Couple battle problems of compulsive gambling

Monday, Nov. 3, 1997 | 10:54 a.m.

Arnie Wexler traded one addiction for another.

For the first half of his life he was a compulsive gambler, for the second he became a workaholic treating compulsive gamblers and traveling the globe speaking out on all the issues involved in gambling addiction.

Until his heart stopped for 20 seconds.

That was more than three years ago.

Now, he and his wife, Sheila, have slowed down the intense pace that drove them for decades as they warned against the evils of compulsive gambling.

They spend seven months of the year at their home in New Jersey and five months in Florida.

Arnie, who has an international reputation as an expert in gambling addiction, gave up his position as executive director of New Jersey's Council on Compulsive Gambling.

He and Sheila, a pioneer in the treatment of gambling addiction, now spend their time traveling -- at as relaxed a pace as possible under the circumstances -- conducting workshops and talking to various groups about the issue that has consumed their personal and professional lives.

Recently the couple conducted a workshop at the Las Vegas Hilton on the issue of how gambling addictions affect relationships.

It is an issue they know intimately.

Gambling almost destroyed their marriage in the early years of the partnership. He once stepped over her when she she laid down in the doorway to keep him from going to the racetrack. He once placed a numbers bet, using his newborn son's weight. He would steal from the company he worked for to support his habit.

Through counseling, the marriage endured and Arnie became a recovering gambling addict in a world that seems determined to turn everyone into compulsive gamblers.

"We're building a nation of gamblers," says Wexler. "Why get a job? There's easy money in gambling -- casinos, lotteries.

"What does it say to you when you see a 5-year-old kid holding onto his mom or dad's hand while the parent is playing the slots?

"It's creating the mentality of looking for an easy way to make money."

Though winning isn't becoming any easier, the opportunity to gamble is.

There are an increasing number of states offering lotteries. Casinos are spreading. Gambling is being touted everywhere as fun and glamorous -- much the way cigarette manufacturers market their tobacco products.

"Ten to 20 years down the road, the gaming industry will be in the same position the tobacco industry is in today," said Wexler.

Sheila Wexler called gambling the hidden epidemic of the 1990s.

It's hidden, she said, because unlike alcohol you can't smell it on someone's breath.

Gambling addicts can conceal their addiction very well until it begins to destroy their lives, she said.

The National Center for Responsbile Gaming (NCRG) recently approved a $120,000 scientific research grant to the Foundation for Clinical Neuroscience Research and Education Inc. in Cleveland to fund a two-year study that will use brain imaging and blood samples to determine if there is a biochemical basis for compulsive gambling.

In December the Division of Addictions at Harvard Medical School will release its study of who is at risk for gambling disorders.

Neuroscience Research and Education will examine the theory that a chemical in the body called dopamime may be responsible for gambling addiction.

Dopamime is a neurotransmitter related to mood, attention and learning.

In August the NCRG gave a $160,000 grant to the Ciy of Hope National Medical Center in Duarte, Calif., to help support a two-year study on the genetics of pathological gambling.

Researchers at the City of Hope will look at DNA samples from pathological gamblers to examine possible genetic abnormalities in an effort to determine whether a particular gene predisposes some individuals to compulsive gambling.

The NCRG was established in 1996. It is the first national organization devoted exclusively to funding research on problem and underage gambling.

Wexler said 10 years ago about 1 percent of the telephone calls for help he received were from women.

Today, he said, that number is up to 25 percent.

About 12 percent of those seeking help are under 21.

When gambling via the Internet catches on, Wexler expects gambling addiction to explode behind the closed doors of one's home.

"When we do Internet gambling, how are we going to stop a 14 year old kid?" he asked.

Wexler said about 5 percent of the American population is addicted to gambling, and about 10 percent of those employed in the gaming industry are compulsive gamblers.

The Wexlers spend a lot of time working with casinos around the country, helping them cope with the problem of gambling addiction among their employees.

One of their most recent projects was to help Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts in Atlantic City to develop a comprehensive responsible gaming policy to address the issues of underage gambling and gambling by employees.

"Ten years ago the gaming industry ignored the problem of gambling addiction," noted Wexler. "But now they are beginning to recognize their responsibilities."