Article support and counselling 0
Series: Support and counselling options

How ongoing gambling counselling can help

3 min read

This article is being personalised for someone supporting someone else with a lived experience of gambling. If that is not you, can always change the audience type below:

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Are you thinking about counselling for your gambling?

Many people benefit from speaking to a counsellor on an ongoing basis, particularly if their gambling has caused other problems in their lives. Attending ongoing counselling can feel like a big commitment but it will provide you with considerable support to take control of your gambling.

Ongoing counselling generally offers one-on-one support, which can be face-to-face, telephone, or via telehealth. Gambling counsellors are qualified professionals who can provide a range of counselling, information, and referral services. Ongoing counselling is available to support anyone affected by their own or someone else’s gambling.

Is your family member or friend thinking about counselling for their gambling?

Many people benefit from speaking to a counsellor on an ongoing basis, particularly if their gambling has caused other problems in their lives. Attending ongoing counselling can feel like a big commitment but it will provide your family member or friend with considerable support to take control of their gambling.

Ongoing counselling generally offers one-on-one support, which can be face-to-face, telephone, or via telehealth. Gambling counsellors are qualified professionals who can provide a range of counselling, information, and referral services.

Ongoing counselling is available to support anyone affected by their own or someone else’s gambling, including family members or friends like you. It can help you to support someone with their gambling recovery, but it can also provide you with self-care support during this challenging time.

Is someone thinking about counselling for their gambling?

Many people benefit from speaking to somebody on an ongoing basis, particularly if their gambling has caused other problems in their lives. This option takes the most time and commitment but it will provide the person you’re supporting with considerable support to take control of their gambling.

Ongoing counselling generally offers one-on-one support, which can be face-to-face, telephone, or via telehealth. Gambling counsellors are qualified professionals who can provide a range of counselling, information, and referral services.

Ongoing counselling is available to support anyone affected by their own or someone else’s gambling, including professionals like you. It’s also available for family members and friends who have been affected by someone else’s gambling. It can help family members or friends to support someone with their gambling recovery, but it can also provide them with self-care support during this challenging time.

Gambling counsellors often provide one-on-one support. They can also provide support to couples or families. Counselling services operate in most local metropolitan and country areas, but people can also access services outside their local area if they prefer. Many face-to-face services also offer phone and video counselling by appointment, and sometimes outside office hours.

Gambling counsellors may use various types of therapy to help people affected by gambling. The types of treatment with the best evidence are cognitive-behavioural therapy and motivational interviewing. Cognitive-behavioural therapy, also known as CBT, helps people identify their thoughts and beliefs about gambling and learn how to cope with their gambling urges and triggers. Motivational interviewing helps people get ready to change by exploring their thoughts and feelings about gambling.

Counselling can really help. It might take few sessions to get on top of things, but even just one session can be helpful enough for people to start making changes.

To get the most out of counselling, it’s important for people to find the right counsellor for them. The strength of the relationship with a counsellor is a key element in determining the success of counselling. If counselling in the past didn’t work as well as it could have, it might be because the fit with the counsellor wasn’t right.

To speak to a gambling counsellor, people can start an online chat with us or call the Gambling Helpline on 1800 858 858. They’ll speak confidentially with a trained counsellor who can refer them to see a gambling counsellor. Alternatively, you can visit your state and territory page to find a gambling counselling service near you.

For help in another language, call the Gambling Helpline on 1800 858 858, and a counsellor can organise an interpreter for you. Alternatively, call the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450, and they can arrange a translation service for you. See Gambling in Culturally Diverse Communities for more information.

People with a hearing or speech impairment can contact the Gambling Helpline through the National Relay Service.

Not sure this is the right type of support?

There are many ways to get help. Everyone’s different, so it’s really important for each person to find the right support for them. Different approaches may work better for different people. We’re here to help people choose the type of support that suits them best.

Take a look at the other types of support and counselling that are available:

To learn more about how support and counselling can help people who are struggling with their gambling, see our information on Seeking Support.

Do you want more help?

To learn more about how support or counselling can help, you can start an online chat with us or call the Gambling Helpline on 1800 858 858 – free, confidential, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. These services are available to support anyone affected by gambling harm, including family members or friends.

Do you want more help?

To learn more about how support or counselling can help, you or your family member or friend can start an online chat with us or call the Gambling Helpline on 1800 858 858 – free, confidential, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

These services are available to support anyone affected by gambling harm, including family members or friends like you. It’s not only the person who gambles that can be affected, but the people close to them too. It’s important to take care of yourself when you’re supporting someone else. Check out the family and friends section in our peer support community to connect with people who understand.

Do you want more help?

To learn more about gambling, you or the person you’re working with can start an online chat with us or call the Gambling Helpline on 1800 858 858 – free, confidential, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

These services are available to support anyone affected by gambling harm, including family members, friends, and professionals like you. It can be hard for professionals to support people with gambling issues. To learn more about how you can help, go to our section on How Professionals Can Help.

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