Gamblers Anonymous

Introduction
Author : GA

Keep an open mind; it does not hurt and who knows - it could change your life "one day at a time."

This booklet is for those who have been in the fellowship more than 90 days - in some cases for many years. Having said that, 20 years away from a bet does not mean it will be 20 years before we make another.

On the road of recovery, many obstacles confront us. Some are obvious and some are harder to spot. They may even come disguised as assets.

We, the authors of this booklet, have tried to cover some of these obstacles. This booklet is based on our own experiences. We ask you to have an open mind and we sincerely hope that it will help you in your resolve to stay away from the next bet, one day at a time.

Keep an open mind. You will hear this statement often in GA meetings. It can easily be misunderstood by those who are still in that frame of mind where they don’t want to be told what to do or for those who are afraid of the consequences.

For example, we often recommend that new members turn over all their salary to their spouse so their spouse will know exactly what they earn and so that a proper budget can be implemented. To those with a closed mind, the immediate thought is, “No way! I’ve always handled the finances in our house; I don’t want to turn it over. My spouse won’t know how to do it and will mess it up.”

Another example might revolve around the difference between abstinence and recovery. Have you ever received a comment that perhaps you should move beyond abstinence toward recovery? Has the enemy of the open mind hit you? Have you thought, “Who are these members to be telling me how to live? I am doing okay. I don’t gamble. I attend meetings. What more do they want?”

What “they” want is the best for you.

An open mind means being prepared to believe that the other person could be right. It also means having a willingness to try, within reason, methods that GA members may suggest to you.

Over a period of many years GA has developed methods that have proved successful for many compulsive gamblers. In the first step of our Recovery Program we admit that we are powerless over gambling and that our lives have become unmanageable and so “keeping an open mind” means being ready to accept help to get back the management of our lives.

We only have to listen to ourselves speaking in our therapy to agree that our old way of thinking was wrong and that maybe the GA way, as suggested in this booklet, is the right way.

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