REAL LIFE
Faze Online
Nothing to Lose
Anonymous Chat Service Helps Teens Who Gamble
By Alissa Sklar
By the time he was 16,
Josh found that gambling had become much more than a game.
He had lost way more money than he could afford, and was
often skipping school to gamble online. His friends stopped
calling and his already tense relationships with his family
got even worse.
Similarly,
David, 17, used to go to the casino to make life seem more
exciting. “I went when I didn’t feel like going
to class, when I didn’t want to be at home,”
he explains. “I went when I had a lot of work to do
because for the time I was sitting at the table I forgot
about my work.” He began stealing money from his dad’s
company, and began smoking more and more pot to “help
take the edge off of my problems”.
Like
Josh, David. began to find himself drawn more to the card
tables than his friends. “I don’t like going
there with people anymore. I just want to be alone and be
able to do my thing.”
While most teens experiment with gambling at some point
(i.e, lottery tickets, sports betting, poker games or internet
gambling), between 4 and 10% will develop gambling problems.
Some of these teens will become seriously addicted, losing
too much money, pushing away their friends and family, and
failing at school. This puts them at greater risk for serious
drug and alcohol problems, as well as suicide.
“Most
teens who gamble lose nothing more than money,” explains
Dr. Rina Gupta, psychologist and co-director of the Youth
Gambling Centre at McGill University. “However, some
lose control of their lives before they ever even realize
it. This tends to happen when they see gambling as a way
of escaping bad feelings or responsibilities. It can easily
spiral downhill from there, causing serious problems in
most aspects of their lives.”
Teens
worried about their own gambling, or concerned about a friend
who gambles, now have a new place to seek advice and help.
An anonymous and confidential online chat service every
night from 8 p.m. to midnight (EST) offers teens a 
chance
to speak with a counsellor who can answer questions, offer
some direction, and direct them to the help they need to
get their lives back.
www.gamtalk4teens.org is a non-profit project organized through McGill University.
Every night from 8 p.m. to midnight, teens can log on and
speak to specially trained counsellors about their concerns,
and gain useful information. No names are necessary, so
users can chat freely. There doesn’t have to be any
commitment to return, and they are sure to fall upon a friendly
ear to listen and offer some help.
“This
is a new way to support teens struggling with gambling issues,”
says Dr. Gupta. “We know teens feel comfortable in
front of their computers, and love to chat. The site allows
for both one-on-one chats with a counsellor or group chats
with other teens with similar questions and concerns.”
gamtalk4teens.org offers access to counselors with years of experience in
the gambling field. They answer questions honestly, and
without judgment, and can refer anyone who asks for more
help to a referral service in their area.
This
is precisely the kind of intervention that would have benefited
Josh. By the time he was 18, he had hit rock bottom. “My
future didn’t look very good,” he admits. “I
was severely depressed, anxious and overweight, I wanted
to disappear.”
When
he made the decision to seek help, everything changed. “I
feel like I am relearning how to live,” he explains,
relieved that the lies and unhappiness are now part of his
past. “In the past two years I have seen and experienced
first-hand an incredible amount of heartache. I hope to
never witness such avoidable pain again.”
Now
Josh hopes his story can be a source of hope for other kids
who find themselves in a similar situation with problem
gambling. “I understand how bad life can seem. I’ve
been there, believe me,” he says. “You are not
alone. Get the help you need, be true to yourself and start
your own journey.”
Fortunately,
Josh reached out for help. It hasn’t been easy for
him to get back on track, but he did it. If you
can relate to any of the teens described here, or if you
know someone who is gambling a little too much, check out www.gamtalk4teens.org.
You have nothing to lose.
spending more money than you can afford to lose
