Get Gambling Addiction Help From Professionals

If you find yourself continually gambling and suffering unwanted consequences you may need gambling addiction help from professionals. If your gambling urge is uncontrollable, despite it being harmful to your life, we can help. Our professional staff here at Emerald Isle Health & Recovery can provide you with the gambling addiction help that you require.

What Is a Gambling Addiction?

Gambling addiction is when people are unable to control their urges to gamble. This is because gambling activates the brain’s reward system in a very similar way as drugs. If the need to activate the reward system gets out of hand, people begin to gamble more than they should. Worldwide, gambling is one of the most common disorders pertaining to impulse control.

However, there is a difference between someone who harmlessly likes gambling and someone who has developed a gambling addiction. So, how can we differentiate between the two? We need to identify the signs of gambling addiction.

Identifying Signs of a Gambling Addiction

The Office of Addiction Services and Supports identifies Problem Gambling as a hidden addiction because the signs are not easy to spot. It may just look like a game of poker every other night. However, the frequency of gambling and the reasons with which someone gambles are important. We need to consider the contextual need which leads to gambling.

Loss of Control

You want to stop, but you can’t seem to. This is because gambling is one of the most addictive games of chance. A gambling addiction can be spotted when a person continues to gamble despite the odds being against their bet. This means they are unable to control their urges, or that they simply do not want to. Thus, gambling begins to take a toll on their life, and gambling addiction help is what they require.

Preoccupation With Gambling

People with gambling addictions barely have any other activities in life. They often stop indulging in their previous hobbies. Sometimes, this can also mean not taking familial responsibilities seriously. Relationships start to strain because you barely have the time to think about anything other than betting.

Hiding the Amount of Money

If you’re being sneaky about the amount of money you are betting, it may be a sign that you require gambling addiction help. You may be ashamed at how much you have lost, or you may be trying to protect your family from knowing, which can make it harder to receive family support for problem gamblers. You may even conceal the fact that you are gambling altogether because you fear that your family may not understand. Well, they will, and they will probably guide you to get gambling addiction help. Emerald Isle Health & Recovery can help you.

Gambling With Money You Don’t Have

If you’re stealing, so you have money to gamble with, it is a huge warning sign. It means your habit is turning into an addiction. People may gamble away their house or all their life’s savings, despite not being able to afford to do that. It’s a sign that an intervention is needed.

Poor Work Performance

As people become so occupied with gambling, they find it difficult to focus on other tasks. Sometimes, this means negligence, while other times, this means attention-deficit problems. This can lead to people not showing up to work, being late to work, or missing their work assignments. If that’s happening, the person requires gambling addiction help.

Denying the Existence of an Issue

If you suspect your loved one is struggling with gambling, you may try to bring up the topic in a casual conversation. However, people often dispute these claims by saying there is no issue at all, and they’ve got it perfectly under control. The truth, most of the time, is that they have not got it under control and that they desperately require gambling addiction help.

How Do I Stop Gambling Problem?

You can try to tackle the issue of gambling yourself without any external help. You can try to keep yourself busy with things that require your attention, so you do not have any time left to gamble. Try to rekindle an old interest, or pick up a new hobby. If you can find ways to keep yourself busy and to cope with the stressors of life, you can likely tackle gambling to a certain extent.

If you try but still find it difficult, you can also seek professional gambling addiction help. There is no shame in going to rehab, and it can help you stop problem gambling. Emerald Isle Health & Recovery’s supportive staff and inviting infrastructure can help you possibly remodel your life and walk away from gambling.

Relapse does occur, and should not be the cause of shame: it just means you’re human. You just have to keep trying to stay away from problem situations and away from the triggers that caused the initial relapse, and draw on your recovery support systems.

How is a Gambling Problem Treated?

A gambling issue can be treated if the person affected reaches out to get gambling addiction help. The three main treatments are medication, psychotherapy, and support groups. Every individual is different, and thus, different treatments may work for different people.

If a gambling issue is in conjunction with another mental illness, it may help to try to treat the other mental illness. Sometimes, gambling acts as a symptom of a larger issue, and if the larger issue is treated, gambling will automatically be treated too.

Another thing that may help is cognitive-behavioral therapy. CBT can help people identify their patterns, so if someone figures out why they gamble, they can replace gambling with healthier coping mechanisms.

The Department of Mental Health & Substance Abuse Services outlines what Problem Gambling Programs entail in terms of treatment. You must be wondering, “Is my treatment covered by insurance?” Well, it depends, but most of the time, yes. For further details, you can go through these additional treatment services related to compulsive gambling. They include gambling hotlines and resources, compiled by the Missouri Department of Mental Health.

Beyond the Financial Consequences of Problem Gambling

Gambling doesn’t just take away your money from you. There are a lot more long-lasting consequences, not just financial loss.

Emotional Stress and Mood Disorders

Gambling can toy with your emotions. You can experience happiness, sadness, anger, joy, guilt, euphoria, devastation, and satisfaction, all in one day of gambling. People tend to develop anger management issues due to the amount of annoyance, irritation, and stress they go through.

Social Relationship Difficulties

Family support for problem gamblers is very important, but often, people become so engulfed in their gambling that they forget to pay attention to their loved ones in their life. Frequently, they may lose a job or go through a breakup because they are preoccupied with gambling. Family may be neglected and therefore at an arm’s length. Fixing this isn’t difficult, but it requires perseverance and gambling addiction help, which you can find at Emerald Isle Health & Recovery.

Risk Factors for Gambling Addiction

While the demographics of gambling addiction do not discriminate, some people are more predisposed to forming a gambling addiction than others.

Mental Illnesses

People with anxiety, depression, personality disorders, substance use disorders, bipolar disorder, ADHD, and OCD are more likely to struggle with a gambling addiction.

Sex and Age

Gambling is seen more commonly amongst males than in females, although the gap is reducing. Middle-aged and younger people are more likely to gamble.

Social Influence

If you have a friend or a family member who gambles, there’s a good chance that you may also gamble. The problem is when it spirals out of control, which is when you need gambling addiction help.

Personality Traits

Some personality characteristics, such as being a workaholic, are more likely to aid in the development of gambling addiction. Other traits include being competitive, restless, impulsive, and easily bored.

Certain Medications

Although it’s quite rare, some drugs have side effects that can possibly result in compulsive behaviors. Medications for restless leg syndrome and Parkinson’s disease are two examples of such drugs.

Gambling Addiction and Substance Use Disorders

Studies show that there is proof that states people with gambling issues have been described with a higher rate of substance use disorders. In such cases, gambling addiction help is not the only program that these people require, but also help for their substance use disorders. This requires a dual diagnosis treatment for gambling and addiction.

Neither of the two is easily manageable without professional help, which is why Emerald Isle Health & Recovery provides you with effective and professional gambling addiction help. In a large-scale study done in the United States, it was found that the most common substance use disorder that co-occurs with a gambling addiction is alcohol addiction.

More than 73% of the people involved in the study were diagnosed with a gambling addiction and a substance use disorder.

Is There Rehab for Gambling Addiction?

Yes, there is rehab for gambling addiction. It is a well-thought-out program detailing professional help that helps people with gambling afflictions not gamble anymore. These programs teach relapse prevention planning for problem gamblers. Our rehab programs are specifically designed to help you conquer your compulsive desires.

There is also aftercare planning and gambling treatment, but sometimes people relapse. That’s all part of the process. If you or someone you love needs gambling addiction help, they should get it. Emerald Isle Health & Recovery provides the needed assistance, in an atmosphere of luxury and attentive care.

Long Term Recovery From Problem Gambling Is Possible

Indeed, it is possible to recover from gambling. If you seek gambling addiction help from Emerald Isle Health & Recovery, we can help you in your journey. You will require willpower and some effort. However, that’s not to say that you will completely stop gambling forever.

You may, and while that would be a phenomenal success, the chances are that you may feel the urge multiple times down the line. If you fall back into old patterns, do not worry. You can start again with the help of our sober support systems and acclaimed Alumni program.

Progress in healing from such afflictions is not linear, and that is okay. At Emerald Isle our team are here to support you in any capacity that we can, and our Admissions team stands at the ready, only a phone call away. Reach out now and put your problems with gambling in the rearview mirror!