National Problem Gambling Awareness  Week: March 4-12, 2012

Washington, DC – Gambling has become a popular activity for people of many ages – and seniors are no exceptions. Like the rest of the population, most older adults can enjoy gambling as a form of recreation and social engagement. However, others may become problem gamblers.

Problem gambling, also known as gambling addiction or compulsive  gambling, is defined as the urge to gamble despite harmful negative consequences  or a desire to stop. It’s estimated that 1-4 percent of the population is at  risk for developing gambling problems. Virtually anyone – men or women, young or  old, from every religion, race and socio-economic background – can be at risk  for developing a gambling problem. They can play the horses, slots, the lottery,  pull-tabs, cards and bingo.

 Older adults are at particular risk for developing gambling addiction. Their gambling behavior differs from gambling in younger age groups for a variety of reasons:

 • When people are coping with big changes or losses they are more vulnerable to developing a gambling problem; many older adults face life transitions and losses, such as death of  loved ones, end of career or isolation from family and friends.
• Older adults who have gambled away their retirement savings don’t have working years to make up their losses.
• Many older adults may not understand addiction, making them less likely to identify a gambling problem.
• Older adults appear less willing to seek assistance for a gambling  problem than younger adults.
• Many older adults hide  their gambling because of the stigma associated with it and health professionals  rarely assess for problem gambling.
• Many older adults  have easy access to gambling and are drawn to gambling to fill their time or to  be with other people.
• Some older adults may have  cognitive impairment that interferes with their ability to make sound  decisions.

 The good news about gambling addiction is that treatment is effective, and recovery is real and attainable. This can make a significant impact on the lives of gamblers and families who are affected by their addictions.

 The National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) has established  a national helpline to assist those who are concerned about their gambling  habits. The helpline number is 1-800-522-4700 and is available 24 hours per day,  365 days a year.

 The NCPG is the national advocate for programs and services to assist problem gamblers and their families. The mission of the NCPG is to 
increase public awareness of pathological gambling, ensure the widespread 
availability of treatment for problem gamblers and their families, and to 
encourage research and programs for prevention and education. 
Visit www.ncpgambling.org for more information.

WASHINGTON, D.C., Feb. 28, 2012-Gambling problems are more prevalent among military veterans than in the general public. The National Council on Problem Gambling urges veterans, their loved ones and healthcare providers to be particularly aware of gambling addiction. Warning signs include preoccupation with gambling, chasing losses and financial harm. Problem gambling is associated with substance abuse, depression and posttraumatic stress disorder  (PTSD). 
     That is why the National Council on Problem Gambling has selected to highlight veterans as one population especially at-risk for developing a problem with gambling during its 10th annual "National Problem Gambling Awareness Week" March 4-10. The purpose of this grass roots campaign is  to raise public awareness of problem gambling and educate healthcare providers  about resources available for help. 
     The National Council believes that, to combat problem gambling among military personnel and veterans, one must first understand the unique circumstances facing this societal group. While the military acknowledges and addresses several addiction and mental health issues, as well as problems associated with traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder, interventions and treatment for problem and pathological gambling have not yet been integrated into the system. Minimizing the harmful consequences of gambling  among veterans and military personnel will require improved awareness and  targeted efforts. 
     During National Problem Gambling Awareness Week, groups from across the country will be reaching out to veterans to offer information and answer questions about the disorder. For more information, please email Jeff Beck at ccgnjjeff@aol.com or visit www.npgaw.org.

Marty:
Omaha’s The Biggest Loser

Is coming to Peace and Power Counseling’s treatment group!

Thursday December 8, 2011 at 7:00pm

 You will learn about: 
· Marty’s exercise program
· How affordable it is.
· Marty’s tricks for losing weight and keeping the weight off.
· How this relates to you.

I hope you can join us. Please RSVP to Gina Fricke at 402-515-7412.

Sometimes life can seem like a  tangled mess. Dysfunctional relationships, past or current abuse, dead-end careers, financial stressors, and so much more in our daily lives can create knots of hopelessness, discouragement, confusion, and depression that look impossible to untangle. 

If that describes your life, it might be time to get help. Having someone with compassion and understanding help you reorganize your thoughts and recognize unhealthy behaviors can be the way to a fresh start. As a therapist-in-training, I commit to caring about your needs while continuing to expand my knowledge as I serve you. 
  
I currently intern under the direct supervision of Gina Fricke, LCSW, CCGC, NCGC, II, owner of Peace and Power Counseling and will earn my Master’s in Counseling from the University of Nebraska at Omaha in May 2012. Through my training in practicum and internships, I have experience in relationship, young adult, and career counseling.

Peace and Power Counseling has a new intern.  Bethany will graduate with her Master Degree in Counseling in May 2012.  She is learning how to counsel individuals and couples. Because she is a student, we are able to offer reduced cost counseling sessions to those who have no insurance.  Please contact Gina Fricke at 402-515-7412 to schedule a time to see Bethany. We will accept the first five people who contact us. 

Please be aware that if you decide to work with Bethany some of your sessions will be observed by Gina Fricke and that Bethany will be receiving guidance on your case by Gina as well. Please be sure to ask about this if you have any concerns.  We look forward to hearing from you.

Gina Fricke at Peace and Power Counseling was recognized by SCORE as one of 5 entrepreneurs of 2010. I would like to thank Bob Balzerick of SCORE for all his guidance and support as I moved to a new chapter of my life at Peace and Power Counseling. Article in Midland's Business Journal can be ordered 402-330-1760, SCORE can be reached at 402-221-3606.

Psychiatric community decides to classify uncontrolled gamblers as addicts, which could change how society views them

Author:

Mangels, John

Source:

Cleveland.com

Published Date:

May 16, 2011

Full Document:

USA - Out-of-control gambling -- a particular problem among regular slot machine players -- will be reclassified from a behavioral disorder to an addiction, as of 2013.For more than 30 years, doctors have considered pathological gambling a behavioral disorder, not an addiction. But that's about to change.

In 2013, the psychiatric community will officially classify uncontrolled gamblers as addicts -- the first-ever "behavioral addiction." Pathological gambling will no longer be an impulse-control problem, like fire-starting and obsessive hair-plucking.

Instead it will be grouped with "classic" addictions such as alcoholism, smoking and drug abuse in the next edition of the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, the sourcebook that guides diagnosis and treatment.

The change signifies that getting hooked doesn't necessarily require ingesting a mind-altering substance, like chugging whiskey or injecting heroin. It also can result from spinning a slot machine's reels.

The re-branding of pathological gambling as an addiction is based on research -- much of it in the last decade -- that shows striking similarities between the conditions. The brain-functioning and behaviors of all addicts have a lot in common, scientists say, whether the person is drinking, smoking, shooting up or gambling. That suggests, but doesn't prove, they share the same biological underpinnings.

Pathological gambling's reboot is controversial. Some critics believe it's political and further "medicalizes" a behavioral weakness that shouldn't be labeled a disease.

Still, it could alter how pathological gamblers are treated, how their care is paid for, and how society views them.

Pathological gambling a young research field

Non-gamblers and those who gamble without problems often have trouble understanding why anyone can't just walk away from a slot machine, or avoid a casino altogether.

"I think we probably are still fairly judgmental" about pathological gambling, said psychologist Loreen Rugle, the director of Connecticut's problem gambling services program. "Most people rank gambling as a moral offense that should literally be treated with a good swift kick in the pants. Public awareness is years behind other mental health and addictive disorders."

Loreen Rugle, psychologist and Connecticut's director of problem gambling services, talks about differing attitudes toward problem gambling and harm-reduction.

Part of the reason is lack of knowledge. Scientists, and therefore the public, have a much better understanding of substance-based addictions than of pathological gambling. They've been the subject of decades of study, much of it federally funded, with national institutes dedicated to alcoholism and drug abuse established in the early 1970s.

Pathological gambling research, by contrast, is a young field that often scrambles for money.

The popular view of excessive gambling as a moral weakness also stems from widespread skepticism that a misbehavior could be beyond a person's control, especially if a mind-altering substance isn't involved.

In short, people may find it hard to believe that preoccupation with gambling is a disease.

But if the definition of a disease is a physiological, biochemical or genetic abnormality that causes harm, then pathological gambling fits the bill.

More to the point, gambling addicts and substance addicts share enough of those abnormalities, as well as symptoms, to convince researchers the disorders are closely related.

Dr. Heather Chapman, director of the Brecksville VA Medical Center's gambling addiction treatment program, discusses gambling addiction.

"There are a host of reasons why [pathological gambling] should be with substance-use disorders," said psychologist and addiction researcher Nancy Petry, a member of the American Psychiatric Association committee that recommended the change.

For example, brain scans show that uncontrolled gamblers and drug abusers both have lowered activity in a neural circuit that's involved in judging risk, University of Colorado researchers reported in 2007.

There's also evidence that vulnerability to gambling addiction and substance addiction is inherited, suggesting the conditions have gene defects in common. "We're seeing people who are prone to pathological gambling who have addictions in their family in general," said psychologist Heather Chapman, who runs the gambling treatment program at the Brecksville VA Medical Center.

And the symptoms, treatment and outcomes for both types of addicts have a lot of overlap. Gamblers and substance abusers tend to get hooked as teens or young adults, and they're the same personality types: impulsive, bad-decision-making risk-takers.

They both feel cravings, both need more and more gambling or drugs as time passes to experience the same high (a condition called tolerance), and both undergo uncomfortable withdrawal when they stop. That hints the addicts' brain wiring has undergone similar changes -- or neuroadaptation -- whether by thumbing a slot machine a thousand times an hour or smoking crack every morning.

Their addictions each wax and wane. They may recover without treatment, but both respond to motivational and 12-step programs.

The drug naltrexone, which blunts drug and alcohol cravings, also seems to help gambling addicts resist the urge to bet, further suggesting -- though not proving -- that behavioral and substance addictions are two sides of the same coin. In fact, more than 70 percent of gambling addicts also have alcohol problems and more than 30 percent are drug abusers.

"It's very rare that I get a 'pure' gambler," Chapman said. "Most of them have another addiction in the past."

Reclassifying could affect funding

Switching pathological gambling to the category of addictions could help attract more research money, and more researchers, said Christine Reilly, executive director of the Institute for Research on Gambling Disorders.

Under its current incarnation as an impulse disorder, "I don't think a lot of people in the field have taken it seriously as an addiction," said Reilly, whose organization manages pathological gambling research paid for by the casino industry. The more than $22 million donated by the industry since 1996 has filled a huge void in government funding.

"If you're a young investigator and you see hardly any gambling research getting funded at the national level, why would you pick that as your career?" Reilly said. Reclassifying gambling as an addiction "could make a huge difference."

The change also could affect the willingness of insurers to pay for pathological gambling treatment.

"They pay for [substance] addiction now, whereas a lot of companies won't pay for impulse disorders," said Jenny Campbell-Roux, who directs the Problem Gambling Network of Ohio.

Adding gambling addiction to the list of covered disorders probably won't happen without a fight, warned Keith Whyte, executive director of the National Council on Problem Gambling. "If [insurers] have been refusing to address this disorder for decades, it's unlikely they're going to change their policies without regulation or legislation."

The biggest impact of gambling's reclassification as an addiction may be on pathological gamblers themselves, who often have difficulty comprehending why they can't quit betting.

"You have addicts in recovery who don't understand -- 'If it's a [behavioral] action, why can't I stop it? I'm not putting something into my brain.'" said Campbell-Roux. "They don't get it."

On April 15 three online poker sites were shut down.  How is this impacting you?  There are some who believe that the casinos will be more busy after the websites were closed, others believe that there will be more illegal poker games in communities.  What do you think will happen?  What have you seen happen already?  I would love to hear from you on this.

For many gamblers this check feels like, "free money," and an opportunity to win more.  Many individuals with addiction to gambling have a hard time not gambling their tax return checks. 

Some suggestions that might prevent this from happening:
1) Develop accountability with your check.
    Find someone else to tell when you get it and tell what you plan to do with it.  Ask them to go with you when you take it to the bank and have them sit with you while you write out the checks to those you owe money or for your bills.
2) Most businesses will take your payment in advance.  
    If you decide you want to put the money toward your rent or mortgage or toward another debt, don't wait.  Pay it now.  They don't mind taking your payment early.
3) Have someone else hold the check for you, or deposit it into their account.
    If you don't have access to the money it is not likely to be gambled. Make sure you trust the perosn who will hold your money, make sure that the person is also not going to make you beg for the money when you need it.

If you need additional help to prevent money you don't want to gamble from being gambled please give Peace and Power Counseling a call, we can help.