Recovery Solutions While Gambling For Your Life

Australia in the last 15 years has become one of the international boomers in the gambling industry especially since gaming machines (pokies) were introduced into hotels and pubs. Since then gambling has picked up the pace with many families suffering the effects of problem gambling.

According to John Sabados creator of the website Problem Gambling guide there are 300,000 people in Australia with a gambling problem (plus five or six other people per problem gambler who are either directly or indirectly affected).

"While it is a legalised form of entertainment and many use it as such, without any problems, others do get into trouble in a serious way, sometimes without even realising it themselves until it is too late," said Mr Sabados. He added "By then their finances are seriously affected, their relationships are on the brink, their families are going without basic necessities and it seems like there is no help in sight".

So what constitutes "problem gambling"?

The select Committee on Gambling in Australia 1999 states that "problem gambling may be characterised by a loss of (personal) control over gambling, especially over the scope and frequency of gambling, the level of wagering and the amount of leisure time devoted to gambling, plus the negative consequences deriving from the loss of control."

There is no doubt that Casinos gear up their environments to encourage people to gamble more and since the introduction of "pokies" the problem gambling rate has increased markedly in Australia.

Mr.Sabados adds that: "Notably, it is the gaming machines that are the leaders of this gambling problem upsurge by far." In 1978-79, total gambling expenditure was around $4.3 billion (more or less equally shared between racing and other gaming). In the period 2003-04, $16.2 billion was spent on gambling. Gaming machines (pokies) accounted for 59 per cent of that money, casinos took around 16.5 per cent, racing 12.5 per cent and others 17 per cent.

Karen Finlay, a University of Guelph Professor from Canada who has studied gambling behaviour for several years says "Casinos generally want gamblers thinking about one thing – making another bet – and try to reduce factors that could work against that. It's not a coincidence that there are no clocks and rarely any natural sunlight in casinos. Gambling is a very conscious activity," she said. "It takes a lot of attention and when problem gamblers are mentally fatigued, they are less likely to make the right decisions for themselves."

A chronic gambler profile?

There is no profile; anyone of all ages including teenagers, all ethnicities and all levels of societies can get caught up in this nightmare. While some researchers believe that gambling is a pure behavioural addiction other researchers recently found that all addiction works through the dopamine (adrenaline) system in the brain. This triggers the endogenous opioid (the internal naturally occurring "opium") that is many times more powerful than morphine. These naturally produced opiates give the "high feeling" when winning and when losing a decrease in the natural opiates produces the "addiction" to try one more time. The craving to feeling high has now become a chemical reaction in the body as well as in the mind that equates to "winning makes me feel good".

When an individual realizes they have a gambling problem that is destructive to them and to their loved ones the next step is then to seek help.

Mr. Sabados says that: "People can then realise that it isn't a shame to look and find help, but it is a courageous act to do so. Recovery from gambling is possible by learning ways to manage life ahead without it."

Mr Sabado's non profit website can lead you to the help you need: www.problemgamblingguide.com .

In his site, you will find pages full of help, support and advice for problem and compulsive gambling recovery. There are pages filled with inspirations and motivations, news and research in the field of gambling addiction, and pages to just simply fill in time when needed – which is all available on the internet.