As the name suggests, ‘Problem Gambling’ is a condition in which a person’s gambling habits are causing severe complications in his/her life. In other words, problem gambling is spending too much time gambling or lots of money, causing a financial crisis.
Some people’s problem gambling can develop into full-blown addiction while others managed to get over it in time. Gambling addiction means that the person is unable to Stop Gambling. This condition is also known as ‘Compulsive Gambling,’ and it gets worse with time if left untreated.
Ten Common Signs of Problem Gambling:
- Lying/Hiding their Problems:
Generally, people suffering from problem gambling try to hide it from others. They keep on lying to their friends, coworkers, spouse, and family regarding their issues.
- Recovering their Loses:
Many gamblers claim that they are gambling to recover their loss or the money they have lost in Gambling. They say that once their loss is recovered or when they win big money, they will quit Gambling. Sometimes, they claim that they lose money because they were not lucky or changed their strategy, which didn’t work. But they could not recover losses; instead, this will lead to more debts and losses.
- Borrowing Huge Money:
That’s what problem gamblers or pathological gamblers do when Gambling put them into financial crisis. They borrow money from their friends, family members, spouses, coworkers, employers without telling them the real reason for what they need money. Sometimes they may have others who are paying their gambling debts. They even take out a second mortgage or max-out their credit card withdrawal.
- Betting More and More:
Just like in drug and alcohol addiction, problem gamblers also have to increase their ‘dose’ of Gambling to enjoy the same euphoric effect or thrill. By dose, we mean that they have to bet more and more money to experience the kind of rush they want. The problem is – the more they bet, the more they lose, and their crisis keeps on increasing.
- Become Obsessed with Gambling:
During this phase, gamblers become obsessed with Gambling, that they spend most of their time thinking about their past experiences and planning for future experiences. Any reason seems enough to gamble again. They are so desperate to get the money they need that they are ready to try any strategy.
- Not being able to Stop Gambling:
Many gamblers know that their Gambling is severely affecting their lives, putting them in a financial crisis, but they could not stop Gambling. They know that they should quit Gambling and try to do it for quite a while now, but the urge to play overshadows all the resistant build. It will feel like you cannot stop gambling on your own.
- Experience the ‘Need’ to Gamble:
Just like in drug and alcohol addiction, many gamblers start to experience ‘psychological withdrawal symptoms’ when they try to quit or stop gambling altogether. They began to feel agitated, tense, irritable or impatient if their daily ‘dose’ of Gambling was cut out.
- Gamble to forget the stress:
Problem gamblers usually play to forget their problems, distract themselves from stress. This way, the purpose of playing is far beyond just entertainment. For them, Gambling becomes a way to escape from whatever is bothering them. On the other hand, Gambling itself is causing them so many problems.
- Stealing or Engaging in illegal activities to Gambling:
Gambling is wreaking havoc in the lives of gamblers, and their finances are getting worse each passing day. Despite knowing the crisis, problem gamblers are unable to stop playing. In this case, borrowing money from friends and families is no longer enough. Therefore they turn towards illegal acts and misdeeds to fund their habits. They convince themselves that once they hit the jackpot, all their problems and miseries will be over.
- Gambling becomes the most important thing in the world:
As mentioned above, a problem gambler’s life is revolving around Gambling only. The person has become so addicted and desperate to win something big, that they ignore all the financial, professional and social troubles in their lives. They keep on burying deep in troubles. It can put their families, job, studies, friendships, relationships or future plans at great risk. It is necessary for problem gamblers to get proper treatment for their behaviors.
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