Resources
Free, confidential help for anyone affected by gambling, including the people around them.
Call or text 1-800-MY-RESET (1-800-697-3738), or chat online. Free, confidential, 24/7. Run by the National Council on Problem Gambling.
Therapy that specialises in gambling, the state directory, and the peer groups. Listed for what they are; this platform has no arrangement with any of them.
Find help
If money is gone that was meant for rent, food, or someone else, if you are borrowing to keep going, or if you have thought about hurting yourself, call today. The line is free, it is confidential, and the person who answers has heard it before.
Online therapy for gambling and other compulsive behaviors, by video with licensed specialists, in all 50 states. Their site says most major insurance plans are accepted, often at $0 to $25 a session. A separate company; this product has no arrangement with them.
Visit Birches HealthOnline therapy and counseling for behavioral addictions including gambling, with individual therapy, coaching, and support groups. Their site says they accept major insurance and offer a free first consultation. A separate company; this product has no arrangement with them.
Visit KindbridgeThe National Council on Problem Gambling's directory of state programs, counselors, and self-exclusion options.
Find your statePeer meetings for people who want to stop gambling, in person and online. Free.
Find a meetingThe National Foundation for Credit Counseling, a nonprofit network of certified credit counselors since 1951, for the debt that gambling leaves behind: budgeting, credit card debt, and debt management plans. They do not treat gambling itself. A separate organization; this product has no arrangement with them.
Visit the NFCCPeer meetings for the family and friends of someone who gambles. Free.
Find a meeting8.9 yrs
Mean time between when gambling disorder starts and when someone gets treatment for it, longer than the same gap for OCD.
CNS Spectrums, peer-reviewed study, n=298
15%
Of US adults have ever been asked about their gambling by a doctor. Nothing is screening for this.
Harris Poll for NCPG, 2026
73%
Of people contacting the national gambling helpline cite financial stress. It's the single most common reason people finally reach out.
National Problem Gambling Helpline, 2025
~6%
Of US college students are estimated to have a gambling problem, roughly double the adult national rate.
National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG)
60%
Of 18 to 22 year olds report having bet on sports, most of it through a phone, not a casino.
NCAA membership survey, 2023
19.2%
Of pathological gamblers have filed for bankruptcy, versus 5.5% of low-risk gamblers. Almost a 4x gap.
Gambling Impact and Behavior Study, NORC
A short, non-judgmental conversation is the intervention with the best evidence for people who are not seeking treatment. Ask one question, then listen. These are openers for a first conversation, by who you are to them.
The same ladder the app shows an accountability partner. Quiet weeks need nothing. Concern needs one conversation. High concern needs company for the first call.
Nothing to do. If it comes up, tell them you saw a quiet week and leave it there.
Checking in when nothing happened teaches them that sharing brings scrutiny. Quiet weeks are the reward for sharing.Pick one of the starters, in person or by voice, not by text. Ask, then listen. Do not bring the numbers unless they ask.
A ten-minute, non-judgmental conversation is the intervention with the best evidence for reducing gambling in people who are not seeking treatment.Have the conversation, then offer to be in the room while they call or text 1-800-MY-RESET, or book a first appointment. Offer, do not insist.
People with someone in their corner stay in treatment longer. Your job is to make the first call easy, not to make it for them.A connected account that stops showing activity usually means money moved somewhere else. Ask plainly: has anything changed with your accounts?
Silence is the one signal a bank feed cannot classify. The conversation is the only way to know what it means.They are allowed to disconnect. They agreed not to do it quietly, and you were told. Ask why, and ask what they want the arrangement to be now.
Leaving is allowed. Leaving quietly is what the product was built to prevent, and it just did its job.Adapted from Gam-Anon's guidance for family and friends.
Most US states run a voluntary self-exclusion program that bars you from licensed operators for a period you choose. The councils below keep the state-by-state directory current, so we link to it rather than copy it.