Are you, or is anyone you know a compulsive gambler?

simba66 · 6th September 2008, 15:18

Unfortunately one of my closest friends has a very serious problem with Gambling and find as it is a close friend, it affects me.

Does any one have any first hand experience of this, and how did you deal with it?

Either being a gambler your self or knowing someone close who is?

Any feed back and advise right now would be appreciated, as the person concerned was supposed to fly here today to live and is at an airport on the peninsula with no where to go back to, and no money. Im in no position to help him financially.

Gamblers anon is the obvious one, but does any one have any experience of this either now or in the past?

singleton · 6th September 2008, 15:34

I had a friend who went out to clear minesafter the 1st gulf war. He spent 6 months out there and reckoned on having £70k in the bank. He came home and his wife had done the lot on bandits in the pub. He divorced her over it.
Also had a mate in the army who was bad. His wife went back to the UK to visit family and when she got back he had sold the washing machine, tv and video aswell as other household stuff to feed his habit. She left him over it.
Dont really know what advice to give except dont lend them any money. Put your mate up for a while on the condition he stops or is out. Lending money to help them wont work as it will just end up on a horse..
I think hitting hard times will show him just how low he has sunk and hopefully make him realise you dont see many skint bookmakers.....

doreen · 6th September 2008, 21:30

I´m not sure if there is a Gambler's Anon. on the island, but there certainly is a branch or two of AA (Alcoholics Anon) .. I would suggest making contact with them as they will probably have dealt with cross-addicted people.

The advice for dealing with someone who has an addiction is always tough love - don´t "enable" them in any way: unless they want to stop, you cannot help them.

singleton · 6th September 2008, 21:54

Just had a thought... I think you need a passport to go in a casino so say you will put his in your "safe" so he cant go and when taking him out go to pubs that dont have bandits. No temptation

Maybe a start to helping him. Just try to talk and dont be judgemental. Thats what mates do...

emskie · 8th September 2008, 15:52

I am fairly sure there is a GA at the Christian Fellowship in the Apollo Centre in Los Cris.....hope your freind gets sorted out