Gambling Addiction

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Have you ever lost track of time in a casino, only to realize you’ve been there all day? Are you compelled to keep gambling until you’ve lost all of your money? Is gambling negatively affecting your relationships and career? Do you feel the need to be secretive about your gambling? If you answer “yes” any of these questions, you may have a serious gambling addiction.

Gambling addiction, sometimes called problem gambling, is an impulse-control disorder. Compulsive gamblers can’t control the urge to gamble, even when they know it has negative consequences and hurts their loved ones. Unpleasant feelings — such as stress, depression, loneliness, fear, and anxiety — can trigger or worsen the disorder. Compulsive gamblers continue to gamble even when they know the oddsare against them, even when they can’t afford to lose.
Problem gambling can strain relationships, interfere with responsibilities at home and at work, and lead to financial ruin. It can make you do things you never thought possible, such as steal money to gamble.

You are suffering from a gambling problem if you:

• Feel the need to be secretive about your gambling.
• Have trouble controlling your gambling urge.
• Gamble even though you don’t have the money.
• Cause family and friends to worry about your gambling .

Many people ask how gambling can be an addiction when no substance is ingested. The simple answer is that gambling addicts get the same effect from gambling as other addicts get from drugs or alcohol. The act of gambling alters the addict’s mood, compelling him to gamble in order to achieve a “high,” whether he wins or loses. Just as alcoholics and drug addicts develop a tolerance to alcohol and drugs, the gambler will need to gamble more and more to achieve the same effect. His search for that “high” will develop into an addiction.

At The Meadows, cognitive behavioral therapy and other techniques help clients change unhealthy gambling behaviors. Problem gamblers learn how to control their urges, deal with uncomfortable emotions, and resolve underlying issues that brought about the addiction. The goal of treatment is to rewire the gambler’s brain so he’ll think about gambling in a new way: as something negative, something that can ruin lives.
If you’re ready to admit that you need help with a gambling addiction, call The Meadows at .