Gambling addiction is a significant problem in both land-based and online gambling. We want people to gamble safely and responsibly, staying as far away as possible from the great dangers of gambling addiction. This is why we are making extra efforts to establish a great source of information on this problem, and why we have created this section of our website.
Note: We have not yet completed our section on responsible and problem gambling. It is not definitive; however, we wanted to make the articles we already have available to our visitors, so we decided to publish it with a few missing pieces. In the meantime, we are working hard to complete all the articles we have planned for this part of our site.
Contents of this article :
- Symptoms and Diagnosis of Problem Gambling
- How to overcome gambling problems
- Responsible Gambling Practices
- Where to seek help
Symptoms and Diagnosis of Problem Gambling
Being able to tell whether your gambling is good or problematic is crucial, because everything you do and don’t do depends on it. Gambling addiction affects almost every aspect of life, so its symptoms cover a wide range of areas, from small psychological changes to the possibility of committing illegal acts to finance gambling.
If you want to learn more about all the symptoms of problem gambling and how to diagnose it, read our article on symptoms and diagnosis of problem gambling.
How to overcome problem gambling
The way to overcome gambling problems is usually to stop gambling altogether. However, this is easier said than done. Once gambling becomes a serious problem, it is often not as easy as deciding to stop. That’s why “problem gambling” is also known as “gambling addiction,” and it is actually an addiction.
Some problem gamblers manage to overcome the problem on their own, by limiting their access to gambling, learning to cope with the inevitable urges to gamble, and using a variety of self-help practices that help them achieve their goal. However, it is often not wise to do this alone. There are family and friends, help lines, support groups, therapies and rehabilitation centers that can help people overcome their gambling problem, even in cases where one person may not be able to do it alone.
You can learn more about all of the help mentioned above in our separate article on overcoming problem gambling.
Responsible Gambling Practices
Online casinos must provide their players with ways to limit their gambling habits, using various tools such as self-exclusions, deposit limits, bet size limits and many others. In addition to these tools, there are also other tools offered not by casinos, but by countries, casino licensing authorities and other third parties, which may also be useful.
If you feel that you gamble too much and that these tools can help you, feel free to use them and see if they are effective or not. We think they are useful, but they cannot “beat” gambling addiction on their own. It is important to keep this in mind.
To learn more about all the responsible gambling tools offered by casinos, countries, licensing authorities and other entities, see our separate article on responsible gambling.
Where to find help
Because problem gambling is a very serious problem, there are many organizations dedicated to helping people overcome their problem habits. We have compiled a list of useful links to international and local organizations that can help and support you on your journey to recovery.
