Compulsive gambling

Gambling and online gambling represent an extremely special psychological situation players are faced with. Even though there is a definite house-advantage on all the games belonging to this category, a gambling-element remains, which preserves the possibility of fabulous winnings.

This element of uncertainty, of risk-taking is what makes casino gambling highly addictive to some people.

There’s no denying it, some people do get addicted to roulette, slots, blackjack, or even horse-racing (a form of pari-mutuel gambling which was excepted from under the UIGEA, a law directed towards limiting gambling addiction - in theory at least). What does a gambling addiction mean? An urgent need to keep on wagering even though the victim is well aware of the fact that he/she is harming different aspects of his/her life by doing so.

Even though they’d never admit it, compulsive gamblers have a serious problem on their hands. They’re no longer masters of their destiny, no longer in control of their own behavior. Financial problems are always a side-effect of compulsive gambling, and they usually push these victims further away from a normal life. A gambling addict will grow to do just about anything to further fuel his/her addiction. Theft, robbery, deceit is almost always part of the package. All that further alienates the gambler from the surrounding world, deepening the rift between his/her dream realm and reality.

In technical terms, compulsive gambling is defined as an impulse-control disorder, and not as an addiction. Whatever it is though, one thing is certain: without adequate therapy it is extremely difficult – often impossible – to overcome.