Indiscretion: Callie Douglas - Book Four

Chapter Four

Grady Collins was my first patient of the afternoon. I'd seen him several times over the previous few weeks. He was struggling with a gambling addiction and I was treating him both for the resulting depression associated with his addiction as well as for the addiction itself. He was working hard to kick it, but it was a real struggle for him. To make matters even more challenging, he got no support from his wife at home.

"How are you today?" I asked Grady.

"Okay. My wife has been driving me crazy and I've really been struggling with the desire to head off to the casino."

"We talked about this in the past, remember? Your wife does something to drive you crazy, and your reaction is to go to the casino and try to dull your upset through playing at the slot machines. What's she doing this time?"

"She's convinced that I'm having an affair, and that's why I'm spending time away from the house. She doesn't believe that I have a gambling addiction. I told her about coming to you for appointments to treat the addiction, but she thinks that I'm spending the time away from the house with another woman. I don't know why the old battle-ax suspects I'm having an affair. I have enough problems with one woman in my life. Why would I want another one?"

"Why don't you leave her? You obviously aren't happy with her."

"I've been thinking about that more and more, and have started taking steps towards that. I've been keeping track of when the desire to gamble is the strongest just like you recommended, and I find that I want to run out and gamble the most when I'm spending time with her. When we first met, she satisfied something in me. She was the answer to all my questions, the solution to all my problems. Now she's the problem itself. I'm not sure when it happened, but I've fallen out of love with her."

"From what you've said in the past, it sounds like Hillie was good for the time, but you have outgrown each other."

"I know that's what we have talked about in past sessions."

"You said that you had taken steps towards leaving. What have you done?"

"I brought up the subject of perhaps splitting up with Hillie last night, and she blew up. She turned into a crazy woman, throwing things across the room at me and crying hysterically. I just got up and left, heading off to the casino. I was there all night last night."

"How much money did you blow?"

"It wasn't so bad. I only spent about two thousand. I was able to win a few good payouts."

"Better than what you often spend, but it's still money you don't have. How much do you owe on your line of credit now?"

"I have it down to one hundred and twenty-nine thousand. I've been really working at it. That was one of the things that got my wife all upset. I told her how much was outstanding on our line of credit, and she thinks that I've been siphoning money out of our joint accounts to give to the other woman. I don't know who she thinks I've been cheating on her with, but she has a burr up her butt about it."

"I know it's upsetting to have to break up with someone. However, you have to think of yourself first. Your mental health is suffering as a result of staying with your wife, and that isn't right. Relationships between two people are meant to provide support to each other, not be a cause of depression and anxiety. Speaking of depression, how are you feeling?"

"Better when I gamble. I've been really struggling with feeling down. I'm irritable with everyone, and the only time I feel like I'm in control of my emotions is when I'm pushing the spin button on a slot machine."