Gambling Addiction

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adil chaudry

Madskilladil's Blog on "Debt Management" problems such as "interest" and "other charges" that we have to deal with in this moneylife ---------- Madskilladil's alternative Blog on "Addiction, the definitions, the types, and the root cause"

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Do you play the poker rooms online? Or are you addicted to them? Do you regularly visit online casino rooms for fun and entertainment? Or are you infact an addict who cannot help him/herself? How can you distinguish between playing for real money for fun and occasional gain, and playing for real money because of an inherit inner addiction to the games online and the simple principles of gambling addiction?

I am not a gambling addict, nor have I ever considered the term to apply to me. Yes I have played at online casinos, frequently in the 5 card Poker rooms (Texas Holdem'), sometimes on the roulette table, but mainly, and nearly always, on Atlantic Blackjack, for real money.

I initially played blindly, for fun, taking no account of making any gains, because I was simply just enjoying the games, and enjoying the rolling balance of money at the table going up and down according to my success or failure in live gaming, the experience is unrivalled when compared to just online games in general. The problem starts when you (a) make extreme profits in a relatively short space of time or (b) make a notable loss during the game session.

When you make extreme profits or hard losses, these two occurrences are actually the exact pinpointed notions that trigger the addictive streak within the human Psyche and from this point on, the introduction of, or adjustments to the personal level of addiction will ensue. Any addiction can be cured, but if not consciously controlled, can and will control you, and most likely, you will not even be aware of the detrimental affects of the addiction until it is as visible to you as is your reflection in a mirror. By this time though, it is too late, and you will have lost, maybe not just financially, which is very common with this type of addiction, but surely mentally? Without any doubt.

“Must recover the losses, must win back losses during this session”, doubling more every time you lose, playing non stop without a break, betting without thinking, these are symptoms of Gambling Addiction, but they are easily cured. Discipline, is the answer to your problems.

I have devised many strategies, and told myself a million times to be aware and be disciplined and to think carefully all the time, and was actually very surprised when this worked well for me, every single time I played, and I made very good returns all the time, but during the same session I would always lose all my winnings, if not only that, commonly as soon as I lost all my winning, I immediately started going into losses, and its like a non-stop chain reaction. Every single time I told myself to stick to a rule, and as soon as I realised that I was in gains, it was downhill from that point onwards, all the time.

Minutes, maybe hours of concentration in discipline and self control is always wasted in the fraction of a second's loss of concentration, and this mistake is what opens that crucial window of opportunity for your addiction to enter your mind and tempt you with great strengths to play without thinking because your a winner now. This is because you mistakenly enter a false belief that you have worked it all out, and that it is ok to stop thinking now and this is the addiction taking hold, wanting that stress free enjoyment again, and not thinking about the money, just enjoying the game, enjoying the buzz.

The other side of the problem is that you mistakenly start to bet big to recover your losses. When you are in losses, it is easy to mistakenly bet big all the time, and just hope for the best, rather than using your brain. Think about it, you always win sometimes, and you always lose sometimes. When you have just realised you are in good winnings, you can easily enter false belief and let addiction take hold and bet big every single time, going against common sense. Similarly letting losses stress you out so much as to stop thinking, and betting big every time and hoping for luck to save you is stupidity, and so in both cases as just described, you should just “step back and think”.

I term the phrase "Gambling-Addiction-Coin" because there are two sides to the Gambling-Addiction-Trap. On the one side you have good winnings, but you have a moment's lapse of concentration and think you are a winner always, and this is gambling addiction, be aware of it. On the other side you are in losses, and a moment's lapse of concentration makes you bet big every time rather play sensible, this is gambling addiction also, so be aware of it. Self awareness, self control, discipline of ones self and their habits are the keys to a successful well balanced life, in all manners of expression. All addictions can be controlled, even if they can not be eliminated. Be aware of what you are doing, at all times, and work towards a plan of action as opposed to hoping for the best or simply not thinking.

I will be writing a further article on the Gambling-Addiction-Trap and on what i have now started to devise as a theory on the "Gambling-Addiction-Coin", so check back regular for more articles on Gambling Addiction, Health and Addiction in general, and also, please read other articles on World Village on many topics, because it is a fun site with family values.

Be safe; be balanced in your life.

Madskill.