Gambling Addiction

April 3, 2009

Gambling addiction is an affliction that comes in the night and takes its victims by surprise.
What may have once been a harmless pastime can sometimes become a lurking cloud that affects your emotional health, your relationships, your performance at work and your financial status.
When you play online poker you should enjoy it but if you feel that it is controlling your life, then it is time to take action.

If you find yourself thinking about gambling often throughout the week or you feel stressed out thinking about it, it may be worth taking a further look into gambling addiction.
If a problem does exist, you should face it immediately instead of trying to bury it. It’s tempting to deny the problem exists but it will only get worse if you bury your head in the sand.

Gamblers Anonymous has a list of 20 questions you can ask yourself (or a loved one) if you suspect a gambling problem exists.
They say that most compulsive gamblers will answer yes to at least 7 of these questions:

1. Do you ever miss school or work due to gambling?

2. Have you ever considered suicide due to gambling?

3. Has gambling made your home life unhappy?

4. Have you ever borrowed money to fund your gambling?

5. Do you ever reward yourself or celebrate good fortune by gambling?

6. Has gambling affected your reputation?

7. Are you ever hesitant to use gambling money for other expenditures?

8. Do arguments or other problems give you an urge to gamble?

9. Have you ever gambled until your last dollar was gone?

10. Do you ever use gambling as an escape from worries, loneliness or boredom?

11. Have you ever sold anything to get gambling money?

12. After winning have you ever felt a strong urge to go back and win more?

13. Do you ever feel like you must gamble as soon as possible to recoup recent gambling losses?

14. Have you ever lost sleep due to gambling?

15. Have you ever committed a crime or thought about committing a crime to get gambling money?

16. Do you ever feel sorry after gambling?

17. Has gambling ever taken priority over you or your family’s welfare?

18. Have you ever gambled to get money to pay off debts?

19. Does gambling cause a decrease in your ambition or efficiency?

20. Do you ever gamble longer than you planned?

If you even suspect that you or a loved one may have a gambling problem, you should contact a Gamblers Anonymous group near you. You can find a list of Gamblers Anonymous chapters right here.

Don’t let embarrassment or denial prevent you from getting help if you or a loved one has a gambling problem. It’s an affliction that affects an estimated 1% of the entire population of the United States, or roughly 3 million people.

The first step in finding relief and recovery is admitting you have a problem and seeking help. When you take that first step to recovery, you’ll be glad you did. At the very least you should check out the Gamblers Anonymous home page for more information.

Gambling Addiction

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