DAILYJILI Gambling Withdrawal Symptoms: What 312 Gamblers Reported
In a study of 312 community gamblers, about 25% reported restlessness or irritability when cutting down and about 41% reported other feelings such as guilt, anger and disappointment in themselves.
Key facts and contents
- DAILYJILI Budol Scams
- Budol means a swindle, a trick that takes your money or belongings.
- DAILYJILI Gambling Rehab
- Gambling rehab means professional treatment such as therapy, plus peer support like Gamblers Anonymous.
- DAILYJILI House Always Wins
- The house always wins over time because every bet pays slightly less than its true odds, so each wager has a small negative expected return for you.
- DAILYJILI Lucky Charm Myths
- No.
- DAILYJILI Lulong sa Sugal
- Lulong sa sugal means hooked on gambling, unable to stop even when it hurts.
- DAILYJILI Signs of Problem Gambling
- Mayo Clinic lists 9 signs of problem gambling, from constant planning and chasing losses to lying and asking others for bailouts.
- DAILYJILI SOGS Questionnaire
- The SOGS is a 20-item gambling questionnaire published by Lesieur and Blume in 1987.
Gambling withdrawal symptoms are what some people feel when they try to cut down or stop, and they are easier to bear when you know what to expect. This page reports one journal study and the clinical pages that mention the same feelings, and says whose findings each one is. If it is hitting you now, jump to your first steps in gambling help and then come back.
What gambling withdrawal symptoms are
The paper is “Towards DSM-V: considering other withdrawal-like symptoms of pathological gambling disorder” by Cunningham-Williams and colleagues, in the International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research, 2009. It says DSM-IV counted only restlessness or irritability as a withdrawal-like symptom of pathological gambling. The authors asked whether the list should be wider, because about 25% of their 312 gamblers reported that one symptom and about 41% reported others.
Clinical pages use the same word. The American Psychiatric Association lists being restless or irritable when trying to cut down or stop as a criterion. Mayo Clinic lists feeling restless or irritable when you try to cut down on gambling among its symptoms.
What a study of 312 gamblers found
The study telephoned 312 adult gamblers in the St Louis area who answered media advertisements, and asked about symptoms when they tried to quit or control gambling. These are the paper’s own figures from its Table 3.
| Feeling reported when cutting down | Share of all 312 | Share of those meeting 5 or more DSM-IV criteria |
|---|---|---|
| Restlessness or irritability (the DSM-IV one) | about 25% | about 80% |
| Disappointed in self | about 32% | about 86% |
| Guilty | about 32% | about 84% |
| Angry | about 29% | about 84% |
| Out of control | about 24% | about 72% |
| Depressed or hopeless | about 20% | about 71% |
| Other (body complaints, anxiety or panic, shame) | about 8% | about 22% |
The authors report that about 41% of the sample had at least one withdrawal-like symptom beyond restlessness or irritability. They recommend considering a broader criterion in future manuals. The study is of a community sample, and the authors say it limits how far the results reach to people in treatment.
What earlier reports quoted in the paper found
The paper’s introduction summarises older work, which gives a wider picture of how it can feel.
| Report (as the paper cites it) | What it found |
|---|---|
| Wray and Dickerson, 1981 | 30 to 40% of high-frequency US gamblers reported mood or behaviour disturbance like drinkers stopping: restlessness, depressed mood, poor concentration, obsessive thoughts |
| Bergh and Kühlhorn, Sweden, 1994 | About a third (33%) of problem gamblers reported two or more symptoms such as restlessness, irritation, sweating and trembling |
| Rosenthal and Lesieur, 1992 | 65% of the pathological gamblers in a sample of 222 Gamblers Anonymous members and patients reported at least one of 10 symptoms, such as insomnia, headaches, upset stomach and loss of appetite, against 2% of control patients |
How long gambling withdrawal symptoms last
The paper does not time its symptoms, and neither Mayo Clinic nor the American Psychiatric Association gives a number of days. The only time reference is an early report from the Brecksville treatment programme, quoted in the paper, of headache, abdominal pain, diarrhea, cold sweats, tremor and nightmares appearing for a few days after admission.
| Source | Gives a length of time? |
|---|---|
| The 2009 journal paper | No; it reports how many people had each feeling, not how long it lasted |
| Mayo Clinic | No |
| American Psychiatric Association | No |
| Early Brecksville report quoted in the paper | Symptoms appearing for a few days after admission |
That makes your own timeline a question for a doctor or mental health professional. Arizona’s problem gambling agency describes the early feelings as becoming irritable, impatient, agitated or tense when you cut down, which is the kind of detail to bring to the appointment.
When feelings overlap with depression
The study checked whether withdrawal-like symptoms were really depression or drug and alcohol withdrawal. Among gamblers with those symptoms, about 34% also reported current depression. Overlap with substance withdrawal was about 11%. The authors conclude that the overlap did not explain most cases.
Mayo Clinic lists suicide, suicide attempts and suicidal thoughts among the complications of compulsive gambling. The overlap is one more reason to speak to a professional instead of waiting it out alone.
What to do when the urge or the low mood hits
- Name what you feel in one word from the table above, such as guilty, angry or restless.
- Do not try to win it back. A lucky charm will not change the result, and chasing is one of the signs clinicians list.
- Be wary of anyone who promises to recover your losses; budol scams that prey on chasing use that exact hope.
- Tell a doctor or mental health professional, and read what gambling rehab involves if you want treatment.
- Put limits in place using the responsible gaming limits page.
- If you feel life is not worth living, the DOH Cordillera page lists the NCMH crisis hotline as 09178998726, 09663514518 and 09086392672, and says to contact emergency services if anyone is in danger of self-harm.
FAQ
What are gambling withdrawal symptoms?
The journal paper calls them withdrawal-like symptoms: feelings and body complaints that appear when someone tries to quit or control gambling. DSM-IV counted only restlessness or irritability, and the study found other feelings such as guilt, anger and disappointment in oneself.
How long do gambling withdrawal symptoms last?
The saved paper and clinical pages give no number of days or weeks. The paper quotes an early treatment-programme report of symptoms such as headache and cold sweats appearing for a few days after admission, so ask a doctor or mental health professional about your own timing.
Can withdrawal-like feelings be depression instead?
Sometimes they overlap. In the study, about one third of those with gambling withdrawal-like symptoms also reported current depression, yet the overlap did not account for most cases. A professional can sort out which is which.
Normal ba ang ma-guilty o mainis kapag tumigil sa sugal?
Sa study ng 312 na gamblers, humigit-kumulang 32% ang nag-ulat ng guilt at 29% ang nag-ulat ng galit kapag nagbabawas o tumitigil. Hindi ito diagnosis, kaya kausapin ang isang doktor kung bumibigat ang pakiramdam.