If you think you may have a gambling problem, seek treatment. Treatment options are many, and a gambling addiction can affect your relationships and health in a number of ways. Listed below are the symptoms of problem gambling and ways to get help. While online gambling tests can be useful for screening, they are not a replacement for a face-to-face evaluation with a trained clinical professional. In addition to providing an accurate diagnosis, a clinical professional can develop a treatment plan based on the individual’s unique needs. These may involve addressing family, financial, legal, or professional issues. If you suspect you may have a gambling problem, seek help from a licensed health care professional. Your health provider can refer you to the right treatment provider.
Symptoms of problem gambling
If you’ve noticed these symptoms, you may be suffering from a gambling addiction. Problem gambling causes a great deal of debt, and it often leads to hiding the activity. You might end up lying to your friends and family or borrowing money from others. Problem gambling can even lead to broken relationships and depression. It can even lead to suicidal thoughts and attempts. Problem gamblers often try to hide their gambling activity until it becomes uncontrollable.
The emotional consequences of problem gambling are the same as those of regular gambling, and it can affect any aspect of your life. To deal with this problem, you may need to seek help. Therapy, such as cognitive behavioural therapy, can help to reduce the urges to gamble. Cognitive behavioural therapy can also help you change your thinking about gambling and other aspects of your life. However, if you have no clue that you’ve developed a gambling problem, you should consult your doctor immediately.
Risk factors
While many risk factors for pathological gambling are common in the general population, they are also present in the lives of people who have a history of gambling. In fact, it’s possible to develop an addiction to gambling as early as childhood. Young age, poor mental health, and a lack of formal education are all associated with increased risk of developing a gambling problem. However, some of these risk factors are more relevant to people with gambling problem than others.
For example, individuals with gambling problems tend to have lower levels of the neurotransmitters norepinephrine and dopamine than the general population. They are likely to seek euphoria from winning a large sum of money, which makes them highly addictive. Among the risk factors for developing a gambling addiction, having a family member or close friend with gambling issues can increase the risk of developing an addiction by 60%. Furthermore, the behavior can be facilitated by peers and family members without proper guidance.
Treatment options
There are a variety of treatment options for gambling addiction. These options may be expensive, but they are necessary for recovering from the destructive cycle of gambling. Therapy for gambling addiction can help you identify the causes of your problem and find ways to eliminate them. Cognitive behavioral therapy, also known as CBT, focuses on replacing harmful beliefs with healthier ones. You may also benefit from joining a support group similar to AA or NA, which follows a 12-step process.
Some treatments include self-exclusion lists, which are a major step toward ending the cycle of gambling, but cannot completely remove a person from the gambling environment. Self-exclusion lists and blocking software can help individuals reduce the background noise. Treatment for gambling addiction can also be in the form of inpatient therapy, though this is still a fairly recent development. The benefits of this approach are not well known. In the meantime, relapse prevention is an effective option for gambling addiction.