True Friends
Many of the people I speak with are motivated to contact me because of problematic circumstances resulting from problem gambling. These circumstances are always implicitly financial, but can also be legal, marital, familial, professional and of course emotional, in nature. These circumstances basically force the acknowledgement that they or someone they know needs help with problem gambling.
But there are also people who help not because they must, but because they want to and can. These callers consist of friends, coworkers, agency staff, recovery-group members and even casino employees. Although not forced to, these individuals often call/text/email for someone who is feeling too weak or too confused to seek and find help alone—and so they become a literal lifeline for the affected gambler. More specifically, many of these living and breathing lifelines frequently call, make the appointment and even attend the initial sessions with the gambler.
Whenever I speak with one of these people I am naturally inspired to mention how fortunate the struggling individual is to know them and have their support and aid. Problem gambling is devastating, a psychological force capable of producing a hurricane of personal disaster for the gambler and everyone close to him/her. And, like a natural disaster, the destructive power of problem gambling always affects many lives in many ways and typically transforms a peaceful home into a pile of ruins.
But with help there is the possibility of addressing problem gambling and of redeeming even the most devastated life. Thus we can agree that these lifelines are literal life-savers and are, in the deepest and truest sense of the word, “a friend”.
Of course, it is true that sometimes these “friends” don’t know exactly what to do and also that there are problem gamblers who don’t have such life-savers current in their lives. To these persons we warmly invite your contact, that we may help them help their friend or that we might fulfill the role of that concerned friend who can help them themselves.
For more info or to see examples of how to take action check out the links below: