individuals must first realize they have a problem, and reach out for help. The Maryland Center of Excellence on Problem Gambling provides free services to persons who want to get over their gambling addiction. “And that might be a Gamblers’ Anonymous meeting. It might be a recovery meeting. It might be going into counseling and talking with a counselor or a psychiatrist. And then accepting the fact that we will have to fight this for the rest of our lives,” :says Miller.
The Center, according to its website, provides “healthy and informed choices regarding gambling and problem gambling through public awareness, and education, prevention, technical assistance to the behavioral health care system, peer recovery support, research and public policy.” It’s a program of the University of Maryland School of Medicine and it’s funded by the Maryland Department of Health Behavioral Health Administration.
Anyone who needs help with a gambling problem or an addiction can call 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537).
“We have to work a program. We have to accept support. And we also have to accept that we have a problem so that we can seek those services and resources to help us maintain our recovery and to use the tools in the program that we chose,” says Miller.
In a state which has gambling casinos, slot machines and a lottery, and with ways to bet on sports on line, Miller says these tools will help persons who may fall back into gambling to stay away.
She says problem gambling affects more than just persons with the addiction. It can affect their families. “Family members don’t even realize until they’re getting evicted from the house, or there’s no food on the table, or the electric bill hasn’t been paid and they’re losing their power,” says Miller. “But we do have a program through Maryland Coalition of Families that helps a family member who doesn’t understand it.”
Those families can also call 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2637) for the help they need.
Despite all of the difficulty faced by persons with gambling addictions and their families, Miller says there is hope. “Recovery is possible. And, honestly, if you feel like you’re gambling and it’s causing harm, please don’t hesitate to reach out,” she says. “We’re neutral on gambling. We can help you stop, limit or control.”
By Kevin McManus