Gambling addiction
The disease of the 21st century
Gambling addiction also known as ludomania is pathological urge of gambling. Gambling is often called the disease of the 21st century because more and more people gamble and they are not able to stop. People gamble their hard-earned money.
Gambling problem is similar to alcohol and drugs addiction. People become obsessed by gambling and spend all money they have. The moral values of a person suffer too.
Here are the symptoms of gambling addicted person:
- A person increases the time spent on playing. He/she doesn't notice how much time he/she spends playing.
- The change of interests, the constant thoughts about the game, thinking about situations of the game before going to sleep are also the symptoms of gambling problem.
- A person doesn't control the playing. He/she can't stop playing after winning or after loosing.
- Psychological problems: irritation, indignation, that appear after playing the game. But these periods of irritation are changed by the desire to play again.
- The desire to risk more and more.
- A person can't fight the desire to play the game and to gamble. And if a person decides not to gamble any more, but when he/she sees a casino or another person gambling, he/she can't stand the desire to gamble.
Gambling becomes the most important thing in the life of a player. He/she doesn't worry about his/her family, friends, studies, and job. Everything he/she wants to do is to gamble and feels a strong need to gamble every day. And this disease destroys both a player and his/her family.
A person may even commit crime to get gambling money. He/she is ready to spend all money and to do everything but to get money, especially to recover gambling losses.
This problem is especially popular among teenagers. They gamble all money they have. They don't even know they suffer from gambling addiction that is why they don't even try to solve this problem. But this addiction may have very negative consequences. Crime and violation of law are not the worst. 20% of teens gamblers consider suicide. And this is one of the most dangerous consequences this problem may have.
There are a lot of investigations held that try to find out the origins if this disease. Doctors, psychologists and scientists of the whole world try to treat pathological gambling. But all their attempts had no result. There are no pills and medicine that may help to fight gambling obsession. There are some methods that may help to fight it but not to treat it. These methods are counselling, hypnosis, psychological help of an expert, etc.
Some people don't consider gambling to be a problem. They think it is just the usual interests of a person. According to them, if a person reads too much he is not considered to be books addicted, and why a gambling person is considered to be ill. But on the other hand, books don't harm people.