Counseling Services by Certified Gambling Counselors
Michigan residents with a gambling problem are entitled to 16 (almost) free counseling sessions. Click here for a list of certified gambling counselors.

1-800-270-7117 - Michigan Problem Gambling Hot Line
A toll-free, confidential service to give people help and support. Counseling may be provided at a very minimal cost.

Gamblers Anonymous (G.A.)
Gamblers Anonymous is a fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from a gambling problem.

Gam-Anon
Gam-Anon are groups composed of men and women who are husbands, wives, relatives or close friends of compulsive gamblers. They are seeking a solution for living with this problem by changing their own lives.

Compulsive Gambling Institute
The Compulsive Gambling Institute is a nonprofit, for public benefit, charitable corporation which exists to assist the compulsive gamblers and their families, as well as the interested general public.

In-Patient Programs
There are two in-patient treatment center in the United States that exclusively treat people with gambling addictions:

CORE Centre of Recovery - Shreveport, Louisiana
Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center - Cleveland, Ohio

In addition there are approximately five centers in the United States that treat a variety of addictions including gambling:

Harbour Pointe - Baltimore, Maryland
Palmetto Addiction Recovery Center - Rayville, Louisiana
Sierra Tuscon - Tucson, Arizona
Keystone Treatment Center - Canton, South Dakota
Azure Acres - Northern California
Illinois Institute for Addiction Recovery (IIAR) - Peoria, Bloomington & Springfield, Illinois
Providing comprehensive hospital based treatment for both adults and adolescents either as an inpatient or outpatient service. IIAR not only treats those suffering from chemical dependence, but also gambling, food, sex, Internet, compulsive shopping/spending and chronic pain with addiction. We are here to help, so please pick up the phone, to start picking up the pieces. 1-800-522-3784

Interventions
The following places offer professional intervention services for gambling addicts and their families.

Love First: Intervention for Alcoholism and Drug Addiction
Addiction Intervention Resources
Harbour Pointe

Disassociated Persons List
Most states that allow casinos to operate have enacted statutes that allow an individual to "bar" himself from casinos in that state. This self exclusion is referred to as the disassociated persons list. Some states have exclusion for a period of years and others are for life. If an individual is found inside a casino after signing that document he/she is charged with trespass and can be sent to jail and ordered to pay a fine. The penalties vary from state to state. Upon arrest the individual must relinquish any winnings. Many families who have a compulsive gambler in their midst should have meaningful discussions with their family member about being placed on the list.

In Michigan, the Michigan Gaming Control Board describes all the ramifications of putting yourself on the list. Each state that offers casinos should be able to give information on its Help-Line about the Disassociated Persons List.

Most families of compulsive gamblers are unaware that this process exists. It can be an excellent tool to keep your gambler out of the casino and also be one way to help protect family assets.