Gambling With Your Life

Last year, gamblers bet nearly 95 million dollars on the Super Bowl. The Nevada Gaming Control Board expects to top that number when they tally the total from tonight's game. And that's just the legal bets. There's no way to determine how much was wagered illegally. For one Chattanoogan, Super Bowl XLI marks an anniversary he'll never forget. As Chris Nettleton reports, it's also one he's not likely to celebrate. Terry's a compulsive gambler and hasn't watched the NFL's biggest game since February 1st, 2004. "The Super Bowl to me holds memories that I don't like to relive. You know I never want to forget, but I don't like reliving it." While the Patriots and their fans sat on top of the World ... Terry hit Rock Bottom. "Totally busted. Everything. Everything I had ... In my mind I had lost everything. Like I said I had borrowed money from loan companies pulled out all of my 401K blew it," Terry said, "The way my brain was working, I had a choice. I could do one of two things I would either get help or suicide." He got help, joined gamblers anonymous, and for the next two years wouldn't even watch a sporting event. "I avoided the newspapers, I avoided television, sports or any kind of sports or anything, and then I gradually worked my way into it," Terry said. Dr. Jim Meginley of Alternative Counseling Associates knows it's a struggle for anyone to fight this addiction. "There's always that chase as they call it. And for a gambler, hitting that big win, which is the equivalent of a year's salary is absolutely orgasmic. They are absolutely hooked from there on out." "Gambling can ruin lives, and it does ruin lives," Terry said. But if anything, it's becoming more prevalent. Poker has invaded cable TV and sports betting blankets the internet. "And what the research is telling us, not only Super Bowl, but sporting events all across the board there's an increase in the betting," Dr. Meginley said. With that increase, and the ability to bet from your own computer the multi-billion dollar industry is growing exponentially, thanks in part to a younger generation of gamblers. "And that one example of 26 percent of college males who are involved in sports betting on a weekly basis, some years back, that would not have been heard of," Dr. Meginley said. Still, Terry hopes others with his addiction can find a way to do what he's done. "I pray that every gambler out there who has a problem Grambling, would stop now and say I need help before it goes any further and say I need help." Dr. Meginley says it's estimated that 7 out of 10 adults in the United States are involved in sports betting at least once a year. If you have a gambling problem, or know someone who needs help, the Chattanooga area has Gamblers Anonymous meetings on Tuesdays and Fridays. Tuesday Meetings (7pm) St. Alban's Episcopal Church 1803 Gold Point Circle Hixson, TN For more information contact Lance at (423) 877-5746 Friday Meetings (5:30pm) House of Hope 2002 Oak Street Chattanooga, TN For more information contact Terry at (423) 622-7147