DAILYJILI Signs of Problem Gambling: 9 Warning Signs to Check

Signs of problem gambling are behaviours you can check against a list, and the list is short enough to run through in two minutes. Mayo Clinic prints nine of them, and the American Psychiatric Association says how many a clinician looks for. Read them with your own last month in mind, then use the first step toward gambling help if more than one fits.

The 9 signs of problem gambling, as Mayo Clinic lists them

These are Mayo Clinic’s signs and symptoms of compulsive gambling, also called gambling disorder, in its own order.

1. Preoccupation. You are constantly planning gambling and how to get more gambling money.
2. Bigger amounts. You need to gamble with increasing amounts of money to get the same thrill.
3. Failed efforts. You try to control, cut back or stop gambling and cannot.
4. Restless or irritable. You feel restless or irritable when you try to cut down.
5. Escape. You gamble to escape problems or to relieve helplessness, guilt, anxiety or depression.
6. Chasing. You try to get lost money back by gambling more.
7. Lying. You lie to family members or others to hide how much you gamble.
8. Risking what matters. You risk or lose relationships, a job, or school or work opportunities.
9. Bailouts. You ask others to bail you out of financial trouble you gambled into.

How many signs count: four in a year

The American Psychiatric Association’s page says a diagnosis of gambling disorder requires at least four criteria during the past year. The page prints seven criteria, and each lines up with one of Mayo’s signs.

Counting is for a clinician to do with you. You count your signs to decide whether to book that conversation, and a count of one is already a reason to ask.

A bad run versus a pattern

Mayo Clinic draws the line in one sentence: most casual gamblers stop when losing or set a limit on what they will lose, while people with a compulsive problem keep playing to recover their money. That difference shows up in behaviour, not in the size of the loss.

If the right-hand column sounds familiar, the maths behind the house always winning explains why more play rarely repairs a loss.

Signs that show up in money and at home

Arizona’s problem gambling agency describes the same behaviours in its own words and attaches a question to each. These five are the quickest to check.

1. Have you ever lied to people important to you about how much you gambled?
2. Have you gambled to try to get your money back?
3. Have you borrowed money to finance your gambling?
4. Do you often think about the next time you can gamble or how you will find the money?
5. Have you ever jeopardized or lost a significant relationship, job or career opportunity because of gambling?

A yes to any of them lines up with signs 7, 6, 9, 1 and 8 above.

What PAGCOR lists as warning signs

PAGCOR’s responsible gaming page describes the same pattern for Philippine players. It names spending or betting more than you meant to, gambling for longer than you planned, and trying again and again to win back what you lost.

It adds debt, missed bills, borrowing, stealing or selling belongings, constant thoughts about gambling, relationships suffering, and feeling hopeless, anxious or depressed. PAGCOR’s reminders on the same page are short: gambling is not a source of income, set time limits, never borrow money to gamble and do not chase losses.

Five questions Gamblers Anonymous asks first

Gamblers Anonymous publishes a 20-question self-test. The first five questions on its page are:

1. Did you ever lose time from work or school due to gambling?
2. Has gambling ever made your home life unhappy?
3. Did gambling affect your reputation?
4. Have you ever felt remorse after gambling?
5. Did you ever gamble to get money with which to pay debts or otherwise solve financial difficulties?

For a scored questionnaire with bands, read how the SOGS questionnaire’s score bands work.

What to do when the signs fit

1. Write down which signs fit and when you last noticed each one.
2. Tell one person you trust, or a doctor or mental health professional, and show them your list.
3. Read what treatment involves on the gambling rehab and treatment page, including PAGCOR’s exclusion periods.
4. Keep your own limits in place with the responsible gaming limits you can set.

If gambling is leaving you feeling that life is not worth living, the NCMH crisis hotline lines printed on the DOH Cordillera page are 09178998726, 09663514518 and 09086392672.