Gambling Addictions
As with all other addictions, compulsive gambling stems from emotional problems and a chemical imbalance in the brain. The compulsive gambler is often as much a victim of the genetic code, environment and weaknesses as any other addictive personality disorder., often Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and are generally sociopathic liars. Gambling addiction is another self-destruction addictive pattern, that can be cured with professional help and ongoing counseling. Compulsive gamblers often lose their life savings, homes, businesses, families, friends, and more as they are driven by their addiction. They often steal from those they love.
I read a woman who has spent the past 5 years living with a compulsive gambler. They have broken up and reconciled many times as they do love each other. She has begged him to go for help, but he never stays in a support group long enough to get past his problems. He generally thinks that he has overcome his gambling problem, then goes back to old patterns.
Reality is about one's genetic make-up, environment, emotional problems and how they manifest for the person and those in their lives. Gambling is another example of humanity lost in their issues, struggling to get out. It is all about conscious experience and coming into awareness.Reality is all a gamble, emotionally, physically, and physically. It's all a crap shoot. As reality is created based on duality, you lose some, you win some.
The term gambling has had many different definitions depending on the cultural and historical context in which it is used. Currently, in Western societies, it has an economic definition, referring to "wagering money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods". Typically the outcome of the wager is evident within a short period of time. Gaming in this context is normally used to describe instances where the activity has been specifically legalized by applicable laws or where the activity is exempted from the criminal laws. The two words are not mutually exclusive. Gaming companies offer legalized gambling activities to the public.
Because many religious authorities generally disapprove of gambling to some extent, and because gambling can have adverse social consequences, most legal jurisdictions limit gambling to some extent. Some Islamic nations prohibit gambling; most other countries regulate it.
Because contracts of insurance have many features in common with wagers, legislation generally makes a distinction, typically defining any agreement in which either one of the parties has an interest in the outcome bet upon, beyond the specific financial terms, as a contract of insurance. Thus a bet on whether one's house will burn down becomes a contract of insurance, as one has an independent interest in the security of one's home. Furthermore, many jurisdictions, local as well as national, either ban or heavily control (by licensing) gambling. Such regulation generally leads to gambling tourism and illegal gambling. The involvement of governments, through regulation and taxation, has led to a close connection between many governments and gaming organisations, where legal gambling provides significant government revenue, such as in Monaco or Macau. There is generally legislation requiring that the odds in gaming devices are statistically random, to prevent manufacturers from making some high-payoff results impossible. Since these high-payoffs have very low probability, a house bias can quite easily pass unnoticed.
Gambling Wikipedia
Did you ever lose time from work or school due to gambling?
Has gambling ever made your home life unhappy?
Did gambling affect your reputation?
Have you ever felt remorse after gambling?
Did you ever gamble to get money with which to pay debts or otherwise solve financial difficulties?
Did gambling cause a decrease in your ambition or efficiency?
After losing did you feel you must return as soon as possible and win back your losses?
After a win did you have a strong urge to return and win more?
Did you often gamble until your last dollar was gone?
Did you ever borrow to finance your gambling?
Have you ever sold anything to finance gambling?
Were you reluctant to use "gambling money" for normal expenditures?
Did gambling make you careless of the welfare of yourself or your family?
Did you ever gamble longer than you had planned?
Have you ever gambled to escape worry or trouble?
Have you ever committed, or considered committing, an illegal act to finance gambling?
Did gambling cause you to have difficulty in sleeping?
Do arguments, disappointments or frustrations create within you an urge to gamble?
Did you ever have an urge to celebrate any good fortune by a few hours of gambling?
Have you ever considered self destruction or suicide as a result of your gambling?
Most compulsive gamblers will answer yes to at least seven of these questions.
How Does Your Brain Respond When You Think about Gambling or Taking Risks? PhysOrg - January 26, 2007
People More Cautious Than Reckless When Gambling PhysOrg - January 26, 2007
ELLIE'S ARCHIVES - DEALING WITH ISSUES
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