There are all kinds of addictions in America. Some of them are good and some are bad.
People are addicted to chocolate, french fries, Monday Night football, and golf. They are addicted to watching baseball, to taking cruises, and many are addicted to peanut butter -- especially stealing it out of the jar when nobody is looking.
And yes, people are addicted to gambling.
Visit any casino repeatedly and you will find the same faces playing the same games of chance. You will discover them at their favorite slot machines, dice tables, roulette wheels and poker games.
You'll find those same faces gathered around the sports book to wager on baseball games, football games and basketball games. And they are there night after night whether they win, lose or break even.
My late friend Bud Adair lived in Circle City, AZ. and operated a motel and a restaurant. Bud was a gambler who loved action. But he played skill games, not games of pure chance. He explained why he had adopted this philosophy.
'I don't want to bet anything that I can't control,' Adair declared.
A gambler can't control a horse race or a professional sports game. But he does have some control when he plays blackjack, dice and poker. Especially poker.
I have read some heart-breaking books written by people who were ruined financially by their gambling addiction. One was called 'The Loser.'
I don't remember the author's name, but I read the book more than 40 years ago. The author was a horseplayer. He had a good-paying job as a public relations specialist. But his addiction to horse racing was so strong that he began writing worthless checks to pay for his betting at horse tracks around the country.
He was powerless to stop. He wrote hundreds of checks on worthless accounts. Finally, after he hit bottom financially, he joined Gambler's Anonymous and beat his addiction. He paid back the people who had accepted his bad checks and he didn't go to prison.
This writer could not beat the horses. His cure for his addiction was simple but he didn't choose to use it; find another game to play. Make it a skill game like poker or blackjack, not a game like the horses. You cannot control a horse, a jockey or a trainer. But you can control a poker game by choosing to put your money only in certain hands. Another way to control poker is through raising. It's a powerful weapon if used carefully.
I read another book by a person who was addicted to sports betting. Actor James Caan made a movie called 'The Gambler.' It was written by a university professor who was addicted to gambling. He had wanted Robert De Niro to star as the gambler, but the producers of the film chose James Caan who, at the time, was battling his own addiction to cocaine.
The teacher who wrote the book was reportedly inspired by a book on gambling written by Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoyevsky, who wrote many books examining the human condition. Dostoyevsky was a philosopher as well as a writer and journalist and many of his books are considered classics.
Here is a cure that works if you are a gambling addict who is a constant loser. Examine the types of gambling that you do. If they are pure games of chance -- slots, horses, roulette or sports betting -- change your game to one of skill.
While it will take you some time to learn the skills you need to prevail, the education is worthwhile and will pay off in the end. You can learn to play blackjack or poker. You can also improve your skill at betting on the horses, although it may not be sufficient to overcome the track odds.
Horse racing has been called the 'Game of Kings' because early gamblers thought only kings could afford to lose their money on the horses. If you crave the taste of chocolate and are addicted to it, you at least get something for the money you spend on chocolate. But when you invest your money in a game of pure luck, no method of betting will change your luck for better. In the long run, you will continue to lose and your addiction will deepen.
Send me your feedback on these thoughts. Good luck and let the games begin.
Note: For problem gambling please see this page: Gambling Help
Geno
6 years ago
Newbie
Every person is unique and reacts to gambling in a different way. Thanks for your comment.
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coolsongss
6 years ago
Hero Member
Oh, this is a good article. I don't want to bet what I can't contol, too. But, I really like roulette, I don't know the reasons. I like Blackjack, but am a very poor player. And also like some pokers. I used to break from gambling over one year, because I was worried of addiction. It was extremely difficult to hold my...
Oh, this is a good article. I don't want to bet what I can't contol, too. But, I really like roulette, I don't know the reasons. I like Blackjack, but am a very poor player. And also like some pokers. I used to break from gambling over one year, because I was worried of addiction. It was extremely difficult to hold my thinking from gambling, even many times a day. It was like this condition for about 6 months, and then for the next 6 months, it became much easier and soon gambling didn't come into my thought in 10~11 months. At that moment, I kind of felt that I came out of the addiction. I think that changing games to skills can be a good option, too. Thank for your advice :)
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Geno
6 years ago
Newbie
Everyone is different and what works for one person may not work for another. Responsible drinking is a good example. AA says once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic, but some people can go back to drinking responsibly even though they are alcoholics.
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Vanenhox
6 years ago
Sr. Member
Addiction means by definition that the affected addict has no control over the substance or process to which he or she is addicted. An addict is generally thought to be incapable of moderate indulgence and/or of moderating his use of the addicted substance. Therefore, for gambling addicts the starting point of the...
Addiction means by definition that the affected addict has no control over the substance or process to which he or she is addicted. An addict is generally thought to be incapable of moderate indulgence and/or of moderating his use of the addicted substance. Therefore, for gambling addicts the starting point of the most widely accepted and utilized treatment methods, whether through self help methods like GA , or by a trained counselor or therapist, is to immediately stop all forms of betting. One cannot do this with ease if one is a compulsive gambler so a lot of time and effort getting support in becoming abstinent and staying free from betting is required. The skill games you mention can be less of a gamble than games based on purely random chance, however, these games do have a large component of random chance involved in the games themselves. And they do involve wagering money of course. Personally, I think that, when a player is highly skilled, poker can be more like a job than a game of chance. But even good players who play there cards in the absolute best manner possible can run into streaks of bad beats and painful losses. And often being a poker player means exposure to the gambling environment in general and all of it's temptations to gamble on other games. What I have heard and read about addiction does not generally agree with behavior modification or altering a person's way of gambling or choice of game. The widely accepted wisdom is that addicts just have to stop period.
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Geno
6 years ago
Newbie
If you are constantly losing at a game, the solution is quite simple. Stop playing that game. My best advice would be to gamble only on games where skill is a factor. See if you are good enough to beat the other skillful players. If after a while you still can't win, there are many other hobbies out there that you could...
If you are constantly losing at a game, the solution is quite simple. Stop playing that game. My best advice would be to gamble only on games where skill is a factor. See if you are good enough to beat the other skillful players. If after a while you still can't win, there are many other hobbies out there that you could adopt.
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zuga
6 years ago
Admin
Hi Bgdubs, please check this page about gambling help and youll find some relevant links there : https://jswqzs.com/gamblinghelp Do let us know if We can assist you any further. thanks LCB Admin
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AKQJT
6 years ago
Super Hero
When you play for the first time you always win, i can t explain why. Then it starts and it becomes an addiction so you can t stop. Trying different kinds of strategies to win but nothing is working it s just luck. For my case when i loose i can t stop loosing.
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Bgdubs
6 years ago
Sr. Newbie
hello, geno.... this is a really wonderful perspective on gambling addiction... a rare one, too, in so far as it accepts gambling addiction for what it is, is not judgmental regarding the addiction, and gives a more realistic solution to those utterly transfixed on gambling. i was wondering if perhaps there were any...
hello, geno.... this is a really wonderful perspective on gambling addiction... a rare one, too, in so far as it accepts gambling addiction for what it is, is not judgmental regarding the addiction, and gives a more realistic solution to those utterly transfixed on gambling. i was wondering if perhaps there were any other resources or articles you point me in the direction of? i know that i have a gambling addiction and i have some desire to stop at times... i think my life could improve if i did, but most of my attempts seemed destined to fail in the same way a diet is destined to fail- it starts off on the wrong foot! thanks in advance!
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Andreas_V
6 years ago
Full Member
It's quite fascinating - in all the negative ways, of course - just what is happening on a psychological plane to a person stricken with addiction problem. Any kind of addiction that creates in them an urge so strong that it can either drive them to ridiculous lengths or destroy them completely.
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Tweeksta
6 years ago
Super Hero
how is this a cure for gambling addiction? its just replacing one type of gambling with another.. u can loose just as much playing poker and blackjack and its just as addictive
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Allstarmikey
6 years ago
Super Hero
I think that when you are really hitting rock bottom and are so addicted ... You should stop with everything and never play any game of chance or so called skill ever again :)
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