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ENLARGE
By MICHAEL MARESH
LVN Staff Writer
The bells, whistles, winds and the possible payoffs were not things from which Milt Burgman could pull himself away.
When Burgman sat down at a slot machine, he would not leave until he was completely broke.
The 57-year-old said his gambling addiction worsened over time, adding he always planned to spend only so much, but he could never walk away while still having money to put in the slot machines.
“Instead of putting in a few dollars, I put in a few hundred,” he said, adding he even won a few times.
The winnings, though, did not come close to offset the losses.
“When I walked out of the casino broke, I figured I needed help,” he said. Getting past the process of denying there was a problem was difficult, he added.
The rare occasions he won convinced him to go back to the same location and slot machines. He used his job and sister to support his gambling habit and remembers telling lies why he needed money. He also borrowed from friends.
Statistics
According to the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling, 86 percent of the state’s residents have gambled at least once, 68 percent have done so in the last year, 26 percent gamble monthly and 19 percent do it weekly.
The Nevada Council on Problem Gambling reports 3 percent of the state’s population is at risk in problem gambling with 2.1 percent of the public is defined as pathological gamblers. In the U.S., 1.5 percent of the population is at risk of being problem gamblers and 1.2 percent is termed pathological.
Dual addictions
Burgman’s problems with gambling were compounded by a drug addiction, which came as no surprise to Certified Problem Gambler Intern Deb Stroud.
Stroud said 25 percent of her 40 clients have another addiction.
“It is the perfect activity for someone using meth,” she said, mentioning users like the constant repetitive motion of slot machines, especially video-poker machines.
Mandy Rigsby, a counselor with New Frontier Treatment Center, said one addiction usually feeds another.
“It’s the hidden addiction. You do not see it,” Rigsby said. “Meth and gambling are huge. They go hand in hand.”
She added people with dual addictions sometimes meet their drug dealers at casinos and gamble while waiting.
Stroud said while the two addictions are separate, it is not uncommon for a person quitting the drug to also stop gambling.
She said drugs and gambling deal with same chemicals or dopamine in the brain.
“You get that first high, and it is so incredible,” she said. “You are always chasing that first high or that first win.
“The lights, sounds the hum and the bells. You are in the action, and it’s an ultimate high,” Rigsby added.
Availability
Gambling addicts trying to recover in Churchill County and Nevada must resist the urge to sit down at slot machines most places have.
Stroud said activities in rural areas often occur inside casinos, and it creates problems for people fighting the addiction.
“If you want to have a good meal in Fallon, where do you go? You go to Stockmen’s,” she said. “The casino is where you go for a good meal or meeting.”
Men like gambling at larger places. Burgman said his addiction surfaced and worsened while living in Reno. Women are more escape gamblers who like to be left alone when sitting behind slot machines.
“They lose themselves in video poker,” she said. “It is the crack of gamblers.”
Stroud said casinos lure people in with free offers of a roll of quarters or nickels, realizing the likelihood of getting this money back is extremely high.
“That (money) just gets you rolling,” she said, and added casinos often give new employees training on how to spot and how to handle people with a gambling problem.
Stroud said there has been a spike with women gambling or seeking treatment for the last two years in Northern Nevada. She said the problem in the region is worse than anywhere else in the state.
Of the people attending Gambler’s Anonymous meetings, 67 percent are women.
Seeking help
Rigsby said women gambling numbers might be skewed because they could be the ones seeking help.
She said when a woman’s life unravels and gets out of control, she looks for assistance, while men try to solve the issue on their own.
Stroud said casino advertisements show pretty women having fun, and gambling looks attractive. Older women and retirees, she said, are the most at risk, especially if having no outside support group.
“There is no social connection. The casino is their social (companion).” she said. “The whole mentality has shifted with special offers. You see more and more women doing those things.”
She added slots are becoming more high definition and is enticing people to play longer.
Rigsby said the majority of women addicted to gambling are attracted to slot machines and videos over card games.
“They can go and forget their worries and be in their own world,” she said.
Women, she said, want to be part of something — even if they are just playing penny slots.
Linda Wishart, another counselor dealing with gambling problems at New Frontier, thinks women tend to start gambling more when their children return to school in the fall.
“They can escape,” she said. “They put the kids in school and hide behind the slot machines.”
Unlike a drug user, a person with a gambling problem may be tougher to spot because there likely will be no physical signs family members or friends will spot.
Chasing the winnings
Stroud said the worst thing that can happen to a gambler is winning big the first time. She said this intense high and euphoria are feelings they will try to be recaptured. Trying to recapture that feeling, she said, leads to problems and worsens as the addiction consumes them.
“Part of the addiction is trying to make up for your losses,” she said. She added it is common for people to say: “I can’t win the money back if I quit.”
Stroud said that thinking is too common and affects even the casual gambler.
“We call that chasing your losses,” she said.
Rigsby said addicted gamblers have the illusion of control when sitting behind a slot machine and are always hoping for that one (big win).
“It leads to a downward spiral,” she said, explaining it excites the same pleasure zones drugs provide. “It releases endorphin and dopamine.”
She said it affects everyone, and she remembers what a client told her once.
“I have never felt that way before, and I don’t know how I crossed that line,” she remembers as the statement.
She said the woman could not walk away from slot machines, and said this is what counselors often hear.
Rigsby and Stroud agree most compulsive gamblers try many activities — sometimes illegal — to make gambling money.
Burgman said he was helped, partly because his sister had a similar addiction, but still lied to her numerous times why he needed money
Treatment
Counselors tell people with addictions to avoid locations where there are temptations, but that is not possible in Nevada where slot machines are readily available.
“What we work on is coping strategies,” Stroud said, and recommends bringing a friend if there is a function at a place where a problem gambler might feel tempted to relapse.
She also recommends the person go in through back doors if to avoid the sound and sights of slot machines.
She added there is a Gambler’s Anonymous chapter in Fallon for people seeking help and support from others in similar situations.
In Burgman’s case, New Frontier Treatment Center diagnosed him as a problem gambler while helping him with his drug addiction.
When an individual seeking treatment arrives at New Frontier, an assessment is conducted along with diagnostic questioning, and counselors inform the person the importance of abstaining.
“We get to the root of the problem.” Rigsby said. “It’s like peeling an onion. They don’t get it why they can’t walk away. They need to know that help is available.”
New Frontier can be con
LVN Staff Writer
The bells, whistles, winds and the possible payoffs were not things from which Milt Burgman could pull himself away.
When Burgman sat down at a slot machine, he would not leave until he was completely broke.
The 57-year-old said his gambling addiction worsened over time, adding he always planned to spend only so much, but he could never walk away while still having money to put in the slot machines.
“Instead of putting in a few dollars, I put in a few hundred,” he said, adding he even won a few times.
The winnings, though, did not come close to offset the losses.
“When I walked out of the casino broke, I figured I needed help,” he said. Getting past the process of denying there was a problem was difficult, he added.
The rare occasions he won convinced him to go back to the same location and slot machines. He used his job and sister to support his gambling habit and remembers telling lies why he needed money. He also borrowed from friends.
Statistics
According to the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling, 86 percent of the state’s residents have gambled at least once, 68 percent have done so in the last year, 26 percent gamble monthly and 19 percent do it weekly.
The Nevada Council on Problem Gambling reports 3 percent of the state’s population is at risk in problem gambling with 2.1 percent of the public is defined as pathological gamblers. In the U.S., 1.5 percent of the population is at risk of being problem gamblers and 1.2 percent is termed pathological.
Dual addictions
Burgman’s problems with gambling were compounded by a drug addiction, which came as no surprise to Certified Problem Gambler Intern Deb Stroud.
Stroud said 25 percent of her 40 clients have another addiction.
“It is the perfect activity for someone using meth,” she said, mentioning users like the constant repetitive motion of slot machines, especially video-poker machines.
Mandy Rigsby, a counselor with New Frontier Treatment Center, said one addiction usually feeds another.
“It’s the hidden addiction. You do not see it,” Rigsby said. “Meth and gambling are huge. They go hand in hand.”
She added people with dual addictions sometimes meet their drug dealers at casinos and gamble while waiting.
Stroud said while the two addictions are separate, it is not uncommon for a person quitting the drug to also stop gambling.
She said drugs and gambling deal with same chemicals or dopamine in the brain.
“You get that first high, and it is so incredible,” she said. “You are always chasing that first high or that first win.
“The lights, sounds the hum and the bells. You are in the action, and it’s an ultimate high,” Rigsby added.
Availability
Gambling addicts trying to recover in Churchill County and Nevada must resist the urge to sit down at slot machines most places have.
Stroud said activities in rural areas often occur inside casinos, and it creates problems for people fighting the addiction.
“If you want to have a good meal in Fallon, where do you go? You go to Stockmen’s,” she said. “The casino is where you go for a good meal or meeting.”
Men like gambling at larger places. Burgman said his addiction surfaced and worsened while living in Reno. Women are more escape gamblers who like to be left alone when sitting behind slot machines.
“They lose themselves in video poker,” she said. “It is the crack of gamblers.”
Stroud said casinos lure people in with free offers of a roll of quarters or nickels, realizing the likelihood of getting this money back is extremely high.
“That (money) just gets you rolling,” she said, and added casinos often give new employees training on how to spot and how to handle people with a gambling problem.
Stroud said there has been a spike with women gambling or seeking treatment for the last two years in Northern Nevada. She said the problem in the region is worse than anywhere else in the state.
Of the people attending Gambler’s Anonymous meetings, 67 percent are women.
Seeking help
Rigsby said women gambling numbers might be skewed because they could be the ones seeking help.
She said when a woman’s life unravels and gets out of control, she looks for assistance, while men try to solve the issue on their own.
Stroud said casino advertisements show pretty women having fun, and gambling looks attractive. Older women and retirees, she said, are the most at risk, especially if having no outside support group.
“There is no social connection. The casino is their social (companion).” she said. “The whole mentality has shifted with special offers. You see more and more women doing those things.”
She added slots are becoming more high definition and is enticing people to play longer.
Rigsby said the majority of women addicted to gambling are attracted to slot machines and videos over card games.
“They can go and forget their worries and be in their own world,” she said.
Women, she said, want to be part of something — even if they are just playing penny slots.
Linda Wishart, another counselor dealing with gambling problems at New Frontier, thinks women tend to start gambling more when their children return to school in the fall.
“They can escape,” she said. “They put the kids in school and hide behind the slot machines.”
Unlike a drug user, a person with a gambling problem may be tougher to spot because there likely will be no physical signs family members or friends will spot.
Chasing the winnings
Stroud said the worst thing that can happen to a gambler is winning big the first time. She said this intense high and euphoria are feelings they will try to be recaptured. Trying to recapture that feeling, she said, leads to problems and worsens as the addiction consumes them.
“Part of the addiction is trying to make up for your losses,” she said. She added it is common for people to say: “I can’t win the money back if I quit.”
Stroud said that thinking is too common and affects even the casual gambler.
“We call that chasing your losses,” she said.
Rigsby said addicted gamblers have the illusion of control when sitting behind a slot machine and are always hoping for that one (big win).
“It leads to a downward spiral,” she said, explaining it excites the same pleasure zones drugs provide. “It releases endorphin and dopamine.”
She said it affects everyone, and she remembers what a client told her once.
“I have never felt that way before, and I don’t know how I crossed that line,” she remembers as the statement.
She said the woman could not walk away from slot machines, and said this is what counselors often hear.
Rigsby and Stroud agree most compulsive gamblers try many activities — sometimes illegal — to make gambling money.
Burgman said he was helped, partly because his sister had a similar addiction, but still lied to her numerous times why he needed money
Treatment
Counselors tell people with addictions to avoid locations where there are temptations, but that is not possible in Nevada where slot machines are readily available.
“What we work on is coping strategies,” Stroud said, and recommends bringing a friend if there is a function at a place where a problem gambler might feel tempted to relapse.
She also recommends the person go in through back doors if to avoid the sound and sights of slot machines.
She added there is a Gambler’s Anonymous chapter in Fallon for people seeking help and support from others in similar situations.
In Burgman’s case, New Frontier Treatment Center diagnosed him as a problem gambler while helping him with his drug addiction.
When an individual seeking treatment arrives at New Frontier, an assessment is conducted along with diagnostic questioning, and counselors inform the person the importance of abstaining.
“We get to the root of the problem.” Rigsby said. “It’s like peeling an onion. They don’t get it why they can’t walk away. They need to know that help is available.”
New Frontier can be con
