Resources to help professionals identify problem gambling clients and respond to their needs.
Understanding Gambling
Problem gambling is when harm occurs because of gambling. This harm may take many forms and can extend to other people in the gambler’s life.
Gambling - How does it start?
Gambling doesn’t start as a problem.
For most people it starts out as a good thing, for example as:
- Time away from the pressures of work and family
- Opportunity to get away from thoughts and feelings which may be depressing
- A bit of excitement
- A dream of winning a fortune
- An opportunity to get out and socialise
- Feeling that a gambling venue is a safe place to go, no matter what the time.
Gambling can change and grow without people noticing how it has become more important.
Read Ron’s story.
A significant change or stress is commonly the trigger for gambling to escalate out of control. A big win can also have the same effect. Even without specific stress, gambling can increase. People often find that they have to gamble with increasing amounts of money to achieve satisfaction. Also gambling, through its increasing demands on time, energy and money, creates other stresses in people’s relationships, work and finances.
Why do people gamble?
Individuals who have gambling problems most often ask this question. They are unable to understand how, when they know gambling is causing them problems, they just don’t or can’t stop. It just doesn’t make sense!
Rather than asking “why” individuals gamble, perhaps it is better to understand “how” gambling fits into people’s lives. What part does it play? What need does it satisfy?
Most people who have problems with gambling fall into two broad groups:
- Those that say they gamble because it gives them some excitement and is challenging, and
- Those who while gambling, experience time when they don’t think or feel. It is like a numbing experience, where their worries and cares disappear and their problems are forgotten.
A process of gambling
Let’s present a different way of thinking about gambling. When we are in physical pain, we do something to alleviate the pain, for example take a Panadol®.
Life stress can also cause pain, emotional pain and consequently other responses such as anxiety, boredom and depression. We may find other things to do to alleviate emotional pain, for example talking to friends, drinking, taking drugs or gambling.
Just like medication, gambling can offer some emotional pain relief. To medicate their pain, people may turn to gambling. Gambling can also introduce other factors that begin a cycle for the gambler that is difficult to get out of.
Cycle:
The cost of gambling
When thinking about gambling it is important to recognise that uncontrolled gambling causes more than just financial harm. It may also negatively affect other aspects of a gambler’s life, for example:
- Losing the respect of family, friends and work colleagues
- Losing self respect
- Relationships with others, for example, losing contact with friends
- Health, for example not eating or sleeping properly, existing health problems becoming worse
- Work performance, for example absence from work, inability to concentrate
- The likelihood of committing illegal activities, for example stealing
- Social activities, for example losing interest and ability to go out
- Ability to engage in educational activities.
When gambling becomes a problem
There is no certain answer to when gambling becomes a problem. It is up to the individual to decide whether there is a problem or not. The following things might happen if someone has a problem with gambling:
- Shopping money is used for gambling
- There is no spare money to spend on yourself
- Money for bills is spent on gambling
- The truth about their gambling behaviour is hidden or lied about
- Other people are relied on for financial assistance
- Loss of interest in family and friends
- Work is missed to spend time gambling
- Increased fights at home to have an excuse to go out and gamble
- Temptation to take someone else’s money to gamble with
- Inability to stop gambling
- Finding excuses for gambling losses
- There are more gambling debts on credit cards than purchases
- Eating and sleeping are neglected in favour of gambling.
One of the things we know about problem gambling is that some of the things people believe about gambling may push them to gamble more.
Some people who develop problems with gambling believe:
- If they continue gambling, they are bound to win soon
- If they continue gambling, they will win back what they have lost
- That gambling is a solution to financial problems
- That gambling is the only immediate escape from stress
- That the only way to stop urges to gamble is to gamble.
None of these beliefs are true.
Comments Disclaimer
You're now in the public comments section of this page. Please do NOT post personal questions for Gambler's Help service professionals as they do not moderate or reply to questions here. This content comes from other people visiting the site and cannot be vouched for. Also please do NOT give feedback on the site here. A reminder: By using this Web site you are accepting the terms of the Department of Justice Privacy statement.
Comments
Ok first of all I was trapped in the world of gambling i went through hell I was unable to pay for a meal at mccdonald but there is hope not from anybody the key to stop gambling lies deep within ourselves remember no one can save you but yourself start by mentally focus on issues that involving money ask yourself this why Im I feeding my money to this machine where others out there are struggling to meet ends need what is life when all we do is gamble what purpose is it spritually you are being led by a devil that wants to see you suffer and your love ones start to look around you u have put yourself in it and you have to get yourself out of it remember when you have the urge to gamble just start to think the times when money was in need and if you love money then start cheering it well email me if u need advice good luck [web moderator - to protect people's privacy we can't give out anyone's email address. Thanks so much for the offer. I'm sure everyone appreciates your generous and supportive spirit.]
Thank you for your sharing your stories.
I got together with my second husband 7 years ago, I had no idea that he was hiding years of gambling and substance abuse until it was too late for me, I borrowed money against my home to set up a business for himself which ended up in bankruptcy, my biggest mistake was selling my house as the little profits went to picking up the pieces after his pokies loses.When his money runs out he borrowes from sources who demand hefty interest if payment is not made on time.
****
****I will seek help for myself. It has been a long journey.
Facing My Gambling Problem.
I used to gamble $60 - $100 when I would play the slots about a year ago, then I started playing the higher paying slots. I won a couple of jackpots for $1200 - $2500 and then I got hooked. Now I'm not satisfied winning a couple of hundred dollars, I need to win $1000 or more. I have tried to stop because when I lose i feel so down and beat myself up mentally. I won $1200 day before yesterday, so last nite I went back with $400 and had my winnings up to $800, well I played until I walked out with $430. How dumb I thought. I have looked at my bank account and can see I have spent about $10,000 so far this year and it's only July. I plan to retire in 4 years so I know I need to stop. Here is what I plan to do.
-Admitted to myself and another per son that I need to quit as I have a problem.
-Today I will cash all my winnings in and so I have money for rent.
-I will take my ATM card out of my wallet. I know if I stop today I can recover $10,000 and put that back in my savings by the end of the year.
-I have saved this site to my favorites and I will access it everyday before I go to work.
-I will pray to my higher power daily and whenever needed to remove this defect from my life.
-I am a recovering alcoholic who stopped drinking 17 years ago and also quit smoking cold turkey this past February so I know I possess the will power, I just need to do it 1 day at a time.
-Todya is July 29th. I'll update this comment 30 days from now to show my progress. I hope that if I can stop it can inspire someone else to do the same.
I've been with my husband nearly 4 yrs now. When I first met him he was a down to earth guy, pretty much what I liked in a person. However he hid that fact that he had an addition to cards. The first yr I was pregnant and thought everything was going smoothly, eventually I checked his bank statements...and I could see no money and where he had been. Today its so bad he tells me his not ashamed, he loves to gamble that it makes him happy. I know the feeling where the wife is losing it. I struggle everyday to be happy without crying or taking out my anger at others. I cant get through to my husband, we now have two kids, we've even had some situations where me and the children couldn't eat for a week because he gambled all the money. These days it seems he works to support his addictions than his family. I really want to leave him! Love is now not enough for me to stay, i need to think of the kids. They dont deserve this. But im stuck! the kids are so young 1 and 2 yrs old. So i cant find a decent job to support them and myself. So im stuck with my husband. We are even on the verge of getting kicked out because my husband uses rent money for poker. I'm losing it, i dont have any family who can take me in, now im afraid we will end up in the streets, and to my husband this situation isnt so bad even worse, all his friends have gambling problems so they feed from each other and they all look at me as if im the crazy one! arghhh this is a nightmare.
hi,let me tell you about my story.
my husband and i always fire each other it like a natural now because he is a gamble.i don't understand about him
from since 2002 i got married him at my country,then after 4 weeks i arrive in AUSTRALIA i so young and don't understand about people here and my english so poor but only 1 hope i have is him but u know what? he gone away for 1 year leave me with his parents.after he came back i got pregnant 7 months i very trust him too much all my money i put in the bank with his name that i find out it gone $70000 and my own money some(my dad money present me when i married for buy a house) from on that time always fire because i got so very disappointed with him and myself that i trust him too much.but the worst that i can't do it i still love him ( yes i love him very much in my life he his my first love ) and i thought i can change him and i try and try and try to stop him but what i get back is i got a lot of painful of memory from him until mow we have too many bill and loan to pay off and he never change it. he driving me crazy in side me a lot of pained. no one in our family know my story because i don't want they know because i don;t want they are sad too specially my parents i worry they maybe not well to hear that. i just fire with him 2days ago he said this time he stop it final because he love me and kids (but the final that he said it million time already)but this time he toll me every things that he hide form me like every loan and credit cards. this is one last final and i can't take it any more it is too full for me but i don't know what i going to do next. i am so sick of this and i think i am crazy now. i wish every day my husband will change himself for me and kids but like i wish for star come down on the land....
i am apology for all my mistake on this and i hope u all understand of my poor English.
hi, what i have just read is totally true i have been starting to gamble for the last 4 months and its the worse thing i have ever done it neally distroyed my relationship i gambled all our bill money on the pokies any1 that has gambling problems please believe me .im in the process of getting help not only for myself but for my future wife which she is 11 weeks pregnant .i was that bad that i could hear the pokie machine music every day in my head now that was getting addictive every dollor i had i use to walk in put it in a pokie machine on the way home from work and since i have been seeking help i have not looked back to those machines i would like to add it does make you agressive and your behavior changes so much tip from me....dont waste and gamble your money we all pay to much tax as it is....... i hope this story helped it worked for me
i feel my partner has no dreams, goals or ambitions because all his money is spent on gambling and therefore leaves him no money for anything else including the future, and i cant take it anymore.
Post new comment
Comment Rules
People who want to post comments on problemgambling.vic.gov.au are going to have to follow certain rules. Not all forums are like that, but this one is.
No swearing at all, no insulting individuals or groups, no libel, slander, no lying, no fabricating, no ethnic slurs, no religious bigotry, no threats of any kind, no vulgar humour and no insulting comparisons. Discourse and debate is encouraged but all comments should be polite and civil. This is a public space so please behave and write accordingly.
The Department of Justice reserves the right to remove posts it deems break any of the rules or the spirit of the rules and reserves the right to block individuals from commenting. Language filtering programs will be used to block certain words as will human moderation of all comments too.
Comments should be limited to the topic of the content above. This is not a place for private conversations, no matter how harmless.
Very important: if you see a comment that you feel is inappropriate, let us know by clicking on the 'comment complaint' or 'report this complaint' button.