Gambling is a fun way to spend time, but it can be dangerous too. It can harm your physical and mental health, relationships and performance at work or study, get you into trouble with the law and leave you in debt and possibly homelessness.
There are several ways you can help yourself if you think you or someone you know might be gambling too much. Start by setting a fixed amount of money you can afford to lose and then stick to it. Never take out more than you can afford to lose – this is called the gambler’s fallacy.
You can also get help for underlying mood disorders, like depression or stress. These can make it difficult to stop gambling and can also trigger problems if you’re already struggling with an addiction. Family therapy, marriage, career and credit counselling can help you repair the damage that gambling has done to your life.
Having a strong support network can make a huge difference in dealing with any problem. Reach out to friends and family, or join a support group such as Gamblers Anonymous, which is based on Alcoholics Anonymous and uses 12-step programs to help people recover from addiction.
Your family and friends are your strongest allies in fighting against gambling. Talk to them about how it’s making you feel, and ask for their advice and support.
If you’re losing a lot of money, you may be thinking that you could win some back. This is called the gambler’s fallacy and it’s a big mistake to do.
There are several reasons why people become addicted to gambling, including a lack of control, fear, or guilt. For people who have a history of depression, it can make the symptoms worse. You can also develop a gambling habit if your family has a history of gambling or you have a close friend who does.
You should always be honest about how much money you can afford to lose and how long it takes you to win back the money you’ve lost. This is particularly important if you’re on a budget, as if you start putting money into the casino, it’s likely that you’ll have to cut back on other things or cut your spending completely.
The word ‘harm’ is not always used in the same way in the literature, which suggests that it’s a more general term than it is in reality. Harm can refer to anything that causes a negative consequence.
It can be hard to find the right definition of harm, and despite the availability of various international and local definitions, there’s still a lot of uncertainty about what is and isn’t harm. However, some aspects of the wording are consistent throughout the literature.
The first step in establishing a useful and comprehensive harm measure is to clearly define what constitutes ‘harm’. This will allow the development of a measure that is more specific to the issue, and can be used as an indicator of harmful gambling behaviours. In addition to this, a harm measurement measure should be grounded in a public health approach, which can better identify the impact that harmful gambling has on a person’s health and wellbeing.