Have you ever lied to a loved one about how much you were gambling or how much money and time you wasted? Weeellllll (to the tune of you might be a redneck) you might have a gambling problem. While we're in the midst of our use, we do not realize how bad our actions are or who we're hurting by doing so. We lie because we become ashamed of our using and do not want to hurt our loved ones any more than we already have. On the outside we seem like we have it all together, but on the inside we’re broken. We got used to doing so it became second nature to us. We continued medicating ourselves that way because our brains are wired in a way that whenever there is a minor inconvenience or we are stressed out after a long day, we wanted to gamble to try and get away from reality. Escape gamblers use this as a coping mechanism to escape from physical or emotional pain, which can include stress, depression, anxiety or boredom. They tend to play "luck" games such as slot machines or the lottery. There is really no thinking when it comes to this type of gambling. (https://www.algamus.org/blog/subtypes-gamblingdisorder#:~:text=Escape%20gamblers%20gamble%20as%20a,%2C%20lottery%2C%20or%20Keno%20machines.) Once we make the decision to recover from this illness, we need to look deep within ourselves first to figure out what was the real issue. We should be prioritizing our mental health first and foremost. If not, we may be more prone to relapse because the issue(s) we were running away from was not addressed properly. We will never recoup the money and time lost from this poor habit, but the only thing we can do is accept what we did, and find more productive ways to spend our time.
Have you ever taken out personal loans to pay off credit cards, then used those credit cards to source your gambling addiction? Weeellll, you might have a gambling problem. We kept thinking "oh, I just deposit $500 now, win a few bets, then use that money to pay back my credit card or personal loan debts". BUT THAT NEVER HAPPENS. IT RARELY HAPPENS IN FACT. What happens next? You lose all that money and deposit another $500 because you blew through it so fast. Now you're down $1k… continuing to chase the losses. All you’re doing by chasing losses is digging a deeper hole to come out of. We started chasing losses because we thought we could hit the huge jackpot we saw other gamblers post about on X (twitter) or IG. It seemed like every Sunday during the 2022 NFL season, one bettor had some sort of parlay that always came down to the Sunday or Monday night games. We all did the same thing; wish we were in that person’s shoes because there were always astronomical odds to win some astronomical amount of money. We kept chasing that "high" feeling thinking that could be us one day. But what happened instead? Kept throwing out stupid bets that would've never happened. How dumb! All for what? To get retweeted by some X page and maybe noticed by other degenerate gamblers? How stupid and a waste of time!
Did you ever have dreams or spent all day thinking about gambling? Weeellll you might have a gambling problem. In the three years I have been a compulsive gambler, I had one too many dreams about placing bets, and winning a large sum of money. But that’s all it was, a dream. When I was not gambling, I was thinking about my next bet. Thinking about what games would be on at night, if I should take a certain player prop bet for the night as my “lock” of the night. Certain dreams can be interpreted differently. Dreaming about gambling can symbolize our ability to take risks. I mean, you are taking a huge chance with money, either going to win some of it, or lose it all. In most cases, losing it all is what happens. THE HOUSE ALWAYS WINS. Fear is another reason for dreaming about gambling. The fear of losing something of much value, or not having the ability to control an outcome can lead to dreams of gambling. If this is you, please consider taking a step back from gambling before it ruins your life further. The good thing once you are in recovery or practice abstinence from gambling, the dreaming and thinking about gambling subside, and you spend more time putting that energy into more productive habits and long-term goals (like creating blogs to get the word out on problem gambling).
In the last three years, I did all these and then some. Did I think it was an issue at the time? No. In fact, I did not really think it was bad until I decided to abstain from it and get help. Being in recovery helped me look at who I was while in use and decide that’s not how I want to live the rest of my life being attached to this poor habit. Sure, there are ways to practice responsible gambling but to anyone with an addictive nature, they will get triggered in some way and go overboard with it. If you have any of these issues and more, please call 1-800-Gambler and get the help you need today.
It gets better. One day at a time.
My advice for those who want to change:
Delete the sportsbook apps.
Forever, do not re-download
Self-exclude yourself.
Asking a gambling venue to exclude you from the venue or a gambling activity offered by the venue.
Lifetime ban, if not the maximum years
If you have a loved one, they will be affected by it in some way, come clean to them what you are doing. If it gets pushed back and not talked about, It could be worse in the future.
Gambling addiction is one of the most secretive addictions out there, stop hiding from your loved one and tell them EVERYTHING
Attend a GA meeting (online or in person)
Find a therapist that specializes in addiction.
Make better habits
Hit the gym
Watch what youre feeding your mind
Nutrition
Social media
Books
YT videos
Read books
Learn about the gambling addiction
When you learn enough and change your mindset, you will eventually understand why you started in the first place. There are often underlying issues that contribute to gambling addiction.
If sports gambling is the main culprit, STOP WATCHING SPORTS
Watching sports for us compulsive sports bettors is the gateway drug.
Delete all sports apps
Unfollow all sports teams and fan pages from social media
Give control of your finances to a trusted person
For gamblers, seeing money in a bank account could increase the risk of gambling, thinking we could turn that $100 in the account to $1k is not the right mindset to have.
If you have a line of credit, cut up your credit cards, close the accounts.
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