About

Who’s behind this site

I’m Chris Beerman, MSW, LCSW, CADC — a licensed clinical social worker and certified alcohol and drug counselor in Chicago. Most of my work is with people trying to stop gambling, a lot of it sports betting, and with the partners and families around them.

Why I built it

Most people who decide to stop betting don’t start in a therapist’s office. They start on their phone, often late at night, searching for how to block an app or get on their state’s self-exclusion list. What they find is usually scattered, out of date, or published by sites that make money from gambling.

This site is what I want them to land on instead: plain steps for closing every door to a bet — the apps, the phone, the money, the state list — each checked against the official source and dated, so you know how fresh it is. How we verify the guides →

Free, for good

This site is free and will stay that way. There’s no email sign-up, no paid program, no ads and no affiliate links, and it takes no money from sportsbooks, casinos, fantasy apps or prediction markets. The 24-Hour Betting Shutdown Plan is a straight PDF download.

What this site is — and isn’t

It’s educational self-help. Reading it doesn’t make me your therapist, and nothing here is diagnosis or medical, legal or financial advice. The approach — put barriers between yourself and the bet first — comes from how gambling problems are treated, but a website isn’t treatment. If you want more support than this site can give, the National Problem Gambling Helpline at 1-800-MY-RESET can connect you with free help where you live. More ways to get help →

Working with me

I see clients through my private practice, Chicago Addiction Therapy — in person in Logan Square, Chicago, and online anywhere in Illinois and Minnesota, the states where I’m licensed. That’s the only link between the two. You never need to contact me to use anything on this site, and nothing here is a pitch for therapy.

Get in touch

Spotted something wrong or out of date? Email [email protected] with the page and what changed. Please don’t send personal or health details by email, and don’t use it in a crisis — call or text 988, any time.