RI Gambling Treatment Program
First Person: The Effects
of Problem Gambling
 The
following account was written by a patient in the Rhode Island
Gambling Treatment Program.
"I lost two and a half years of my life to gambling.
I am a middle-aged professional woman, a mother and a spouse who
became someone else because of this addiction. In the course of
two and a half years I lost values, morals, religious beliefs,
things taken for granted such as family, friends, the value of
money, and my desire to live. I became sleepless, filled with
worry, panic, alienated to those around me, self-destructive and
deceitful.
"I can't tell you the time of year, day or month that gambling
took control of me—I never thought it would ever happen!
I found myself going to Lincoln Park three to four times per week
and sometimes spending my entire paycheck. At first it was fun,
making an extra $200 for just relaxing a half-hour. But soon fun
turned to despair. Toward the end I would be sick just driving
to the track.
"I had tried to get help about one year into my disease
but unfortunately the treatment program I was referred to was
not knowledgeable with gambling problems. I continued gambling
another year-and-a-half. Thousands of dollars in loans, exhaustion,
loss of self-worth and strong desires to die were what followed.
"I have been in the Rhode Island Gambling Treatment Program
at Rhode Island Hospital for almost seven months now. I have not
gambled, I have not lied and I am working hard to restore my life
to what it was before the disease. The staff is extremely knowledgeable
in gambling problems, professional and caring beyond belief. They
literally saved my life.
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"I have not had urges to gamble
in some time, which is a weight off my shoulders. The individual
and group therapy I attend is so important to me it is like
a lifeline."
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"I don't know if I'll ever be the same person I was before
gambling. I try each day to deal with the destruction I caused
and to like myself again. I am proud I have not gambled, and my
family is proud of me. I still deal with a lot of guilt that I
am working to overcome—and I'm constantly aware of my surroundings.
I have not had urges to gamble in some time, which is a weight
off my shoulders. The individual and group therapy I attend is
so important to me it is like a lifeline.
"In recovery there are a lot of ups and downs regarding
self-worth, guilt feelings and regaining trust from loved ones.
But it's nothing compared to the sickening hell I lived through
in those two and a half years.
"If you think you have a problem give the Rhode Island
Gambling Treatment Program at RI Hospital a call. You will not
be sorry."
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