The rise of gambling houses is making it increasingly easy to access gambling, especially as their strategy targets the poorest neighborhoods where they offer a seemingly quick and easy way to make money.
Concern about this new addiction is such that the Ministry of Health recognizes compulsive gambling in its National Plan on Drugs, since this disorder is associated with addictive behavior. For this reason, during August last year, the Government put an end to gambling house advertising, which imposed a ban on the broadcasting of gambling operators’ advertisements outside the early morning slot.
What patterns does a gambler follow?
To understand the meaning of pathological gambling, we must understand what behaviors a gambling addict engages in. Addictive gambling occurs when for at least 12 months the addict has a continuous need to gamble, which leads to irritability when it does not reach its goal. But, how is a gambling addict identified?
- Gambling obsession: without it being necessary for the behaviors associated with gambling to be continuous, it has been observed that they have recurrent thoughts and excessive interest in gambling. In addition, it is common for them to use it as an escape route from a situation of discomfort and, when they have a good run, this euphoria and their interest in online gambling or bookmakers increases. These obsessive thoughts usually translate into an evasion in social gatherings, whether with friends, family or even at work, since the gambler is only limited to calculating how much he won or lost in the last game and what strategies he should follow for his next game.
- Mood swings or irritability: the deterioration of social relationships, together with the economic losses resulting from gambling, cause mood swings in people. In addition, when their gambling does not yield the expected profits, the situation generates anxiety in the gambler, which can somatize into ulcers and gastrointestinal problems. Undoubtedly, when family and friends worry about the mental health of their loved ones, discussions about the need to go to therapy are frequent, which provokes emotions of sadness, loneliness and irritability in addicts. As a result, episodes of both verbal and physical aggression tend to appear more frequently.
- Lying to family and friends: the excessive use of technological devices for the use of online gambling platforms and repeated trips to gambling houses are not the only reason why lies begin to appear in the family and social environment. Similarly, financial debts can lead to lies about the financial situation, while if the compulsive gambler has extra profits he will try to hide where they come from. This situation is also exciting for the addict himself, because he sees the lies as part of the game.
- Use of other drugs: it is sometimes common for gamblers to take addictive substances such as cocaine and, especially, alcohol. The gambler often resorts to these drugs in a desperate attempt to escape from the problems of gambling. This consumption does not necessarily occur at the beginning of their addiction, but will appear progressively until their life revolves around gambling houses and bars.
- Financial debts: at first, gambling can be seen as a form of escape and leisure. However, gambling ends up becoming a maze with no way out for many, which will lead to difficult financial situations. These debts could even result in perpetual insolvency leading to loss of assets and legal action by creditors. One illusory escape route from these debts are credit cards, because they are an easily accessible instrument. However, the interest that they generate as they increase their debt, make that, after some time, the amount owed to the banks is very high.
What is the treatment for compulsive gambling?
Pathological gambling is an addiction that requires specialized treatment by specialists in Psychology. The continuous struggle to abandon this difficult addiction must be carried out through the accompaniment and monitoring of experts who know the causes and the necessary treatments for each patient.
In our addiction clinic we believe in the detoxification of gambling addicts and in the rehabilitation of gambling addicts, so if you are looking for a solution to your problem, or that of a friend or family member, you can contact our team of specialists to put an end to this addiction.