When compared to other addictions, gambling might not seem as bad or as dangerous, but just like being addicted to alcohol or drugs, gambling can have a definite impact on someone’s life.
"With gambling, people find the addiction to the excitement, to the possibility of hitting the big dollars, despite the fact that in gambling, you lose more than you win, for most of us," said Michael Schoenhofer, Executive Director of the Mental Health and Recovery Services Board.
Ohio for Responsible Gambling notes that behaviors like frequently borrowing money to gamble and lying to loved ones about gambling are danger signs that someone might be a problem gambler. With March being Problem Gambling Awareness Month, a few local organizations are taking initiative and trying to change some of the stigma surrounding gambling addictions.
"Number one is creating an awareness that gambling can be an addiction," Schoenhofer said. "The second thing is we have counselors that are trained to do treatment at Coleman [Professional Services] and finally Partnership for Violence Free Families has a support group, Keeping What Matters."
But it’s not just adults that are affected by gambling; even students could find themselves with a gambling problem, just like adults.
"Two-thirds of the people getting treatment for problem gambling are teenagers, something that we don't recognize," said Donna Dickman, Executive Director for Partnership for Violence Free Families. "So, where are we gambling - we are gambling at school, maybe over dice, maybe over poker, maybe over our own teams' sports games."
Like the adults with gambling problems, those students can also find help with the local organizations that are reaching out to help those struggling with problem gambling.
