Editorial
Recognising Addiction
Tuesday, 19 August 2008 07:18 Last Updated on Tuesday, 03 February 2009 05:50
Gambling addiction, sometimes known as compulsive gambling is a terrible affliction that ruins lives, wrecks families and in severe cases leads people to lose everything and face bankruptcy.
While gambling in its innocent form is meant to be a pleasurable pastime while providing the promise of fortune to the lucky few, it can get out of hand and then lose all innocence. When addiction takes over a gambler’s life, the effects can be devastating. So here we’ll provide some insight into the gambling addiction and show how it can be recognised in the behaviour of one who is in its clutches.
While everyone is different and may display slightly different behavioural traits when addicted to gambling, there are some personality and behavioural traits that are common in almost all gambling addicts.
By definition, gambling addiction can be described as an uncontrollable urge to gamble with little or no regard to the negative consequences or any desire to stop even when faced with financial ruin. While those with a gambling problem might not display symptoms of a medically defined addiction, they still harbour a compulsion to gamble that may cause harm to those around them or themselves in the process. More seriously, pathological gamblers suffer from a recognised medical disorder where professional help should be sought.
There are several telltale signs that mark a compulsive gambler that you can watch out for should you suspect someone you know might be developing a problem in this area. These include an increase in the amount of money gambled and the frequency of it occurring as well as spending excessive time in the process of gambling to the detriment of job and family. A preoccupation with gambling or attempting to obtain money for gambling is also a clue, as is noticing that a person is experiencing intense pleasure when gambling, or being “in the zone”.
Other signals of a compulsive gambler include continuing their gambling despite large losses, borrowing money from many different people, applying for secret loans or maxing out credit cards. Gamblers suffering addiction may also brag about wins but not losses, suffer mood swings that rise when they are winning but dip when they are losing and begin to exhibit secretive behaviour like hiding their betting slips, bank records and receipts or having their mail sent to a work address or PO box.
It is important to detect any such behaviour early on and even to confront the person before the problem is allowed to escalate out of control.
