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GamCare has unveiled a new addition to its services with a specific focus on women experiencing gambling-related harm, the Way Forward support group.
A virtual event, the support group will be held over Zoom between 6.30pm and 8pm and conducted by trained facilitators specialising in supporting women impacted by gambling harm.
In order, the seven sessions will focus on allowing participants to get to know each other, understanding gambling addiction, self-care, dealing with guilt, shame and enabling behaviours, dealing with anger and resentment, having difficult conversations, expectations and acceptance, and concluding with a reflection session.
The launch of the support group closely follows the addition of live chatrooms to GamCare’s service, also with a specific focus on assisting women who have encountered gambling related harm.
The themed chatrooms will take place 6pm-7pm Monday-Friday on a weekly basis from 31 July onwards, covering five different areas of focus on each day of the week.
These topics are time; covering time spent gambling and the impact of this, breaking the cycle, taking time out from gambling and filling time that would otherwise be spent gambling; followed by wellbeing, which examines the impact of betting on mood, activities to improve wellbeing, mental health awareness and goal setting.
The Wednesday chatroom will examine money; including consumers’ money and their financial future, debt and money guidance, budget management and future planning.
Lived experience and sharing stories and knowledge will be the focus of the Thursday chatroom sessions, as well as swapping guidance on relations and social support, relapse and managing urges and changes with recovery.
The final sessions on Friday will conclude with discussions around relationships, focusing on “impacts gambling can have on your relationships with those around you”. Specific topics include relationship breakdowns, lying and trust, support networks and improving relationships.
