Gambling addiction

[anony]

Hi, I am aware this is a drugs forum but i dont use any others and this seemed like an off-topic area, so...
Basically ive put a couple of bets on (nothing major) and could see some serious cash involved in this if i was looking to invest.
my question is about gambling addiction, do any of you gamble? do you gamble alot? do you know any addicts? how addictive is it? is it best to stay away from it? (if you havn't done it then you don't know what ur missing?)
any background information on it would be great, cheers....

[PingoTango]

A guy I used to know (from a crowd of people I used to hang around with when I was younger, and have now thankfully severed all ties with. A long story...) easily put £300 a week into slot machines, and of course he never got a penny back - even if he hit the jackpot, in it went again, until all his money was gone. The concept of quitting whilst ahead never really occured to him...

Incidentally, he did eventually reign in his gambling, but he now spends a similar amount of money on cocaine. I guess certain people just have addictive personalities...

[KomodoMK]

Originally Posted by PingoTango

A guy I used to know (from a crowd of people I used to hang around with when I was younger, and have now thankfully severed all ties with. A long story...) easily put £300 a week into slot machines, and of course he never got a penny back - even if he hit the jackpot, in it went again, until all his money was gone. The concept of quitting whilst ahead never really occured to him...

Incidentally, he did eventually reign in his gambling, but he now spends a similar amount of money on cocaine. I guess certain people just have addictive personalities...

I have a similar friend, on a Friday/Staurday night when we all went out in our group of friends he would sit from like 5pm to 12am (sometimes longer) putting money in the fruit machines, and no matter how many of us asked him to come join our group of friends or explained to him that the machine is there to make money not give it out, he wouldn't listen. Always saying he knows how the machine works and it will pay out... yeah pay out £50 for every £150 you put in you tw*t.

He finally sorted his problem out. But logical reasoning is pretty useless with an addict, weather it be gambling, substance (ab)use or anything else.

[anony]

I have an addictive personallity although im not talking about the slot machines, im useless on them things
is it the slot machines that most addicts find themselves attached to?
i'm talking more about event betting\gambling

[PingoTango]

I think that slot machines are certainly the most accessible form of gambling to most people - here in the UK they are located in almost every pub, bar, takeaway etc, and they are designed to grab attention - not to mention the fact they are often heavily rigged in favour of the establishment.

[cuddlesthefox]

When I was a young man like yourself I loved gambling. Mainly on the horses but I'd try cards, slots, dogs, anything that could be gambled on basically. I lived for it. Never considered it was a problem until I found myself putting half my Nans pension on a horse called Dancing Brave in the Derby. It finished second and I turned to drugs not long afterwards.
So I think if you've an addictive personality anything is potentially damaging to you let alone something that is proven to be addictive.

[darkglobe]

I actually AM a gambling addict. Well not currently, as I stay away from it, I just don't like the term "former addict" when it comes to gambling, as - in my opinion - the weakness will always be there.

My tips to you (I'll keep 'em simple, coz they really are):

#1 - Don't gamble what you can't afford.
Maybe gamble with money you find - maybe you didn't know you had it. Gamble with money you wouldn't normally have or need, but have at any particular time. DO NOT gamble with money which already has a much more important purpose.

#2 - Don't gamble to bail yourself outta shit.
It doesn't work. This is how I got sucked in. Don't "have a quick flutter" then, when you realise you're losing, "chuck a bit more in"... thinking "maybe I can get outta this... hey, maybe I can still even make some money after all!"...
...Chances are you won't.

I'm not gonna be completely biased, as we all know sometimes people have good luck, but in my experience good luck never comes when you're in dire need of some.

My Experience
I started off with the roulette machines in local bookmakers' shops. I'd put ten pounds in and regularly (and I mean regularly) come out with forty pounds at least. This was so easily reproduced on even a daily basis that I found it "too easy". Sure, I was probably doing myself no harm at this stage, and even if I was to lose I probably wouldn't break the bank.

It was the feeling of "I've conquered it, I've beat the roulette machine at it's own game!!" that was dangerous. I started putting more in. Normally wouldn't be a problem, but I was doing this at a time when money was tight, even with my thirty quid a day profit going in. Slowly my profits turned to loss, then I had my next big idea...

..."Double the money, I may lose for a while, but then I can put one HUGE bet and I'm bound to win at some point"....


...Did I fuck. Ended up addicted to gambling, slowly spread my betting across a few different types of gambles, from horses to blackjack, poker to the dogs. Thankfully never accumulated any significant debts, just splurged way too much every day until someone made me realise I was addicted.

No real need to include that, just... if you ever start getting the feeling that you're winning... I don't mean the feeling that you won your bet, I mean a feeling that you're "winning the fight", or you're "beating the system", then it's past time to stop.

[Metomni]

It can be very addictive.

SWIM sticks to craps, roulette, and texas hold 'em.

There are rules to stick by.

1) Never bring what you cannot lose. Don't even bring more than that, and be sober when you decide what that limit is. That limit seems to change when you've been drinking. It is best to put a constant limit, one you'll use every time. Like, I can lose 50 bucks or 200 bucks, or whatever your financial situation will allow.

2) Know what aspects of the games the casinos rake in an advantage on. The pass/don't pass line in craps is the most even bet you can make in a casino. If you know the game mechanics, you can't ensure anything, but I seem to walk out with a good amount of money almost every single time. With roulette for example, don't play a 0-00 wheel. Try and find a wheel with just 1-36, or at least only one zero.

3) Don't play slots!!!

4) Learn when to get out while you're up. You sit down at a blackjack table and win your first three hands. GET UP!! You know it might continue, but you also know you're not going to beat the game so just get up. You can come back later or whatever, learn to play wisely.

5) Make bets which have nothing to do with the cards with other patrons. People in casinos are ready to bet on anything, and they've got their money right there. Try and make bets you know you'll win with other people. SWIM has done this several times, on some ridiculous occasions, but it works like a charm. They don't even get mad, it increases comraderie.

[jon-q]

Llike most good things in life moderation is the key,swim used to blow most of his money down the bookies on a fri afternoon thinking he "HAD A SYSTEM" truth is there's only one winner-and it ain't you pal!!

That said swim still has the odd fluter,in swims mind even with all the drugs he's taken you still can't beat that adrenalin rush one gets from picking a winner--come on ya fuckin donkey!

[zera]

Swim gambles on a daily basis and hangs out with a bunch of crazy, irresponsible, compulsive gamblers. Yet for some reason spending 60+ hours a week gambling is considered not only respectable, but praiseworthy. Why? Because instead of going to a casino everyday he shows up at a "hedge fund," where other people actually pay him to gamble with their money. Ironic.

If you really love to gamble and like the risk, I suggest getting into finance. If you work as a trader on Wall Street you get to gamble all the time, its socially respectable, it pays well and you play with other people's money instead of your own. Just a suggestion...