State Report Finds Hundreds of Thousands Have Gambling Problems

State report finds hundreds of thousands have gambling problems

By Matt Durkee

Sunday, February 11, 2007

In an old church cafeteria, visitors are greeted with smiles and hugs that are more than politeness. Showing up means you’re a survivor. Showing up means you’re trying.

As the meeting gets under way, people introduce themselves.

“Hi. My name is Gary, and I’m a compulsive gambler. It’s been, uh, three days since I last placed a bet.”

“But he’s here,” a woman whispers to her neighbor. “That takes guts.”

In all, nine people show up on a Tuesday night to drink coffee and repeat a weekly ritual of reading, confessing, clapping and praying that helps compulsive gamblers steel themselves against the lure of the bet.

These nine, however, are just a fraction of the people with gambling problems in the High Desert, according to a new report by the state Department of Alcohol and Drug Problems.

A comprehensive study of problem gambling in California finds that 3.7 percent of the state population has a lifetime problem or are pathological gamblers. That means 750,000 to 1 million Californians have serious gambling issues. But the numbers may be under reporting the problem, says Bruce Roberts, executive director of the nonprofit California Council on Problem Gambling. The study did not poll minors, and Roberts believes there are more like 1.5 million Californians with gambling problems.

“Bill Lockyer (former state attorney general and now state treasurer) says there are 600,000 kids with gambling problems,” Roberts says.

“This is the first generation of (California) kids growing up in a gambling-permissive society,” says Roberts.

The report also found that the prevalence of problem and pathological gamblers varies by region in the state.

Counties along the Nevada border, including San Bernardino, and counties throughout Southern California, where several tribal casinos are found, have the highest prevalence of problem gamblers in the state.

Gambling’s availability in the state has surged in the past 10 years, doing just $2.5 billion worth of business in 1996 but an estimated $13 billion in 2004, the report says. It’s a booming business that isn’t expected to slow down any time soon.

More tribal casinos are likely on the way, including two in the Barstow area.

Last week, state senators Patricia Wiggins, D-Santa Rosa, and Roy Ashburn, R-Bakersfield, announced legislation to try again to gain approval for the Barstow casinos.

Remote and Internet gambling are expected to increase, and the report says legalization of casinos across the border in Mexico is a possibility.

And if those possibilities aren’t enough to tempt your hardearned dollar, consider the state lottery’s new product: a raffle that promises the best odds ever for winning $1 million.

Obviously the vast majority of people who gamble do not exhibit self-destructive behavior beyond the occasional loss of a few dollars.

Gambling addicts are distinguished by their need to “self-medicate,” says clinical psychologist Steven Rothstein, Ph.D., of Desert Behavioral Health in Apple Valley.

“Gambling releases chemicals in your brain that give you a rush. It makes you feel alive, intense, excited,” he says.

“Emotions are hard to handle, so people want to get away from them.

“Most people don’t use one thing to self-medicate,” Rothstein says. “A little of this, a little of that — wine, video games, online gambling — all provide means to escape. People will sit at a slot machine for hours and hours. Chain-smoking, drinking go hand in hand with it.”

Research bears this out. The report says problem and pathological gamblers are more prone to substance abuse than the general population. Alcohol use goes up with gambling severity.

For compulsive gamblers, the greatest cost is in relationships.

“You can get the money back. You can’t get trust back,” a woman confides at the Gamblers Anonymous meeting. Heads nod in agreement.

A first-time visitor breaks down as she tells her story. Five years ago, she received a $50,000 inheritance. Within a month, $20,000 was gone. She lied to her parents and children, telling them everything was fine.

“It progressed to the point where people didn’t know who I was. I lied to my husband and he no longer trusts me,” she says and begins to cry.

They are getting a divorce. Her husband says he loves her but he just can’t trust her. She has gambled child-support checks from a previous marriage and then gambled some more to try to get the money back.

“A lot of things are falling down on me,” she says.

Other members of the group console her, telling her she’s made the right first step by coming to the Gamblers Anonymous meeting.

Unfortunately, the state report notes, there are few services available for compulsive gamblers seeking help. A help line, (800) GAMBLER , is not well known.

Gamblers Anonymous, somewhat better known, is essentially the only means of assistance for Californians. The 12-step program preaches the importance of staying close to a group of fellow sufferers for moral support.

Many of the members, as they introduce themselves, can happily report that it’s been years since their last gambling, but they keep coming to the meetings because it’s the only way they can be sure it won’t happen again.

But with only nine members on an average weeknight, it stands to reason there are many more who need help but aren’t seeking it.

“When you can remove the drive to self-medicate and work through your feelings of loss and anguish, you can get through to the other end,” Rothstein says. “People who come to therapy — there used to be this big stigma about it, but, ironically, the ones who need the help most are the ones who are in the greatest denial about needing help. They are the last ones to get it, and are more likely to get taken.”