LAS VEGAS BLUES –
Jan. 8, 2022 – “That’s the date I protect,” Remillard said on a recent afternoon from the crepe restaurant he owns that is a short drive from the Las Vegas Strip. He agreed on that Monday to stay sober, stop gambling and help counsel those facing the same predicament.
“All we can do is help each other,” he said, a task that has been made even more difficult by the unrelenting stress of the COVID-19 pandemic. “A lot of people have been alone and struggling with their addiction. They’re not alone.”
Unlike more visible addictions, problem gambling is fairly easy to hide, yet nonetheless leaves about two million Americans annually feeling alone, ashamed and, in many cases, broke.
A recent survey from the National Council on Problem Gambling, a Washington-based nonprofit, showed that the risk has doubled since 2018. The survey of 2,000 people nationwide focused on attitudes and experiences gambling both online and at casinos.
