By DAVID COLLINS
Day Staff Columnist
Published on 1/31/2005
When there's a snowstorm coming, counselor Rosemary N. Poole
is not surprised to hear her clients talking about leaving work early,
not so that they can go home, but to hurry to get to the casino.
“They're rushing to the casino so they can get snowed in
there, to get a good seat,” says Poole, a licensed clinical social
worker who is certified in problem gambling counseling.
The former director of state-funded programs for problem
gambling in the region, Poole has, for the last seven years, been on
the front line in treating serious gambling problems in eastern
Connecticut, a problem she says is steadily growing here.
Now in private practice, the Stonington counselor appeared
in Superior Court last week with one of her clients, an accountant for
the town of Stonington who admitted to stealing $257,000 from the town
to feed her gambling habit. Donna Allen was sentenced last week to a
year in state prison. It was the third time in recent years Poole has
pleaded for leniency for a public official accused of stealing because
of an addiction. She also worked with the tax collectors in Ledyard and
Sprague, who admitted stealing close to $400,000 between them.
Those prominent cases, though, are just the surface of a
much larger problem, says Poole, who says she has seen many cases with
similar circumstances, although in some of them private employers may
have sought restitution instead of arrest.
“It's quite a phenomena that we have had three highly
regarded town officials, some elected, some appointed, who have stolen
such large quantities of money. It goes to show how gambling has
permeated this area.
“There's been a lot of gambling-related crime. This area has
the highest amount of second and third mortgages in the state. You see
people liquidating their assets, putting their homes at risk, not
paying taxes. And often their family and friends know nothing about
it,” she says.
The telltale signs of a gambling problem may not be as
obvious as, say, alcohol abuse, which might be spotted by slurred
speech or the odor on someone's breath. Still, Poole says there are
warning signs that can help you detect whether a friend, family member
or employee might have a problem.
The casinos, she says, have become “downtown USA” and people
go there for all kinds of entertainment. But spending too much free
time there may be the first sign of trouble, she says.
“One of the first risk factors to watch out for is when
someone is spending all their entertainment time in the gambling
venues, instead of doing other things, like go out to dinner,” she says.
Gambling addiction often develops over several years and can
usually be tracked in phases, a downward spiral that begins with the
winning period, when the gambler is winning and high on the experience.
The losing phase follows, and in this period the player
starts “chasing losses,” betting more in the hopes of getting even.
Eventually some enter the desperation phase in which they may steal to
cover their losses, start to experience feelings of hopelessness, have
stress-related health problems, even consider suicide.
“Most come in (for treatment) when they are in this phase,
when they see that their family, health or job is threatened,” she
says. “Mostly they are running out of money and they realize the only
way to get more is by stealing.”
Some people who are going through this may seem unusually
irritable at first to family and friends. They may also seem depressed
or preoccupied. There could be a lot of unaccounted for time away from
home or work.
“Usually, after the disease has become quite advanced,
people will start to get ideas about what's happened to the family
member. They see desperate attempts to get money and promises to quit.
The gamblers just think they need more money so that they can win big.”
Poole was the clinical director at the Women's Center of
Southeastern Connecticut when the first casino opened in the area. She
says she began noticing calls on the center's help line in which
gambling problems were cited as the precipitator to violence. Substance
abuse and job loss or job pressures had previously been common causes.
She says the experience helped lead her into providing
counseling for people with gambling problems. She started in the field
in 1997 and eventually directed the state-funded Bettor's Choice
Gambling Treatment Program, housed at the United Community & Family
Services in Norwich, before starting her own practice last year,
Alliance Behavioral Service.
The 1999 National Gambling Impact Study estimated that more
than 2-1/2 million Americans are pathological gamblers and another 3
million are problem gamblers. Another 15 million are at risk for
problem gambling, the study said, and the availability of a casino
within 50 miles accounts for about double the prevalence of problem or
pathological gambling.
Those numbers don't surprise Poole, who has seen so many
desperate people in her practice over the years.
“Gambling in this area is huge,” she says.
When Gambling Becomes Pathological
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual published by the
American Psychiatric Association includes these criteria for a
diagnosis of Pathological Gambling:
Persistent and recurrent maladaptive gambling behavior as
indicated by five (or more) of the following:
* Is preoccupied with gambling (e.g., preoccupied with
reliving past gambling experiences, handicapping or planning the next
venture, or thinking of ways to get money with which to gamble).
* Needs to gamble with increasing amounts of money in order
to achieve the desired excitement.
* Has repeated unsuccessful efforts to control, cut back,
or stop gambling.
* Is restless or irritable when attempting to cut down or
stop gambling.
* Gambles as a way of escaping from problems or of
relieving a dysphoric mood (e.g., feelings of helplessness, guilt,
anxiety, depression).
* After losing money gambling, often returns another day to
get even (“chasing” one's losses).
* Lies to family members, therapist, or others to conceal
the extent of involvement with gambling.
* Has committed illegal acts such as forgery, fraud, theft,
or embezzlement to finance gambling.
* Has jeopardized or lost a significant relationship, job,
or educational or career opportunity because of gambling.
* Relies on others to provide money to relieve a desperate
financial situation caused by gambling.
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