If gambling has affected your life, you are not alone. But there is help and hope available! Gambling addiction has devastating consequences, but people can and do recover from it. California offers a wide variety of resources for treatment and prevention – most of them at no cost to you!
Free and confidential! Speak to a master’s-level counselor 24/7/365. Services are available in English, Spanish, Chinese, with tele-health and translators for 200+ other languages.
Get help from a certified gambling counselor or licensed therapist in/near your city for either the gambler or affected individual. Treatment is usually available at no cost to you!
Problem gamblers and affected individuals can seek treatment.
Please note: Counselors who are not licensed are only certified to work within a treatment program that can provide ongoing supervision. If you have any questions, please contact us.
California Certified Gambling Counselors have completed the requirements of the Certification Board.
Level 1 (CCGC-I) counselors have gone through a rigorous training and testing process prior to becoming certified.
Level 2 (CCGC-II) counselors have received additional education and spent more than 2,000 hours counseling problem gamblers and their families.
State Authorized Therapists – independently licensed therapists who took a specialized training and are authorized to provide FREE treatment in a private practice setting.
Disclaimer: This information is provided as a general service to the public and does not indicate that the California Council on Problem Gambling endorses, warrants, or otherwise guarantees them.
State-funded no-cost inpatient treatment program where you will live in a residential facility and receive around-the-clock care.
Residential Care Facilities are available at no-cost if you live in California.
State-funded, no-cost treatment program at independent facilities to help gamblers who need more intensive treatment. Offers longer sessions 3 times/week.
IOP is conducted in licensed substance use disorder treatment programs with experience in treating gambling disorder. IOP serves as a bridge for clients transitioning between residential and outpatient, and those who require treatment that extends beyond once a week. IOP treatment includes 3 hour sessions, three days per week. View locations of IOP.
Only a trained professional can diagnose a gambling disorder; however, self-assessment tests can help you determine if it is likely that you have a problem. The test below is called the NORC Diagnostic Screen for Gambling Problems-Self Administered (NODS-SA) and provides a simple self-test to evaluate your gambling behavior.
Please answer the following 10 yes/no questions honestly:
REMINDER: this self-assessment will help you figure out if there is a problem, but only a professional can diagnose if it is a gambling problem, a different problem, or both.
If you answered yes to 1 or more of the above questions, CALL 1-800-GAMBLER NOW! The free 24/7/365 helpline can help you find additional information on problem gambling, or to provide assistance in dealing with gambling problems.
About the screen:
The NORC Diagnostic Screen for Gambling Problems-Self-Administered (NODS-SA) was developed by staff from the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago. The instrument is a modification of the NODS, a diagnostic instrument based on the American Psychiatric Association’s DSM-IV criteria for Pathological Gambling. Please note that while the NODS has been tested and shown to be reliable and valid for use in the general population (see Gerstein et al. 1999), the NODS-SA has not yet been fully validated.
A gambling problem can have devastating consequences to not only you and the gambler, but their family, children, workplace, and community. And because gambler’s often try to hide their addiction, their friends and loved ones are often left in the dark to wonder: what is happening?
If you think you may be living with a compulsive gambler, but aren’t sure, please take the following test (written by Gam-Anon).
“Are you living with a compulsive gambler?”
If you are living with a problem gambler, you are not alone. There is help available specifically for the loved ones of problem gamblers, including counseling/therapy and support groups such as Gam-Anon.
There are many tools that can make it harder for you to gamble or gain access to money for gambling, in turn aiding you in your recovery.
Self-Exclusion
Self-exclusion is a voluntary program that bans you from all casinos from which you sign up. If you are self-excluded, you will not be paid any winnings if you sneak into the casino, are usually not allowed on any of the casino’s property (including restaurants and entertainment), and may be arrested for trespass if you violate the exclusion.
Self-Restriction
Self-restriction works the same as self-exclusion, but is only for California Card Rooms, and only applies to a single card room or even just specific games (such as blackjack or poker) or casino services (such as check cashing, marker issuance or marketing).
Third Party Exclusion
If an immediate loved one (such as a spouse, parent or child) has a problem with gambling, you may be able to request “third-party exclusion” to ban the gambler you are requesting it for. Once/if approved, third party exclusions work in the same ways as self-exclusion.
As of 2019, only a few tribal casinos and no California Card Rooms offer third party exclusion, and the requirements to exclude someone in this way are usually very strict. However, if the program is available at your loved one’s casino of choice, it can be a very helpful tool. We recommend you call the casino’s “gaming commission” to find out if it is available.
Access to Cash
Internet Gambling
It’s important to understand that tools such as those listed above are intended to be part of a broader program of treatment and recovery – they will not ‘solve all of your problems’ by themselves. Additionally, these tools are only available for some of the legal forms of gambling in California, and do not prevent you from gambling illegally or getting involved in other activities that may provide a gambling-like rush.
For these reasons, we strongly urge you to take advantage of these tools at any time – and as soon as – you feel that you need them, but to also take advantage of no-cost treatment programs that allow you to speak with a professional counselor or therapist, and utilize these prevention tools under that professional’s guidance!
Lastly, please know that the casinos and companies that offer these tools are bound by certain regulations to put forth their best good-faith efforts to make them effective, but that they do not have any individual responsibility or liability beyond making those efforts – which is why it is all the more important that you utilize these tools as part of that broader program of treatment and recovery.
Free support system for gamblers through Gamblers Anonymous and spouse, family or friends of problem gamblers through Gam-Anon. Find a meeting in your area.
These free workbooks help you learn more about gambling addiction. They are NOT a substitute for professional help, and are often used in conjunction with other forms of treatment.
“Freedom from Problem Gambling” workbook
Personal Financial Strategies for the Loved Ones of Problem Gamblers
Brochures (provided by the Office of Problem Gambling)
If you live outside of California, that is okay. There might be treatment available for you as well. Find out what help and information is available in your state.
National Problem Gambling Helpline
There are other numbers such as the California Youth Crisis Line and National Suicide Prevention Lifeline that you may want to call.
Legislatively-mandated 24-hour crisis line for youth (ages 12-24) and families in California: Professionally trained peer and adult ally counselors respond with non-judgmental, non-advice crisis intervention counseling and provide local resource referrals with any struggles including runaway and homelessness, thoughts of suicide, teen pregnancy or substance abuse. The California Youth Crisis Line is a free and confidential connection. We listen. 24/7. For more assistance please call: 1-800-843-5200.
We can all help prevent suicide. The Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals. If you or someone you know is in crisis, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
El problema de adicción al juego puede afectar a cualquier persona, en cualquier lugar, en cualquier momento, pero es tratable. Hay ayuda para TODOS.