It’s a dream come true. On Friday, a group of twenty-one Belgians hit the jackpot: they won 123 million euros at EuroMillions. Extraordinary winnings for this group of friends from Zingem (East Flanders), who immediately decided to celebrate the good news. But once the euphoria has subsided, isn’t such a change difficult to manage? How can you not get twisted? The response from our psychologist.
5.8 million euros for each player
As soon as the numbers were validated by the Taerwe bakery – which sold the famous winning tickets – the group of friends gathered to celebrate the news. “I received a call from one of them. He invited me to toast with champagne to celebrate this excellent news“, tells the Flemish media HLN Redgy the baker before specifying that he had to hurry to
“be on time at the bakery” because “at 2:30 a.m. duty called“.
On the winning side, the emotion is palpable. 5 small euros allowed them to change their lives. “I still can’t believe it“, admits Ivan, one of the new millionaires. When he arrived at the café, it was a total surprise for him: he did not yet know what loot awaited him. In the end, it was the tidy sum of 5.8 million euros that will be awarded to him (the 21 Belgians decided to share the winnings equally).
Tom, for his part, says he was woken up in the middle of the night. “I was sleeping peacefully and got up to go to the bathroom. I looked at my phone and saw 15 missed calls“, he emphasizes. “I called someone who shouted: You won 5.8 million.”
Extraordinary sums which will allow them to live better, or to live differently, although one of the winners, Fernand, believes that money does not solve everything. “I would have preferred to be in good health. I’ve been struggling for years and would rather be healthy than this big sum of money“, he explains. That being said, “with this money we can at least make our children and grandchildren happy“, admits the player.
But behind this inevitable jubilation, a question persists: can such a gain make these 21 “lucky” people lose their footing? If optional workshops are planned with the help of psychologists, it is however necessary to engage “psychological work” so as not to let yourself be overwhelmed, estimates Johanna Rozenblum.
“We need to find a healthy and intelligible way to do something with this money.“
If everyone dreams of earning so much money – and we don’t really want to pity this group of friends – knowing how to manage this amount intelligently is not easy.
“The whole challenge will be to be able to keep the values that we had before being this big winner. And this inevitably shakes up a lot of things, notably the notion of legitimacy and the efforts made to obtain this money (which almost falls from the sky). It may seem important to work on this legitimacy which is not obvious, and to find a healthy and intelligible way of doing something with this money, which would give meaning to this event, according to its values and ethics”, admits the expert.
In the absence of an official protocol, it may also be useful to consult a specialist to better cope with this psychological shock.
“If this gain involves discomfort or a loss of meaning, and we feel the need to express this without judgment in caring listening, and to work on the way we see things and ourselves, then yes, it is quite clear that consulting a professional is relevant. recognizes the psychologist.
This listening is all the more valuable when you know that confiding in those close to you, when you become a millionaire, is not always recommended.