Abdullah Mahmood is back. The gambling coordinator at Maryhaven in Columbus, Ohio returns to The Modern Meeting for a conversation about what might be the most significant piece of gambling legislation in the country right now. The Save Ohio Sports Act — introduced by two Republican and two Democratic lawmakers — would effectively abolish mobile and online sports betting in the state, limit wagers to four brick and mortar casinos, ban credit card use, and eliminate parlays and prop bets. In a state where 98% of sports betting happens on a mobile device, that's a seismic shift.

Adam and Abdullah break down what's in the bill, why it started with a match-fixing scandal involving two Cleveland Guardians players, who's going to fight it, and why it probably won't pass in its current form — but probably should. They also get into the five stages of change, what Abdullah is seeing on his caseload right now, and why a man's first appointment is almost always about saving his family rather than saving himself.

Contact Abdullah:

https://maryhaven.com/gambling/

https://www.gamfin.org/

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I almost didn't record this one. Friday episodes are tough. I was ready to skip the episode entirely. And then the Monday meeting happened. The topic was: what did gambling give you — and who are you without it? What followed was one of the most powerful hours I've ever spent in a recovery room. Gail and Mandy's answers to "Without Gambling, Who Are You Becoming," sent me all the way back to Clinton, MA. Then I picked up my pen and wrote down a name I hadn't thought about in almost 20 years.

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Larry K went to his first Gamblers Anonymous meeting at 16 years old in 1973 — not because he was ready, but because his grandmother paid him $100 to go. What followed was 53 years of compulsive gambling, multiple relapses, four marriages, and a stint trading $30 million in stock market options while convincing himself it wasn't gambling. This is not a straight line recovery story. It's something far more honest than that. Larry breaks down the difference between abstinence and real recovery, why the obsession never truly goes away, and what finally brought him back to the GA meeting he started himself over 30 years ago — on a Friday the 13th at a Denny's in Mission Viejo.

If you’re struggling right now, you’re not alone.
Email me anytime at modernmeetingpod@gmail.com

The Modern Meeting is supported by Evive!

Evive meets you exactly where you are.

Download Evive today or visit www.getevive.com