Have the Casinos Being Closed Been a Blessing or a Nightmare?

For the people who chose Blessing:

What I mean by that, is that for some people having the casinos closed made them feel like they did not have a gambling problem. The casinos are closed, and they are happy they cannot gamble.

In this last 15 months they:

• may have saved money,

• felt more in control,

• were calmer

• were thankful the casinos were closed because it saved them from themselves.

• may be excited about the idea the casinos will open.

• may be convincing themselves they deserve to gamble as soon as the casinos open because they have saved so much money in not going or other reasons.

• and are possibly concerned about what will happen when the casinos re-open.

For the people who chose Nightmare:

• They probably hated the casinos being closed and missed it often.

• They may have turned to online casinos or just other accessible lottery products, scratches, keno, Pacific Hold’em, pull tabs, etc.

• After 15 months of closure, they may be desperate to get back to the casino and will go as soon as they are re-opened.

• Even though they may want to go to the casino desperately, they know it could be hard to stop once they start.

Either of these reactions tells you that gambling has some sort of hold on you.

This is a good time to prepare yourself for casino re-opening before they open!

In BC there are free services to help you develop your plan for casinos’ opening.

You can talk to a support person who can work with you to prepare for casinos’ opening and help you connect with the supports you may need to fulfill your plan.

You can talk to a counsellor about issues that may connect your gambling, to work towards your goals.

If you plan to go to a casino, you can talk to the GameSense Advisor on-site to learn facts about the games and dispel any myths about gambling that you have.

If you fit either category above, this is a perfect time to get support for a gambling problem, before it is totally out of control. If you are feeling intense excitement and anxiety about the possibility of casinos opening, that is telling you something you should listen to.