gambling education

Dave Wohl has some big shoes to fill. As ICPG’s new Executive Director, Dave talks about taking over from ICPG’s founder, Bill Johnson, and how they are teaming up with other organizations across the state to spread the word on gambling disorder, and its effects on many underserved communities.

wagerdanger@gatewayfoundation.org 

Gateway Foundation Gambling Treatment

Illinois Council on Problem Gambling

info@illinoisproblemgambling.org 

dwohl@illinoisproblemgambling.org

Call Gateway Foundation: 855-723-0963

Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER

Are you Really Winning?

“Helping people feel good about their finances is an important part of feeling better overall.” – Alex DeMarco. 

GamFin is an organization that connects gambling disorder counselors with expert financial counselors to help restore the financial health for individuals struggling with problem gambling. Alex DeMarco tells us how the process works and why it is beneficial for financial and emotional well-being.

wagerdanger@gatewayfoundation.org 

Gateway Foundation Gambling Treatment

Call Gateway Foundation: 855-723-0963

Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER

Are you Really Winning?

GamFin Website

support@gamfin.org

This episode takes a look back at some interesting moments from very important conversations we have had over the last 12 months.

Gateway Foundation Gambling Treatment

wagerdanger@gatewayfoundation.org,

Facebook: @Gateway

Twitter/X: @Gateway

LinkedIn: @Gateway-Foundation

844-975-3663 (DONE)

Are You Really Winning – areyoureallywinning.com 

1-800-GAMBLER

“Not a Chance” teaches High Schoolers how to make thoughtful decisions.  Enhancing the protective factors that lead to improved self-awareness and better decision making is the primary goal…problem gambling prevention provides the context.  Utilizing an interactive approach, the lessons allow students to understand their personal boundaries more clearly and develop the confidence to adhere to them.  Alison Donoho and Emma Bowen from Chestnut Health Systems join Wager Danger to discuss how Not a Chance is improving the behavioral health of today’s youth.

Website for Chestnut: www.chestnut.org

Gateway Foundation Gambling Treatment

wagerdanger@gatewayfoundation.org,

Facebook: @Gateway

Twitter: @Gateway

LinkedIn: @Gateway-Foundation

844-975-3663 (DONE)

Are You Really Winning – areyoureallywinning.com 

1-800-GAMBLER

“Sports gambling itself is not inherently risky but sports gamblers are!”

Dr. Grubbs and his students at University of New Mexico are conducting research on the gambling habits of sports bettors and the results may surprise you. Their research has gathered data that show why sports bettors are more likely to engage in more forms of wagering, and why that behavior is a strong predictor that these gamblers are statistically more likely to develop a gambling addiction.

Joshua Grubbs PhD Website

Gateway Foundation Gambling Treatment

wagerdanger@gatewayfoundation.org

Facebook: @Gateway

Twitter: @Gateway

LinkedIn: @Gateway-Foundation

844-975-3663 (DONE)

Are You Really Winning – areyoureallywinning.com 

1-800-GAMBLER

Teens from across the Chicagoland area are finding exciting and creative ways to spread the message of gambling’s potential harm to a vulnerable population.  Tapping into their unique talents and skills, these teens are having a major impact among their peers and gaining life changing experiences in the process.

Nicasa Problem Gambling and Sports Betting Services

Nicasa Behavioral Health Services Teen Problem Prevention Creative Group

Music Track: Make Things Right by Alishaa Bell

Gateway Foundation Gambling Treatment

wagerdanger@gatewayfoundation.org,

Facebook: @Gateway

Twitter: @Gateway

LinkedIn: @Gateway-Foundation

844-975-3663 (DONE)

Are You Really Winning – areyoureallywinning.com 

1-800-GAMBLER

Chris Ward, outreach coordinator at The Way Back Inn, discusses a youth and young adult-oriented curriculum called Stacked Deck. Younger generations are growing up with simulated gambling embedded in video games. The Stacked Deck educational offering is intended to identify the potential harms present in video gaming products and how youth and adolescents can begin to recognize when they are being manipulated into gambling simulation.

Gateway Foundation Gambling Treatment

wagerdanger@gatewayfoundation.org

Facebook: @Gateway

Twitter: @Gateway

LinkedIn: @Gateway-Foundation

844-975-3663 (DONE)

The Way Back Inn – www.waybackinn.org

Chris Ward: chrisw@waybackinn.org wbi@waybackinn.org

Are You Really Winning – areyoureallywinning.com 

1-800-GAMBLER

Tanya shares a personal story of growing up in an active gambling community and draws parallels to how that environment played a role in her development as a mental health professional.  We discuss her childhood growing up in Chicago during a time when active gambling houses were common within the community and provided a social outlet for family and friends.  Throughout our conversation we discuss how gambling as a group activity has evolved into a more individual (and potentially more easily hidden) model that is available to today’s gambler.

TASC – Treatment Alternatives for Safe Communities

Gateway Foundation Gambling Treatment

Call Gateway Foundation: 855-723-0963

Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER

Are you Really Winning?

wagerdanger@gatewayfoundation.org

Dr. Nathan Smith is the founding Executive Director of Kindbridge Research Institute, a nationally recognized scientist and science communicator, and a leader in the field of behavioral addiction research and theory. 

In this episode we discuss the importance of understanding how gambling addiction effects various segments of the US population and how the Kindbridge Research Institute is laser focused on supporting our Military Veterans.  Nate’s passion for the study of gambling addiction really shines throughout the episode including: the importance of epidemiology and how it allows us to “get it right” and how the terminology we use to describe a gambling addiction needs clarification.  We’re fortunate to have an advocate like Nate who is championing the study of gambling disorders.

Kindbridge Research Institute

Why Military Personnel are 3.5x More Prone to Problem Gambling

The Military Treatment Fund

DraftKings and Kindbridge Research Fund

About Kindbridge Research Institute

Gateway Foundation Gambling Treatment

Call Gateway Foundation: 855-723-0963

Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER

Are you Really Winning?

wagerdanger@gatewayfoundation.com 

Emily Bernard is an addictions counselor at Hour House.  Recognizing that recovery and change happens “one hour at a time”, Hour House offers treatment services to address substance use & gambling disorders, co-occurring dependency & other therapy needs.

Emily shares her passion for her work and why a focus on the individual is important to affect lasting change for their clients.  

More about Hour House is available at: https://hourhouserecovery.org

TASC serves those in need of substance use disorders, co-occurring mental health conditions, gambling disorders or family health and reunification challenges.  

Tanya Bibbs-Smith talks about her outreach efforts across IL to reach youth and adolescents that are exposed to gaming and gambling at an early age. She’s helping this demographic understand the connection between their actions and how it has the potential to lead towards a gambling disorder.  

More about TASC can be found at: https://tasc.org

Located in Central Illinois, Heritage provides comprehensive community-based services to treat the most serious behavioral disorders.

Teagan Shull joins the show to discuss how Heritage places an emphasis on screening for Gambling Disorder and how Heritage responds to the increase in identifying and serving gambling disorders within the communities they serve.

More can be found at: https://heritagenet.org/gambling

Gambling disorder service providers sit down with Wager Danger to discuss their approach to community outreach and treatment for problem gambling. We explore topics that include: 

• The intense shame that sometimes prevents men from seeking assistance with problem gambling, and the resulting observation that women are more likely to complete the program. 
• How young people are at increased risk to gambling disorder. 
• How telehealth breaks down the barriers to treatment and screening tools that help facilitate the access to treatment options.

Engage with Wager Danger:

email: wagerdanger@gatewayfoundation.org

Follow Gateway Foundation:

Facebook & Twitter: @recovergateway

LinkedIn: @gateway-foundation

Website: https://gatewayfoundation.org

Seek Assistance:

Gateway Foundation Helpline: 1-844-975-DONE (3663)

National and State of IL Helpline: 1-800-GAMBLER

The state of Illinois recently launched a new advertising campaign aimed at creating awareness for problem gambling.  We sat down with John Harris, President of a5 digital consultancy to better understand the meaning behind the campaign.  While the campaign is designed to create awareness and encourage those with gambling issues to seek assistance, what we ultimately learned is that “Are You Really Winning” is a message of hope.  More information can be found at: www.areyoureallywinning.com or 1-800-GAMBLER or by texting GAMB to 833234.

Engage with Wager Danger: 

email: wagerdanger@gatewayfoundation.org

Follow Gateway Foundation:

Facebook & Twitter: @recovergateway

LinkedIn: @gateway-foundation

Website: https://gatewayfoundation.org

Seek Assistance:

Gateway Foundation Helpline: 1-844-975-DONE (3663)

National and State of IL Helpline: 1-800-GAMBLER

Sandra is a compassionate mental health advocate that brings passion, experience and empathy to her profession.  She has spent several years in the field as a proponent for providing disordered gambling services and eliminating the stigma often associated with problem gambling. 

Engage with Wager Danger.  Please feel free to email us at:

wagerdanger@gatewayfoundation.org

References:

https://gatewayfoundation.org

https://areyoureallywinning.com

Help lines:

Gateway Foundation – Gambling Hotline: 1-844-975-DONE

Nationally – 1-800-GAMBLER

Another out-of-studio episode in which we gather with former guests and new friends to review the first conference in Illinois aimed at understanding the prevalence and impact of problem gambling in the LatinX community.  We were joined by 7 mental health professionals throughout the show to discuss everything from:

-         How the similarity of OCD and gambling disorder affects the brain (03:08)

-         That nearly 1.1 million residents of IL are suffering from disordered gambling or are at high risk to developing a gambling disorder (10:40)

-         What it means to “Feed the Pig” (26:10)

-         Understanding that the propensity to gamble has so much power over the brain that you can literally teach a rat to gamble (28:40)

Guests joining the program (in order) include: Dr. Teresa Garate, Jim Wilkerson, Calvin Miller, Elizabeth Thielan, Dr. Celeste Napier, Dr. Mauricio Cifuentes and Bill Johnson.

Gateway Foundation’s Gambling Helpline 1-844-375-DONE (3663)

Gateway Foundation website: https://www.gatewayfoundation.org

Illinois Department of Human Services / Substance Use Prevention and Recovery – Are You Really Winning website – https://areyoureallywinning.com

Illinois Helpline for Problem Gambling – 1-800-GAMBLER

Dr. Mauricio Cifuentes, Clinical Director at Cicero Family Service, discusses the importance of intentionally based programs that incorporate cultural humility to reach the LatinX community.  Highlights include:

• How religion and beliefs plays a critical role

• Intentionally designed outreach programs are key to effectively communicating the potential harm of gambling; and

• How Cicero Family Service leads by creating holistic programs that create awareness, educate and serve their community.

Family Service Mental Health Center of Cicero (aka, Cicero Family Service) - https://www.cicerofs.org/

Gateway Foundation - https://www.gatewayfoundation.org/

Taking the show to the streets for candid interviews with Cubs and White Sox fans about gambling. Many shared thoughts, opinions and personal accounts. 

https://www.gatewayfoundation.org/mental-health/process-addictions/gambling-addiction/

Bob and Shane review content from previous shows and discuss Wager Danger’s role in creating an awareness of problem gambling for the listener.* 

*the topic of suicide is discussed in this episode.  If you or a loved one is struggling or in crisis, help is available.  Call or text 988 to speak with a counselor – available 24/7.

Gateway Foundation

2021 Statewide Assessment of Gambling and Problem Gambling in Illinois

Ask a gambler their winning percentage and you’ll probably get a response that’s not true. Elizabeth Thielen, the Gambling Program Director of NICASA Behavioral Health Services joins the show to discuss how unlikely partnerships (e.g., NFL Foundation, NCAA, FanDuel, National Council on Problem Gambling and Behavioral Health Providers) are banding together to create awareness campaigns to ensure gamblers participate mindfully and are cognizant of potential risks when gambling, and why “having a plan” is a key strategy to gambling responsibly and approaching gambling as a means of entertainment.

We also talk about awareness programs that are targeted at youth populations and explore why college and professional athletes are potentially at higher risk to problem gambling behaviors.

Additional resources for further information discussed in this episode:

• In-play betting as it relates to disordered gambling severity: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2020.574884/full
• Rate of disordered gambling among sports bettors higher than other gamblers; perception of control in sports bettors, etc.: https://www.ncpgambling.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/sports-gambling_NCPGLitRvw.pdf
• An article about athletes' concerns with how they are treated as a result of sports betting: https://www.si.com/betting/2021/08/09/gambling-issue-the-athletes
• A blog about athletes and problem gambling www.fightproblemgambling.com