Lost Everything Gambling? Here’s How to Come Back

The first half of the heading above is too commonly reported among certain segments of the American population. Despite having some of the most effective protections in the nation in place for residents, Florida has also heard the call.

To investigate, Playwise recently conducted research on queries for “I lost everything gambling” occurring on Google and Gemini AI, specifically for the state of Florida. We also included select semantically related expressions that put the concept of “everything” into context. The table below shows the average search volume for each over the most recent three-month period:

Source: Google Research
*+∞ indicates exponential growth in online search volume of the stated period.

As readers can observe, there are consistent (and growing) online searches each month, within Florida, for the following:

• Lost my house gambling
• Lost 50k gambling
• Lost 100k gambling
• Lost 1 million gambling
• I lost everything gambling

It must be noted that the above list is not exhaustive. For instance, there are searches for financial losses on either side of, and between, the $50K and $1-million markers. Further, listed searches are specific to Google / Gemini. The values do not include online outreach on ChatGPT, Perplexity, Grok, and other AI assistants. When taken collectively, it can be logically deduced that the number of Floridians reporting life-altering gambling losses each month runs deep into the thousands.

We are sharing this information to let anyone who has arrived at this low point that they are not alone. Providing added comfort, is the fact that this very same resource will point you towards the steps needed to correct your course and get back what you lost, even if in an indirect (yet sustainable) manner.

Step I: Recognize That You Can’t “Win” it Back

Your query of “I lost everything gambling” indicates a high-likelihood you have already tried chasing losses, but it’s worth repeating for confirmation.

For the uninitiated, chasing losses is a term used to describe the harmful behavior of continuing to make wagers – often increasing stakes or changing strategies – to urgently recover money previously lost, rather than quitting gambling. It is a hallmark feature of unhealthy gambling, where gamblers are driven by the illusion that they can quickly win back what they lost by gambling “one more time”. They enter a vicious cycle of highly-emotional betting behavior that leads to worsening financial losses and distress.

By coming to terms with this behavior, you can pledge to abstain from all future attempts to win back what was lost. From here, you can proceed to the next step.

Step II. Self-Exclude from Gambling Operators

Add a layer of protection against further losses by voluntarily banning yourself from regulated retail gambling establishments their apps, and website. Florida does not have a centralized self-exclusion (SE) program, but SE is accessible internally through each individual tribal gambling facility. Do not visit any facility in-person to request SE, because entry may trigger you to gamble again. Instead, call the associated customer service number to request inclusion on their SE list:

• Big Easy Casino (+1.954.924.3200)
• Calder Casino & Race Course (+1.305.625.1311)
• Casino @ Dania Beach (+1.954.920.1511)
• Gulfstream Park Racing & Casino (+1.954.454.7000)
• Harrah’s Pompano Beach (+1.954.972.2000)
• Hialeah Park Racing and Casino (+1.305.885.8000)
• Casino Miami (+1.305.633.6400)
• Magic City Casino (+1.305.649.3000)
• Seminole Brighton Bay Hotel & Casino (+1.863.467.9998)
• Seminole Casino Coconut Creek (+1.954.977.6700)
• Seminole Hard Rock Tampa (+1.866.388-4263)
• Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood (+1.866.502.7529)
• Seminole Classic Casino Hollywood (+1.954.961.3220)
• Seminole Casino Immokalee (+1.239.658.1313)

Step III. Initiate Financial Recovery

This step generally runs concurrently with those below, but is placed here since finances are weighing heavily on your mind. It’s also of particular importance for those who have lost their home, savings, and other financial assets, while incurring debt in the process. Playwise has put together a gambling debt-relief playbook for Florida residents.

Learn More about Debt Relief

Step IV: Get Assessed for Problem Gambling

Chasing losses, as discussed in the first section, is a primary sign of problematic gambling behavior. While that alone is enough to consider therapeutic intervention, it can be beneficial to identify the potential existence of other symptoms in addition to underlying mental health issues that may intersect with unhealthy gambling, such as anxiety, depression, and more.

Step V: Schedule an Appointment with a Problem Gambling Counselor

We’re often quoted as saying “Recovery starts with one honest conversation”, and it’s true. When you connect to one of Florida’s approved problem gambling counselors for the very first time – to listen and be heard – you will begin to experience what being on the road to recovery feels like. It’s a lot lighter than the one that led to financial, familial, and personal despair.

As time in counseling progresses, and through the application of proven methods such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), you will access tools and skills to manage behavior and prevent relapse. Moreover, when you commit to counseling and engage deeply, you will observe benefits in other aspects of your life. It is not uncommon for participants to indirectly experience an improvement in their financial situation when therapy addresses underlying issues that hinder decision making, financial management, and productivity. Data suggests that when all else is equal, counseling can actually lead to increased financial wellbeing, with one study pointing to average income increases (between men and women) of more than 10%.