An inside peak into the steps and process for beating gambling addiction.  This case study illustrates the threefold approach to creating a successful outcome for ‘David’, an anonymous portrayal of real client’s addiction, treatment, and counselling.

The client.

David was 38 years old when he came to me. He was a senior manager at an international bank.

History.

David had been gambling since he was 14. It started with fruit machines in arcades and by the age of twenty-five he had had 16 bookmakers and accounts with 18 casinos.

Consequences.

Despite being a high earner, David was losing every penny to gambling. His job was compromised: leaving work to go to the bookmakers five times daily, spending half the working day preoccupied by gambling. He had a fiancé – but sold her engagement ring to fund his addiction when he ran out of cash. He went from thinking about committing crimes to get money to suicidal ideations.

By the time he came to me, David was desperate for help. The following paragraphs show real-life exercises in the threefold approach we adopted.

Bottom Line Behaviours:

Established the triggers – people, places, things, feelings

Created a treatment plan including self help support (Gamblers Anonymous)

A strategy for each potential trigger

Agreement of the bottom line behaviours – what David will not do and how he will not do it.

Financial Trust and Accountability:

Established the size of the problem – how much, who to and where are the gaps in information

Where possible, communicated with family

Made a realistic base line budget and agreed strategies for the management and transparency of finances.

Re-building the Internal:

Examined the impact of gambling addiction on David’s life and those around him

Examined loss of relationship with gambling

Addressed psychological recovery (self-esteem, self-concept), behavioural recovery (behavioural patterns), social recovery (social relationships) and physical recovery (nutrition, sleep, exercise).

The Outcome.

David successfully recovered from his gambling addiction, bar one slip. He is now married, has his own consultancy business and has a substantial deposit saved to buy a house.

 

If you or a loved one, family or friend, is suffering from the grips of addiction of gambling, please get in contact for a free call to determine the best course of action for your situation.

Call now: 02032397061  

Addiction moves quickly, take this one step to simply find out your options, and we will work it out for you one day at a time.