A gambling addiction is the inability to control one's gambling, and to be either unaware of warning signs or unwilling to confront the financial problems, relationship complications and other issues related to gambling. Gambling addictions tend to start in the teens and 20s for men and between 20 and 40 for women. Reasons for gambling problems vary, but recognizing how an addiction starts can be the first step toward resolving it.
Speed of Play
Any gambling game can be addictive, but some researchers suggest that the speed between placing a bet and a winner being determined might have something to do with why certain games seem to spark an uncontrollable urge to keep playing. For those who crave instant gratification, playing a slot machine, for example, can be hard to resist, with an outcome that appears seconds after the bet is placed.
Forget Your Problems
In the same ways that drugs and alcohol are used by some people to escape reality for a short time, gambling also helps people forget about their problems. Just being in the game with the dream of big winnings almost within reach can block out a lot of real-life issues like work, family responsibilities and personal issues. And just as drugs can produce a high that makes a user feel good for a moment, gambling can also lead people to feel a similar rush that is unlike anything else. Unfortunately, that rush often leads to an awful crash when you realize how much you've lost playing the game.
Peer Pressure
This is a big issue, particularly among young men, who may feel as though they need to compete in betting pools or at cards to maintain their "cool" status in their peer group. Once gambling becomes an accepted part of a group's dynamic, it can be hard to break away.
Make up for Losses
Gambling that seems to start out as harmless fun can become a problem when a losing player sees more gambling as the only way to make up for her losses. This is one of the more common symptoms of a gambling addiction, when you explain that you're only continuing to play to "break even" or make up for earlier losses.
Desperation
Despite warnings of gambling addiction at every lottery outlet, many people continue to buy lottery tickets or play games of chance with the hopes of climbing out of debt or otherwise changing their situations. People who have been laid off from work or are homeless, or who are simply feeling as though they have run out of options, often turn to the against-all-odds approach with hopes that one winning ticket or another big bet will turn their lives around.
