Is Gambling The Worst Form Of Addiction??

Gambling is a multi-bullion pound industry, just like cigarrettes but it took a cancer epidemic before the government acted and put a health warning on cigarette packets, high tax on cigarrattes, offered consultations in doctors surgeries, smoking bans in public places and so on.

I personally think the gambling, smoking and alcohol are intrinsically linked, most gamblers I know drink and the ones that dont smoke, the more you lose the more you smoke/drink.

What is crazy is most of my biggest losses are when I was intoxicated, the funny thing is if you walk into a pub drunk they will refuse to serve you, or off licence why because they will lose their licence, why? because they have to be seen as responsible landlords / managers but you can walk into a bookies drunk and they would gladly take your money - all day long.

Gambling is a hidden problem, people are ashamed of being an addictive gambler, just like being a alcoholic, therefore it is hidden, wife and husbands of gamblers suffer behind closed doors, thats why we have AA and GA the "A" meaning anomymous also another fact is folk are ten times more likely to join this chat group than attend a live meeting, because we are scared of people finding out we have a problem, there is a stigma attached to additctions you see.

The average household debt in the UK is £55,000 I would love to know how much of this debt is caused by gambling, there is lottery, bingo, scatchcards, which most people do every week not mentioning the stuff that we all do or used to do, the industry is so big that it would take a major recession to the magnitude of the Wall St crash of 1929 before they did anything about it.

The tax man loves his readies and gaming industry is the fastest growing in the UK, my friend and I were made redundant from a major telecom company we got paid well, he asked me to set up an online gaming site, he sold his share for millions, it is now one of the biggest sites on the UK, for me it was principle, I would be a hypocrite if I got involved as I hate the bookies.

Statistics show that £3 out of every £5 bookies take is from gambling addicts, yet drug dealers get years for pushing drugs, the bookies get a pat on the back because they are helping the economy by paying taxes,

There is a link between gambling and crime, I would like to know how many criminals in prison are there because they commited crime to get money to bet or to live because they bet and lost.

There is also a link between broken families and gambling, I wonder how many families break up because their partner left them destitute because they lost all their money and ran up debts.

Familes and the welfare state, I would like to know how many familes are forced on the welfare state because their partner failed to provide for them because of their addiction.

Then you need to look at how much tax revenue the HMRC receives through the gaming industry, then compare that to how much it cost to provide welfare state to these broken familes.

Now you will start to realise that gambling is a massive problem, something needs to done about it before it becomes an epidemic.

i think that many of the points made above are true, and gambling is a devastating addiction

however, i think its matter of perspective, and how addiction - what ever it is, affects the individual.

i stopped gambling in 2005 and havent looked back. on the other hand i had a cancer scare earlier in the year, had part of my lung removed and then told it wasnt cancer. i started smoking again!

No logic there what so ever!

while there is much to be said about social responsibility, and much to be said about legislation - social responsibility and legislation will only go part way to helping the problem

much of, if not all of, the responsibility lies with the addict, whether it be drugs, alcohol, tobacco, gambling, chocolate or whatever.

as an adult i make my decisions and choices, not sure i want a 'nanny state' telling me what i should or shouldnt be doing. i can take advice and i can take heed of the advice if i want to, but ultimately the decision is mine, and i think that is right and proper.

glad i have kicked gambling into touch, maybe i can do that with smoking too?

love

rusty

xx

Hi Rustly,

Firstly I congratulate you on stopping gambling seven years ago, this give me inspiration that I too can give up and stay off it.

I dont want a nanny state as well most people dont, what I am trying to see is this, access to money and access to bookies and gaming companies has changed over the last 20 years, I remember back in the day you could only lose the money in your pocket, to lose your wages was impossible unless you drew it all out and gambled it, the hole in the wall would only give you a hundred pounds, so if you suffered a loss you would have to wait until the next day to gamble,

Bookies used to close at 5.30, no evening racing, no virtual racing, no gambling on Sundays, now there open seven days a week and to 10.00pm most days, they have an online version so you can bet on a 24/7 basis.

But worse of all that is access to money, my betting got progressively worse when they started taking payments by debit card, now you can lose all your wages in one day just by using your card.

Then there is payday loans, you lose your wages, get a loan lose that too get another loan lose that and so on and so on.

What im trying to say without writing a novel is this, you wouldnt expect a drug addict to give up without any help, so why cant the banking, gaming and government get together and come up with some ideas on how we tackle this problem, the banks could put restrictions on your card so you can only withdraw or lose a certain amount, this can be tailored to the individual, bookies could put in restrictions so you only bet to a certain amount, you see if you walk into a pub drunk they would refuse to serve you, if you got drunk in a pub they will throw you out but the bookies will take every d**n penny you got leaving you nothing to feed yourself of your family. now that cant be right can it.

Take care Rusty.

Luther

luther, basically i am in agreement with what you say...............

but, teh individual does have to work hard as well.

my worry is when the addict goes into victim mode and says 'its not my fault'

not saying that is where you are, am just making a broad and very general comment, but from time to time on these boards i do see what is tant amount to victim mode, and while there is more that could be and should be done, i am a great believer in personal responsibility.

wishing you well on your quest to beat this demon, hoping that you will stick around and beat gambling into touch for yourself

love

rusty

xx

Hi Rusty,

I hope I find you well on this sunny August Morning, the High St landscape has changed dramatically over the past 10 years or so, we have lost or are losing great chains such as Woolworths, Clinto Cards, Aquascutum

Game, Peacocks and Barratts to name but a few to be replaced with bookies,

In my town centre, there are 8 bookies on the high st, and 2 pubs, the pub business is in decline, thousands have closed over the past few years and guess what business is rising, yep you guessed it the bookies, people are not spending money on the high st but gambling instead.

I see an epidemic my friend,

Take care

Luther

In answer to the original question, for me of course it is the worst addiction as i am not addicted to drugs, alcohol or smoking. From my own perspective, it is the worst in terms of reeling you in, no other addiction lets you walk away hundreds/thousands of pounds in profit giving you the false illusion that you are invincible. I am sure those that have suffered drug/alcohol addiction would put forwards arguments as to why that addiction is worse than gambling though.

I used to drink heavily but since i started gambling in 2007, i drink less. When i gamble, i don't drink. I feel too wrapped up in the action, feel too anxious when i'm in the haze of a gambling binge. I just want to gamble when i'm in that zone. This goes against what another poster was saying about addictions being interlinked. I have tried various drugs in the past but never been addicted and don't use them anymore. I don't smoke either.

I do take responsibility for my actions though, I have chosen to gamble each and every time i have gambled and i blame myself for being too weak willed to resist these temptations. Yes, the bookies take my money but nobody puts a gun to my head, same as nobody puts a gun to an alcoholics telling them they need to carry on drinking. If we carry on blaming external factors, we will never beat this addiction because "it isn't my fault". Well, actually it is my fault, it's all my fault and because it's my fault i'm taking responsibility to put things right. By admitting I have control over my actions, i can regain control of my life. Hope this doesn't sound too harsh, but this is my ethos in making my recovery work for me.

By admitting I have control over my actions, i can regain control of my life.

pablo, that is the best definition of recovery that i have ever heard

love

rusty

xx

we all need to take control of our lives, gambling is the individuals fault, however gambling is too accessible thats what I am saying, I have no sympathy for a gambler that loses all his money however I do have sympathy for the family of that person.

As I think it is his or her fault and as you said no one puts a gun to their heads, if someone wants to stop then I will do all I can to help that person, my sympathy goes out to the families of the gamblers, they suffer much worse then the gamblers does, it is not the wife's fault that her husband has gambled all his money and cant feed the kids or pay the rent or bills.

My comments are valid, gambling is far to accessible and not enough help or support is available for addicted gamblers.

Gambling ruins lives FACT, smoking kills FACT abusing alcohol or drugs will kill you in the end FACT

Thank you over and out

Luther.

some valid points on both blogs .im new to this site have been gambling for 16 years i had a time when i stopped for 15 months then started again .im trying to stop again .were i live there our betting shops everywere there our even shops next to each other .the industry in gaming is getting out of control i believe it will come to an epidemic .i gamble mostly on horses and greyhounds .The inruduction of the roulette machines has made it much worse the amount of young lads you see feeding them getting hooked on them is disgusting .by reading the blogs helps a lot sounds familiar to me .thanks

That is the beauty of this site. the advice is fantastic. Take as much from it as possible as it will help you to stay stopped.

Best wishes Ronnie10

Ronnie you are so right as i am one of those lads, i wish there was a ban on advertising it as all you ever see is anti smoking, drink and drugs adverts. but not gambling if anything there is more adverts advertising because of the no smoking, drink ad etc. i feel i can go anywhere without seeing something that makes me think about gambling its crippling to be honest. i just hope things get better for you and everyone that is in this site.

hi there...

I hope you don't mind me adding to this thread....just to say that I am not a gambler but i am an ex partner of a gambler.

I can see both parts of the discussion...whilst I agree at the end of the day the person has to make a decision to stop gambling and that responsibility lies solely with the person themselves I also have been shocked and amazed at how gambling is advertised and marketed.

My parents grew up in the days when smoking was seen as sophisticated emulating the Hollywood film stars of the day ..perfectly marketed via TV ads...now smoking carries pictures of decaying lungs and cancer warnings which do not have the same s**y or spohisticated appeal...all TV ads for smoking were banned in 1965 with only loose tobacco and cigars continuing until their ban in 83.

Gambling advertisement seems to be going the other way...from the seedy blacked out windows of the back street ..to now being seen as almost a professional white collar career choice with the advent of 24/7 internet and TV endorsement and more sophisticated.

Bookies also now have respectable shop fronts and I myself have even stopped and looked in!!

I never realised until I came on here just how many triggers the TV with flashing lights and some of these FOBTS and recent upgrades on the high street have in seducing the mind into almost hypnotic repetitive behaviour and also attracting a new audience.

I also (if this is true) ....cant understand where someone like Jeremy Kyles head is as he was allegedly a problem gambler yet his show is sponsored by a certain gaming company.?

So ..on the one hand yes...take personal responsibility to an addiction that I recently heard was harder to quit than herion .....but it is made extra difficult with a bombardment of images that no doubt work also on some direct way subliminally on the brain.

I think my point is from what I can see is smoking and drink doesnt seem to be targeted as directly on a person as gambling is......they seem to be more about suggestion and linking the thought with an exciting or relaxing time..whereas certain late night gambling ads including the light triggers from the FOBT machines themselves are a direct assault.

All just thoughts here ...not debating or anything..just wanted to add to this interesting thread as an observer and trying to imagine how i would feel if the roles were reversed..

Take what you like and leave the rest

R and D xx

Gambling is so widely publisized through the media that it's seen as being okay.. Much like smoking was.

It's always shown as being people who are healthy and attractive, with good jobs and are really happy!

But how many people have you met that you can positively say they are telling the truth when they tell you that they're a casual gambler.. if so I assume they havent been gambling long.

Smoking and alchohol are different to gambling because there isn't something you're trying to achieve. It's the big win with gambling that gets you hooked, as soon as you hit a big win you're done. Most addicts I have met said that they ended up not caring about the money they won, it was just numbers.. the big win, the feeling of hitting the bonus and having loads of flashing lights got them.