Addiction

More than 500,000 English people are addicted to gambling The English government, along with PMU and Française des Jeux, has set up a research center on this very poorly understood phenomenon. Addiction has become a major issue for the state in order to address the illnesses of compulsive gamblers.

How does addiction start?

Online gambling, poker, sports betting, and scratch games are often accused of being the source of behaviors called "addiction". It can affect each and every one of us, from occasional players to gambling enthusiasts. According to recent statistics, approximately 6% of gamblers are affected by the phenomenon of addiction. There are several types of players: those who only play very rarely and consider it a hobby, amateur players who attend tournaments and earn a pleasant and sometimes vital source of money from this activity, and those who have lost control and cannot stop playing. This type of player no longer has a concept of winning or losing, their obsession is to play without limits.

Often, addiction simply begins with a significant win that the player makes. Then, they think that it can happen to them again, but what they must not forget is that casino games are often highly reliant on chance. It is therefore important to understand the idea that it is thanks to your luck that you win and that it will not happen every time. Because the player has won, they start again, but this time they lose. They therefore want to make up for it. But they lose again, and it is in this spiral that the player will begin to gamble like a game addict until the moment when they lose, as we previously mentioned, any notion of gain or loss.

Symptoms that could put you on the path

You need to be clear, gambling addiction is one of the most difficult to detect simply because physically, the person shows no signs. It's not like with drugs, for example, which could make your eyes red. Extra special attention is therefore necessary. Often, a player who has fallen into excess reveals several symptoms:

• he does not talk about gambling, he prefers not to broach the subject
• he will spend less and less time with his family and friends
• he is convinced that he can recover
• he quickly squanders his budget
• His mood is very changeable, depending on the game.

There are other signs, but as soon as you have some doubts, it would be good to address the issue with the "patient" so that they consult specialists like Adictel or SOS Joueurs. They will know exactly what to tell them to calm their enthusiasm and try to bring them back to their senses. Once the dialogue is open, it is important not to break it, as otherwise the addicted player could withdraw into themselves and never open up again.