Recognizing Gambling Problems: Signs and Solutions

“Woohoo!!! I just won 1000$ in betting and I want some more, let’s go!!!”

“Oh Shoot, I lost.”

“Next time, I am gonna win.”

“Oh Ohh, I lost again but next time I will win for sure.”

Slowly and steadily, my friend ended up in great trouble with online betting without realizing he was deep into pathological gambling. He was lost in the world of betting, forgetting about his family and professional life. As a result, he faced many issues like financial problems, broken relationships, and emotional stress.

This could happen to you too if you are doing it irresponsibly. Based on the data of 2022 by Statistics Canada, 64.5% of Canadians (18.9 million) were into gambling, and among them, 304,400 were at a moderate-to-severe risk of such problems. So, it is crucial for you to understand its risks, issues, consequences, and solutions to these problems.

But, how can you get all this information on recognizing this addiction? The answer is simple and it is this blog. Here, you will start by understanding what it is followed by its signs and effects. Then, you will learn about how to solve and prevent such problems. Let’s start!!!

What is the Gambling Problem?

As I said earlier, it is a condition where a person is unable to control his desire to gamble even after facing its negative effects. The effects can be of any type, from financial, personal, or even professional issues. It includes online betting, crypto gambling, or simple betting with your friend.

Based on an article by GREO, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), gambling disorders are classified into the Substance-Related and Addictive Disorders section. Likewise, the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD) classifies it into Habit and Impulse Control Disorders.

Signs and Symptoms of Gambling Problems

When we list the signs and symptoms of this problem, they seem simple and easy to notice. However, those who are facing this problem can’t, which is why they tend to get more addicted. So, let’s explore the signs of this problem and check if you are into it or not.

1. Obsessed with Gambling

Obsession!!! It's never good for anything. Once you get obsessed, think of it as a problem. So, the first sign is being obsessed with anything related to betting even after knowing its effects. This is also termed as compulsive gambling.

 For instance, you could be constantly thinking about betting, like how you would have won the lost bets, how you can recover the losses, and even planning for more. As a result, constantly thinking about it can affect your both personal and professional life. 

So, if you are obsessed and still thinking about recovering those lost bets, forgetting about your responsibilities, understand that you are facing a great addiction. 

2. Unable to Control Gambling

The second sign for recognizing this problem is that you are not able to control the desire. You are planning to stop or decrease the number of times you are betting, but still, you are doing it as much as you did last time or even higher. Then, again, you are telling yourself that you will not gamble from now on, and after some time, you find yourself breaking those promises.

And, this is where you should understand that you are deep into the gambling addiction. 

3. Lying About Gambling

Another great gambling symptom about it is lying, and you could be lying to everyone, including yourself. Some common lies could be about how much you lost, how many times you gambled, and mostly, you won’t do it again. And my friend did lie about all three. So, if you are starting to lie just to cover your gambling habit, you are getting into a lot of trouble, my friend.

4. Neglecting Responsibilities

As I mentioned above, your obsession with betting increases in such a way that you start to forget your responsibilities, be it personal or professional. Your sole goal becomes gambling and getting the adrenaline through the high stakes. Then, slowly, the people around you start to get annoyed by your irresponsibility, and you get isolated—a sign of a gambling problem, which we are about to explore.

5. Isolation

Now, it's time for “Isolation”. When you are obsessed and start to neglect your duties as a part of society, you isolate yourself from everyone who tries to tell you about your gambling addiction. You will try to ignore the suggestions, avoid people, and solely focus on betting as that will be the only thing you feel welcoming. 

6. Irritability, Stress, and Mood Swings

Being irritated, stressed, and having a lot of mood swings are also major signs of problems with gambling addiction. When you are constantly winning and losing on gambling, your emotions can go to extreme highs and lows. As a result, small things can bring out a big reaction. 

Hence, once you start getting irritated by small things and notice big mood swings, you are facing a gambling problem.

7. Financial Problems

It's obvious that financial issues are a sign of a gambling problem. You will see yourself spending your salary on gambling, borrowing money from friends and relatives, and worse, taking loans from loan sharks. And its effects are more severe than any of the above signs. It can even lead you to homelessness. So, think wisely and notice all these signs before it's too late. 

Solutions to Overcome the Gambling Problems

Now that you have understood the signs of a gambling problem, let’s learn how to overcome it.  Here is a list of 4 key solutions that can help you get rid of your addiction and use your gambling skills responsibly.

1. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy(CBT)

When you search on Google for solutions to gambling addiction, the first result is about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. This is because it is one of the most effective gambling solutions for people facing gambling problems. 

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy includes four main steps and they are:

1. Correcting False Expectation

This is the first step of this approach where people learn about the misconceptions. For instance, you might think losing the first bet increases the chance of winning the second bet. But, in this step, you would learn that no matter how many times you lose your money, the chances of winning are as low as the last bet. 

2. Developing Problem-Solving Skills

As the heading suggests, this is the step where you get to learn problem-solving skills. For instance, you will learn better ways to deal with your desire to gamble.

3. Learning Social Skills

As the people facing these problems isolate themselves, this step helps by teaching different socializing steps. In particular, this step teaches communication techniques, expressing emotions, and so on.

4. Avoiding Going Back

This is the most important part as it is likely that people with gambling addiction go back to it even after leaving it for a few days/weeks. And, this is the step that helps them by providing different ways that stop them from going back. 

Using these four steps of cognitive behavioral therapy, many people have overcome their gambling problems. So, it can be a great solution to solve yours as it not only helps you get rid of this disorder but also stops you from going back to your addiction.

2. Medication

Like I said before, gambling problems show different signs, like depression, irritation, and mood swings. So, ultimately, people go back to it to get the same high. So, for some individuals, using medication can also be an option to overcome gambling disorders. 

Particularly, taking medicines like anti-depressants helps by balancing the chemicals in the brain. As a result, it improves your control over emotions and prevents mood swings. Hence, you don’t need to go back to feel good.

Further, professionals also suggest narcotic antagonists to decrease the desire for gambling. 

However, you shouldn’t be taking medications on your own as they might affect you more if not taken as per your need. So, before choosing the option of medication, consult with a healthcare professional.

3. Support Groups

Support groups are also a great option for recovering from this addiction, as they can provide support while facing the problem. And, joining support groups can help you express your feelings and learn from other’s experiences. Also, you get a sense of belonging in such groups.

Further, many support groups encourage the sharing of goals among the group members. For instance, one of the members could share that he will gamble one hour once a week and gradually quit betting. Then, next time, he will feel accountable for his words and will try to stick to them. As a result, it helps him not only to overcome his addiction but also completely quit gambling. 

Talking about the support group, you can join Gamblers Anonymous(GA) which is the largest community of people struggling with this addiction and trying to overcome it. 

4. Lifestyle Changes

All the treatment options mentioned above require you to depend on others, but this is the only solution where you can overcome this addiction by yourself. And it is to change your lifestyle. This can involve mindfulness practices like meditation and yoga, which can help you manage stress and control mood swings. Additionally, it helps you to analyze your thoughts and control your desire to gamble. 

Additionally, lifestyle changes also involve you in physical activity, like joining a gym and walking to the park. As a result, this will not just help you improve your physical but also improve your mental health. 

Furthermore, you can engage in hobbies other than gambling activities, like playing music, painting, writing journals, etc. These activities can act as a distraction for you and prevent you from going back to gambling.

Prevention Tips for the Gambling Problems

Now that you have learned the solutions, let me provide you with a list of 7 key prevention tips for Gambling addiction. 

• Set a clear limit on time and money before starting your bets.

• Avoid high-risk bets. 

• Manage your finances and only use extra income.

• When you feel the urge to gamble, stop for 15 minutes and rethink if you really want that.

• Use mindfulness techniques to control your emotions and urge to gamble.

• Try to understand the odds of winning and losing in betting to avoid unrealistic expectations.

• Engage in other hobbies like painting, cycling, trekking, etc.

Conclusion

We are at the end of this blog, and I hope you have learned a lot about Gambling disorder and its signs and solutions. But before ending the blog, let me remind you what things you explored in this blog. 

You started this blog with a short introduction followed by a definition of what it is. Then, you explored the signs for recognizing these problems. After that, it was time for the solutions to the problem gambling. And, for reading till that point, you got a bonus on how to prevent them and their effects. 

So, by the end of this blog, you learned everything about recognizing gambling problems, from the signs to their solutions and even how to prevent such problems. Hence, before bidding a final goodbye, let me tell you that gambling is not a problem as long as you are doing it responsibly.

FAQs

1. How do you help someone with a gambling problem?

Whenever you try to help someone with a gambling addiction, you should start by having a calm and private conversation. Then, you can encourage them to limit the time spent on betting and engage them in other hobbies. In addition, you can connect them with support groups or therapists for faster recovery.

2. What is crypto gambling?

Crypto gambling is a type of online betting where you can use cryptocurrencies to place bets on online platforms. It is widely popular as Ethereum or Bitcoin betting. To learn more about it, you can click here.

3. Which one is better: Ethereum or Bitcoin gambling?

There is no exact answer, as it varies based on your needs. So, to get this answer to the question, you should understand the concept of these cryptocurrencies, which you will get in this blog, “Bitcoin Vs Ethereum: Which one is Better?”