"One-armed bandits" and casinos have long disappeared from our streets, but in the age of technological progress, the opportunity for a true gambler to "test their nerves" by playing for money is easily available. In our time, there are many online platforms for gambling in the worldwide web, the number of victims of which, both women and men, is replenished daily. This form of addiction is called gambling addiction, and it poses a significant danger to both the individual and their surroundings.

Gambling Addiction

Gambling Addiction - a Dangerous Disease, Not Entertainment

Usually, people don't pay much attention to the topic of gambling addiction. What do they care about gambling addicts and other people's problems? However, this detachment continues only until a gambler appears in one's own family, in the person of a loved one. That's when the question arises - what to do and how to avoid the impending danger. First and foremost, it is necessary to learn as much as possible about this addiction in order to fight it effectively.

Pathological attachment to the game differs from related addictions like alcoholism and drug addiction, being closer to mental disorders and involving minimal problems for somatic health. This is what leads to misconceptions about the danger of gambling addiction.

While alcoholism and drug addiction often come with distressing symptoms, leaving no doubt about the diseased state, with gambling addiction, severe physical and mental signs are absent. However, the principle of developing pathological cravings, the main problem of addiction, is identical to other forms.

Gambling Addiction from a Medical Perspective

According to ICD-10, gambling addiction is a pathological dependence on online and gambling games. In the revised WHO version ICD 11, which came into effect in January 2022, this form of addiction is recognized as a serious mental illness, among the main criteria of which are:

Negative impact on human life, disrupting all its spheres: professional, social, educational, family, spiritual, and others.

Prioritizing the game over other life interests, hobbies, and pastimes, which have taken a back seat after the emergence of pathological cravings.

Loss of control over the time spent on gambling websites.

Treatment of Gambling Addiction

Features of Gambling Addiction as a Disease

This disease starts innocuously. A person tries to play once out of curiosity, to "kill time," or to try their luck in an online casino. They consider it a simple pastime and are completely sure that they will stop playing as soon as they get bored. However, not everyone succeeds. There are two categories of people:

Some easily step away from the game, occasionally resorting to gambling entertainments.

Others develop a pathological addiction.

The gambler cannot stop playing, even if they want to. And often, the addicted person has no such desire, as they begin to believe that only the game can bring them pleasure in life. For people who have acquired this form of addiction, the passion for gambling takes precedence and begins to dominate over all other aspects of life. Consequently, the gambler faces many problems in society, family, and at work.

Causes of Gambling Addiction

What triggered the development of a dangerous habit in a person is determined individually. More often than not, several different reasons lead to the development of gambling addiction, each of which should be discussed in more detail.

Predisposition to addiction

Addiction, like other types of behavioral and psychotic disorders, can be inherited. The genetic factor is not decisive in the formation of pathological addiction. However, the presence of a person's predisposition can become a push for the development of mania under favorable circumstances.

Desire for "easy money"

Very often, a person who simply does not want to work becomes a gambling addict. It is no secret that there is a category of people firmly convinced that there is no normal job in our country, and one can only get a good position through connections. These excuses breed laziness and boredom, which gradually lead a person to isolation. And suddenly it occurs to them that thanks to gambling entertainment, they can get "something for nothing."

Infantilism

A person lives in an illusory world and is simply not ready for commitments and responsibilities. Therefore, they choose ways of earning money that correspond to their notions of the real world - gambling, which brings huge profits. It's easy and doesn't impose any responsibility. Such men and women are not even stopped by regular losses, as they perceive such failures as another step towards a fabulous win.

Depressive state

A gambler will never say that everything is bad with them. However, if your loved one has developed emotional problems, they will start looking for an outlet in some form of stimulation. Signs of alarm can be their irritability and despondency. In such a situation, a person finds nothing better to relax than gambling.

So, it is more than necessary that online casinos with tempting no deposit bonuses would provide all the knowledge about responsible gaming they could.