Gambler’s Anonymous

INTRODUCTION

Gambler’s Anonymous is one of the many spin-offs of Alcoholic Anonymous. It was created in September 13, September in Los Angeles (California) by a group of people who wanted help out of their compulsive and pathological gambling addiction. What makes the treatment different in Gambler’s Anonymous then with going to seek professional help through helplines, outpatient, or rehabilitation centres is that the help offered for recovery is coming from other gambling addicts from all professions. In fact, the people attending Gambling Addiction range from all ages, sexual preferences, creeds, and ethnic backgrounds offering an informal set-up for those seeking recovery.

Gambler’s Anonymous is a spiritual, non-religious, program that offers a program that a consists of the 12 Steps that is created to help those seeking recovery to change everything about themselves in order to surrender to their gambling addiction which allows them to alter their behaviors, spiritual perceptions, and thinking patterns to constantly make them aware that they will always be an addict just in recovery. The program conveys a clear awareness that they are not just a recovering addict but they are an addict to anything including drugs, sex, alcohol, food, and any other obsessive-compulsive activity that can easily lead them back into their gambling problem or cross-addict to another activity.

In all meetings, that last for an hour, the preambles that are read out are reminding the addicts of the Traditions, the Steps, and hope for recovery. There are structured shares at these meetings where people either relate to the share or speak about whatever is going on for themselves regarding their recovery. This allows the group to learn new familiar groundings of their own addiction and sometimes get new insights that they were not aware of before of triggers, guidance, and even the rewards of recovery also known as The Promises.

THE TRADITIONS

The Traditions are somewhat like a constitution that stems from the Alcoholics Anonymous setting which states how things should and should not be handled in all meetings. Gambler’s Anonymous first intention is to ensure that the meetings speak about the message of recovery without giving professional advice but rather what has seemed to be working for each individual to allow them to stay out of gambling establishments and activities. Ultimately, the main intention is to stop self-destruction by leaving all forms of gambling behaviors and activities behind them. The purpose of this is to constructively deal with conflicts that arise from personal differences and agendas to promote a common welfare for all of the gambling addicts who attend these meetings. Hence, there in all the meetings worldwide there is a member who becomes a representative of each particular group that attends the general meetings consisting of other representatives of other members in the district to ensure the traditions (as well as other issues regarding finances, literature, newsletters, etc.) are kept to a uniformed standard.

Gambling Anonymous is run similar to a business with secretaries, treasurers, representatives, and chairpersons. However, the one difference is that unlike a business these individuals do not speak for Gambling Anonymous as a whole nor does the chairperson instruct or serve as the director at these meetings. These positions are services that any one who is a member can attain and no one, as an individual, may have dictatorship or control of the group members or the group meetings. There is a saying in Gambling Anonymous that they, as compulsive gamblers, must always acknowledge Tradition Two ‘our leaders are but trusted servants, they do not govern’.

Anybody who has the desire to quit gambling may attend these meetings regardless if this is an honest admission or whether they have gambled that day and/or have intentions of gambling the following day. This allows the ability for anyone with the gambling addiction to feel free, comfortable, and at home at these meetings. What is normally suggested that if an individual has gambled that day they are requested not to share at the meeting but they are free to be welcomed. This is also for the recovering the members to not judge nor condemn the newcomer for his activities the most important thing at these meetings to remain open-minding, loving, and carry the message of hope that recovery is possible.

Each individual group of Gambler’s Anonymous has the right to govern themselves as how they see fit without any interference from other groups. However, if the integrity of Gambler’s Anonymous is affected they are subject to be called out. In other words, should the group as a whole do any such activities that misrepresents Gambler’s Anonymous or behave in such a way where they disobey the traditions as originated from the preambles they can be reprimanded by the district committee of Gambler’s Anonymous in particular if the group affects other groups or associate themselves with anything outside of Gambler’s Anonymous.

Gambler’s Anonymous has one main purpose which is to carry the message of recovery. In this way, the members are aware that when they give their shares they are need to focus on what the meetings have done to assist their recovery. They can do this by sharing what wisdom, hope, and strength that they have received from the pamphlets, literature, their sponsors, or the treatment centers that they have attended. Ultimately, what the members the kinds of motivation that they are giving for the older members and newcomers is what has worked for them to keep their bodies and minds abstinent from gambling and the activities associated with them.

Tradition Six stipulates that ‘Gambler’s Anonymous ought never endorse, finance, or lend the Gamblers’ Anonymous name to any related facility or outside enterprise, lest problems of money, property, and prestige diver us from our primary purpose’. In other words, although Gamblers’ Anonymous often has a sector where they bring members of the group meetings to hospitals and institutions, this activity is done on behalf of the individuals as opposed to the particular group in order to keep true to the format of allowing the group to remain anonymous.

It also means that each Gamblers’ Anonymous meeting may not be endorse other agents or enterprises inclusive of other support meetings. This means that Gamblers’ Anonymous cannot financially support Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, and so on and so forth. Equally, Gamblers’ Anonymous cannot be financially supported by any institution. Tradition Five also requires that when they have social events such as conventions, picnics, annual social, and dances; they are advised not to have other logos, literature, clothing, or products that endorse other such agents, enterprises, or other support groups.

The Traditions further encourage the concept that each meeting must be self-supporting. This allows for each meeting to remain independent and prevents conflict from any outside committees on how the meetings should be run. In each meeting, during the closing ceremony there is always a cup or bag that goes around where people may donate whatever they feel free except for the newcomers. The money is given to the treasurer who allocates the funds for various things: rent, coffee/tea, biscuits, literature, etc. Occasionally, there are times when money may be short for whatever reasons and picnics, conventions, etc. are created to raise funds for whatever is still needed. Some meetings become larger and basic expenses still need to be covered and there is a prudent reserve that is created where more money is collected from the bigger attendance. These funds go to the local service committee in order to carry the message of recovery via local newsletters, public information mailings, hotlines, and post office fees.

Finally, the Traditions ask that Gamblers’ Anonymous gets no commercial advertising via any form of public media. This is so that the message can carry itself as opposed to the name Gamblers’ Anonymous. In this way, individuals carry their message not just by talking about how Gamblers’ Anonymous has helped them but in their behavior and spiritual principles they practice on a daily basis. It is true that one does hear the name Gamblers’ Anonymous through campaigns like Responsible Gambling Committees, various helplines, and professional therapeutic groups. Gamblers’ Anonymous can also make the Fellowship public with service announcement through local radio stations and posters displayed in communities as well as in hospital, institutions, jails, and schools because they are free and this allows the tradition of not allowing public endorsements to still be congruent.

THE TWELVE STEPS

The Twelve Steps Program is the way that many compulsive gamblers have found their way into recovery. These Steps are spoken about a lot in the Gamblers’ Anonymous meetings and they are also spoken about in the preamble in the opening of every meeting. Some people also practice them in a workbook usually that they work with a sponsor who is has done all of them and therefore has practice and experience of using them.

The first Step is having a person accepting his addiction and being able to admit that he is a gambling addict. Working with through stepwork, he Is able to see how he unsuccessfully tried to manage and control his gambling habit, managing his finances, and the level of lies and deceit that he was willing to do to hide his activities from his co-worker, He can also acknowledge that his rationalization and justification failed him at every turn. It also makes him aware of his mental obsession and that any form of gambling with or without monetary exchange will lead him back to the horses, casinos, or where ever his original gambling was.

The next thing is to understand that they do not have sane thinking because if they did they would not fall into the cycle of spinning out of control to gain an unattainable euphoria through winning – as there is no amount of money in the world that could ever make a gambler happy. They would not have to deal with hurting their loved ones, putting themselves in jeopardy of losing everything, then feeling ever so remorseful which is the one feeling that a gambler cannot deal with and it is this remorse, guilt, and shame that triggers a gambler into depression. Then, the only way out of this depression is to escape back into the casino or gambling activity to gain the unattainable euphoria.

After seeing that they are not sane in gambling, the second step further demonstrates how this need to control things, people, and places can also play outside of their gambling activity. Furthermore, they recognize that what all this pain and depression boils down to is not having any belief or faith in anything greater then themselves (be it a person, place, thing, or even a God/Higher Power) that could direct them to a saner version of life and how to cope with what they find unmanageable. Through going to the meetings and listening to the shares of other recovering gamblers they will be provided with hope that not only can they relieve themselves from the need to gamble but they can regain their lives back and even more gifts and graces that can happen to them through days, weeks, months, and years of abstinence from gambling and replacing them with attending Gamblers’ Anonymous meetings.

The next step is usually people struggle with the most and yet without this step they will always be in danger of relapsing and subjecting themselves through vast misery that gambling provides. Step Three asks the compulsive gambler to make a commitment to surrender his thinking/will and life over to a Higher Power/God to direct him to lead, protect, and guide him through the rest of the day of his life. In the stepwork, the questions that are asked are for the compulsive gambler to remind him of the many times when a Higher Power/God or some grace or miracle has shown up in his physical life.

The next six steps are what is known as house-cleaning as with compulsive gamblers have wrecked their lives in all aspects: personal relationships; vocational; financial; academically; and spiritually. They need to understand what they were missing in life was values and principles. Step four and five is a thorough briefing of what damage their immoral behavior has created damage for others. It is the first time the compulsive gambler gets to experience that all the reasons why they felt resentful, ashamed, and hurt by other people, institutions, and their own fears was really caused by the way they treated these people and their self-entitlement against institutions, people, and principles. This step is like a spiritual cleansing process for the compulsive gambler to realize that although they feel hurt and they also caused damage that they can free themselves from the past by letting go through forgiveness and let go of the past so they can focus on the now.

Step six and seven is a process where the compulsive gambler can begin to acknowledge that they have violated all their own values and principles i.e. honesty, respect, tolerance, trust, etc. Many compulsive gamblers feel they have a self-entitled complex confirming their belief that they are different and therefore have a right to be treated different making it okay to lie, manipulate, be inconsiderate and insensitive, and invalidating other people or their opinions or belief systems. Through step six and seven, they are able to accept that that they have defects of character and shortcomings that causes their minds and behaviors to hold them back in recovering. However, these steps can show them the values that they want to attain with an action-planned list on how to act on these behaviors and assess their own selves further making them into a more socially acceptable and content citizen of the earth.

Step eight and step nine is a process of becoming willing and making the required amendments that a compulsive needs to make in order to free himself from his own mistakes and correct the situations or relationships that he has caused damage to. In the case of a compulsive gambler, his amendments tend to be financial and it can take years to perform these corrections but they need to be done. The other amendments that can be made our fixing the beat-up relationships that they caused in their work or personal life.

The final three steps are a process of becoming aware of becoming more spiritually and morally improved on a daily basis without feeling the need to attain perfection but simply trying their best to become a better person. Step ten is taking a decision to be aware of one’s defects of character coming out and being willing to acknowledge them with the practice of immediately apologizing or making immediate amendments. Step eleven is a decision of developing and maintaining a conscious relationship with God/Higher Power through prayer and meditation daily. Step twelve is when a compulsive gambler has had his spiritual awakening that alters his psyche, conscience, thoughts, and behaviors as a result of doing these steps and carries the message of recovery to other compulsive gamblers.

SPONSORSHIP

It is recommended that a compulsive gambling gets a sponsor to help them with their new life in recovery and to lead them into the right direction. A sponsor is a person who has been clean for at least a year and is working the Program (attending regular meetings, has completed the 12 Steps, and is an active member of the Fellowship which means he has a service position). A sponsor may be found at any of these meetings and can be directly called upon by a member of the meeting or recommended for someone who goes to the meeting.

The relationship between a sponsor and sponsorship is up to the two people involved but an effective one requires that the sponsee contacts the sponsor on a daily basis (more depending on the urge to gamble) and meets with him on a weekly basis to either discuss stepwork or recovery related subject matter. The relationship can be temporary assuming that either party is not sure if they will be able to commit to a relationship yet feels that they need a short-time relationship just to make sure the sponsee remains on the right track and is detracted from relapsing.

Through having a sponsor one is learning how to develop and maintaining functional healthy and honest relationship with someone for the first time because before that it was simply not possible. Furthermore, the relationship’s goal is similar to teacher-to-student which is why it is reminded that a sponsor should be someone who is a recovering addict as opposed to a friend, a family member, or even a spiritual/religious advisor. A sponsor may act like a friend, however, for the purpose of a healthy recovery the sponsor should have such qualities: firm; one who is not easily manipulated; sincere; honest; and tolerant to a certain degree.

A sponsor has the right to ‘fire’ his sponsee for such reasons like the sponsee’s lack of honesty or willingness to surrender to the Program; not keeping regular contact with the sponsor; not meeting with the sponsor on a regular basis or not respecting time constraints; not doing stepwork; not attending meetings; continuing to hang around old friends still in active addiction; and not being open-minded to either the Program or the sponsor’s suggestion. Equally, the sponsee has the right to ‘fire’ his sponsor for such reasons like not being available either via telephonic contact or meeting with the sponsee on a regular basis; feeling ill-advised; or feeling and/or knowing his sponsor is taking any mood/mind altering substance (alcohol; prescription drugs; or illegal drugs.

CONCLUSION

Gambling Anonymous is considered a treatment setting for those who want to get help with their gambling problem. Gambling Anonymous encourages abstinence as the only way to stay in recovery from the addiction providing a healthy place for other compulsive gamblers to share their stories and find hope and strength through each other to remain abstinent from all gambling activities.

“This model assumes that not every lapse will lead to full relapse, and that at least a sub-sample of pathological gamblers are able to tolerate re-exposure to gambling behavior with losing full control”. (Blaszcynski & McConoghy, 1989, 1991). The attitude in Gambling Anonymous is that relapse prevention in either behavior or cognitive responses is a lapse that has the potential to lead to a full on relapse into a gambling activity which is why thought and behaviors are so actively monitored.

70% to 90% of Gambling Anonymous members drop out while less than 10% become active and 8% of the members will achieve a year or more abstinent from gambling. (Emshoff, Perkins, Zimmerman, Mooss, Zorland, Pathological Gambling Treatment Literature Review, 2007). There are several reasons why people drop out of the meetings but that, however, does not in anyway mean that Gambling Anonymous does not work. There is a saying in these meetings that the Program works for those who work it. It is also reminded in these meetings that those who Gambling Anonymous has rarely seen a member not recover if they thoroughly work the Program.

Some of the reasons that members achieve a year or more abstinent is because they commit themselves to the Program which means continuously attending three to five meetings a week, regularly meet with their sponsors, do service, and do their stepwork. Not every member has to have gone to rehabilitation or any form of treatment to achieve some form of abstinence although many have. The point is that these meetings are filled with a group of people who want to recover and live a life of honesty and self-respect that they have lost through many years of addiction.