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Addiction |
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Gambling addiction
is the worst form that you can have. This may seem a big statement but with
most other forms, like drug addiction, it will be quite easy to spot and most
likely seriously effect only one person (of course family members will be
affected). With addiction to gambling the person can seem perfectly normal, in
fact more active than normal. They retain all their thinking powers and develop
tremendously ingenious ways to cover their activities and get money from their
family, their friends and their business associates. This can often build to
very serious amounts that affect many other people and place them in financial
ruin.
A more subtle problem is the fact that it is more socially
acceptable to gamble ruinously and the addiction is often not treated as a
problem at all. A lives work of business and family can be trashed without
raising peoples awareness, as if it was a life choice that someone made, rather
than an uncontrollable slide. If you can answer YES to just a few of the
questions in the section test yourself then start
looking to reduce your eagerness to gamble. If you answer 7 or more then pick
up the phone and dial one of the numbers in contacts.
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| What is it? |
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Gambling addiction
cannot be completely defined within a few paragraphs but the basic weakness
within all people that makes them vulnerable is guilt and guilt
punishment. Humans are weak and wonderfully susceptible to their own psyche
and once out of control only external assistance is able to stop the self
perpetuating spiral.
Humans feel guilt for things they perceive as being
wrong and caused by them. The response of the brain is either to shut out the
memory or punish itself to gain forgiveness. If the guilt is over money lost
through gambling then the punishment is often to gamble more and lose even
more. Emotional highs are got through the intensity gained from gambling,
losing being intense, painful, guilt inducing and ultimately stimulating to the
brain. Losing is therefore addictive and winning is not.
Stubborn people
are the most susceptible to problem or addictive gambling. Their guilt at
losing even small amounts far exceeds the true size of the loss and admitting
any weakness is very difficult for them. Consequently a serious problem can
grow very rapidly from a small downturn in their fortunes.
Rude and
aggressive people are frequently welcomed by casinos even at the risk of
upsetting other customers because the people running these businesses know that
unfriendly people are the most stubborn and most likely to become seriously
hooked on gambling.
There are countless true stories of people (men and
women) who start with casual gambling and quickly progress into continous high
level gambling that consumes their business and family house. No matter how
rich they are it is not too much to lose gambling.
While scientific
research on both male and female gamblers is sparse, existing studies show that
gender differences are critical when it comes to understanding and treating
compulsive gamblers: Women become problem gamblers because they are lonely,
depressed or anxious. Their descent is usually swift. They are more likely to
be addicted to slot machines, which they can play alone. They see the slots as
an escape from personal problems, such as marital unhappiness, divorce or the
death of a loved one.
Female compulsive gamblers tend to be older
— their average age is 45 compared with 35 for men. Women begin gambling
later in life — the average age they start is 31, compared with 18 for
men. For most women with gambling problems, the object is to zone out, to give
themselves a kind of timeout from their lives. Its possible to have a love
affair with a machine that is not threatening, doesn't ask you any questions or
make demands.
When a reporter recently approached an elderly woman at
the Atlantic City Hilton playing two slot machines at once — the same ones
she plays every week — the Staten Island woman, who asked not to be named,
said: "Meet my boyfriends."
Men, on the other hand, are drawn to the
thrill of the big blackjack or sports bet, trying to prove they can beat the
house or the bookmakers. Experts say the men are typically narcissistic; their
high comes from being the center of attention. As the losses pile up and
gamblers begin the descent into a world of lies, debt and destroyed
relationships, the differences between men and women fade.
Pathological
gambling was recognized by the American Psychiatric Association as an
impulse-control disorder in 1980. Experts say it can take two to six years for
the disease to develop, as compulsive gamblers go through three distinct
stages: the high from winning; the chase to reach that high again, which
inevitably leads to losing; and finally, desperation — when a person will
do anything to get the money to keep betting. For women, the descent is
quicker, experts say.
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| Good Gambling advice is stay
away from it completely if you are stubborn. This of course is easier said than
done and friends of those just getting into gambling should confront them if
they are too stubborn to recognise a problem. |
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| Test Yourself |
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TWENTY QUESTIONS
1. Did you ever
lose time from work or school due to gambling?
2. Has gambling ever
made your home life unhappy?
3. Did gambling affect your reputation?
4. Have you ever felt remorse after gambling?
5. Did you
ever gamble to get money with which to pay debts or otherwise solve financial
difficulties?
6. Did gambling cause a decrease in your ambition or
efficiency?
7. After losing did you feel you must return as soon as
possible and win back your losses?
8. After a win did you have a
strong urge to return and win more?
9. Did you often gamble until
your last dollar was gone?
10. Did you ever borrow to finance your
gambling?
11. Have you ever sold anything to finance gambling?
12. Were
you reluctant to use "gambling money" for normal expenditures?
13. Did
gambling make you careless of the welfare of yourself or your family?
14.
Did you ever gamble longer than you had planned?
15. Have you ever gambled
to escape worry or trouble?
16. Have you ever committed, or considered
committing, an illegal act to finance gambling?
17. Did gambling cause you
to have difficulty in sleeping?
18. Do arguments, disappointments or
frustrations create within you an urge to gamble?
19. Did you ever have an
urge to celebrate any good fortune by a few hours of gambling?
20. Have you
ever considered self destruction or suicide as a result of your gambling?
Most compulsive gamblers will answer yes to at least seven of these
questions. |
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| Contacts |
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1.
Gamblers Anonymous (GA) |
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| Gamblers Anonymous, c/o CVS Building, 5 Trafford Court, off Trafford
Way,Doncaster, DN1 1PN |
| This is a self-help fellowship of compulsive gamblers wanting to
address their gambling problems. The sister organisation, GamAnon runs groups
for partners/families of compulsive gamblers. Groups are held weekly throughout
the country. |
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| Main Telephone :
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020 7384 3040 |
Telephone Lines
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| Manchester |
0161 976 5000 |
| Sheffield |
0114 262 0026 |
| Birmingham |
0121 233 1335 |
| Ulster |
0287 135 1329 |
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| http://www.gamblersanonymous.org.uk/
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| 2.
GamCare |
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| They provide information, advice and counselling to individuals,
their family and friends who have concerns about problem gambling. |
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| Help Line :
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0845 6000 133 |
Help Line
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GamCare
2nd Floor
7-11 St John's Hill
London SW11
1TR
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Postal
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020 7801 7000 |
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| Fax : |
020 7801 7033 |
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| http://www.gamcare.org.uk |
Website  |
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| 3.
GambleAware |
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If you are looking for help, advice or support in relation to your
gambling, please go to: BeGambleAware.org or contact the National Gambling Helpline on
0808 8020 133.
GambleAware is an independent charity (Charity No.
1093910) tasked to fund research, prevention and treatment services to help to
reduce gambling harms in Great Britain. GambleAware is a commissioning and
grant-making body, not a provider of services. Guided by the National Strategy
to Reduce Gambling Harms, the charity’s strategic aims are to: broaden
public understanding of gambling harms, in particular as a public health issue;
advance the cause of harm-prevention so as to help build resilience, in
particular in relation to the young and those most vulnerable to gambling
harms; and help those who do develop gambling harms get the support that they
need quickly and effectively. |
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