Are You Gambling with Gambling?

By Kristen Sohlman, HBA, RP

​Gambling for many can be a form of recreation; however, for some it may be a major problem that takes over their lives.  

Signs that gambling may be a problem in your life:

• Are you spending or betting more money and more often than you intended to?
• Do you often or constantly think about gambling?
• Are you unable to stop gambling?
• Do you feel irritable or upset when you cannot gamble?
• Are you chasing your losses in order to win back money that you have lost?
• Do you use your winnings to gamble more?
• Are you neglecting areas in your life such as work, school, or family to gamble?
• Do you hide your gambling from others?
• Are you gambling to escape, forget, feel better, or to celebrate?
• Are you having trouble sleeping because of gambling?
• Does having an argument or a frustration in your life create the urge to gamble?
• Are you borrowing from others in order to gamble or to pay your gambling debts?
• Have you ever broken the law or considered breaking the law in order to get money to gamble or to pay back gambling debts?
• Are you still gambling even though you are experiencing problems in your life because of gambling?

What Works?
Often an important step in order to overcome problem gambling is recognizing that you have an unhealthy relationship with gambling.  Avoid isolation and seek out support.  By strengthening your support network, you can begin to address the concerns that you have regarding gambling.  Therapy with a service provider that is knowledgeable about gambling can also be very helpful.  Effective therapy for gambling:

• Provides a confidential and non-judgmental space to explore one’s concerns about gambling.
• Offers information about the impact of gambling and strategies for changing it.
• Supports motivation for change and helps to identify people, places and things that can support making a healthy change.
• Offers a safe place to talk about difficult emotions and new ways of coping.

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To move forward:

• Find healthier ways to relieve the unpleasant feelings that you may be feeling. 
• Join a support group. 
• Think about the consequences if you decide to gamble. 
• Avoid people and situations that encourage gambling. 
• Put someone you trust in charge of your money, keep small amounts of money on you, and get rid of credit cards. 
• Postpone the urge to gamble by asking yourself to wait 10 minutes, 30 minutes, or an even an hour until the urge passes. 
• Engage in thought stopping. That is, telling yourself to stop thinking about gambling and find something else to do. 
• Schedule healthy recreational activities so that when boredom strikes you are not compelled to gamble.  

One reason people resist change is because they focus on what they have to give up, instead of what they have to gain!
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