Serious Issues

I thought I would just post once a week and for the most part I will stick with that plan; however; this evening I was checking the stats for the blog and came across a fairly disturbing incidence. In the stats I can see how a person came upon the blog whether it was a direct entry or from a search engine. Most of the people who visit this blog come in directly but there are a few others who came here via a search engine. One such entry came today at 11:03 am Pacific Time from a server located in San Francisco. This is not unusual what is unusual is the search strand; "Compulsive Gambler and want to Die". Yes, those are the exact words someone used and they accessed this blog. Unfortunately this is all I know and the person didn't stay very long only looking at the first page.

I would like to know what happened after this and yes, this is a very serious addiction. Just the other day I had a conversation with my boss about the perils of compulsive gambling and what it does to a person. We read the same line in every Gamblers Anonymous meeting; "prison, insanity or death". This isn't a joke and this isn't a joking matter; compulsive gamblers have the highest rate of suicide of any addiction; at least one in four compulsive gamblers attempt suicide.

I can only hope and pray that the person who accessed this site earlier in the day with that ominious search hasn't done anything drastic. It may seem like the end of the world when all the material possessions have been gambled away along with many personal issues; however; there is help and my help continues to come from the Gamblers Anonymous Program. I implore anyone with a compulsive gambling problem to contact their local chapter. Here is a listing of all the meetings around the world. If there isn't a meeting in your vicinity please call 1-800-GAMBLER and they will direct to a place that can help.

I want everyone to know there is help and they are not alone. This seems to be a very lonely disease and at time there appears to be no way out but I can say firsthand there is a way out and it is through recovery. Please if you are thinking about ending your life stop and call someone, anyone the 1-800-GAMBLER is a great service along with just reaching out for help. People are there to help and my email address is paul.delvacchio@gmail.com and I can be reached toll free at 1-866-942-7943 anytime. Thank you!!!!