|
|
"Gambling destroys lives"
08.07.08
Get help before it's
too late
A LOCAL addiction counsellor has urged men and women
in Inishowen who fear they're in the grip of
gambling to come forward for help.
Fr. James Sweeney who counsels people with addiction
problems at White Oaks Rehabilitation Centre in Muff
said gambling was on the increase across the North
West as it was nationally.
And while there was a growing number of places to
gamble on the high street, he warned that online
gambling was also "becoming a huge problem". |
 |
"The problem with
gambling on the internet is that it is a secretive
pursuit that can be done on the home computer or
anywhere else using a laptop. When it's quite hidden
it can be difficult to detect," said Fr. Sweeney,
who also counsels people at the North West
Counselling Centre in Donegal |
Town.
"People get a taster for something like bingo online
and then they move on to much bigger stuff. They use
their credit cards and before they know it they have
built up huge debts that they can't pay back."
Fr. Sweeney said gambling was a particularly
insidious addiction in that people could keep
betting until they had nothing left.
"People with gambling addiction can end up broke and
homeless and it can break up marriages. It can have
the same consequences as drink or drug addiction,"
he added. He said that the typical gender breakdown
for gambling addiction was around two men to every
one woman but the female trend was, like alcohol
misuse, on the rise.
Meanwhile, Buncrana Councillor Padraig MacLochlainn
recently raised concerns about the growing number of
betting shops and amusement arcades in his hometown
while others point to the ready availability of the
National Lottery, scratch cards and EuroMillions
tickets in many grocery shops.
Fr. Sweeney acknowledged that easy access to
gambling made rehabilitation more difficult for
people with gambling addiction. But he urged people
to come forward soon rather than later. "I would
encourage people who fear they may be developing a
gambling addiction to come forward for help rather
than let it get out of control." |
|
