My family was one of many military families affected by a gambling addiction. Over the past year we had faced one of the most toughest times in our life, my husband had a gambling addiction and it almost cost us our marriage. I had tried everything to help him, hotlines, withdrawing money from our account on payday, cancelling his credit cards (numerous times), but nothing ever helped. He always found a way to end up back there and there was nothing I could do to stop him. These casinos would let him borrow money and 3 days later our bank account was charged. I had no one to turn to for help and that's when I started reading and learning more about gambling addictions and what I could do to help him. I learned that Veterans are susceptible to problem gambling. Difficulty readjusting to civilian life and post-traumatic stress disorder are two common reasons veterans seek escape methods such as the repetitive nature of many popular gambling methods. Finding work in a downturned economy is already a stressful undertaking, and bad memories of their military duties can result in serious addictions. Military members had the highest percentage of gambling addictions. Today I want to raise awareness to prevent more families of becoming victims to gambling addiction. I want to stop military members from having access to casinos due to the suffering my family had endured. We need to raise awareness of gambling addiction and educate the public about the treatment available for problem gambling. The addictions of our military members should not remain hidden. Please help me spread the word by signing this petition. Thank you!
