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Gambling Addiction & Recovery Information

Compulsive gambling is an urge or addiction to gamble despite harmful negative consequences or a desire to stop. A preferred term among many professionals is problem gambling, as few people described by the term experience true compulsions in the clinical sense of the word. Problem gambling often is defined by whether harm is experienced by the gambler or others rather than by the gambler's behavior. Severe problem gambling may be diagnosed as clinical pathological gambling if the gambler meets certain criteria.

Extreme cases of problem gambling may cross over into the realm of mental disorders. Pathological gambling was recognized as a psychiatric disorder in the DSM-III, but the criteria were significantly reworked based on large-scale studies and statistical methods for the DSM-IV. As defined by American Psychiatric Association, pathological gambling is an impulse control disorder that is a chronic and progressive mental illness.

According to the National Council on Problem Gambling, incidence of problem gambling is 2-3% and pathological gambling is 1% in the United States, though this may vary by country. By contrast, 86% of Americans have gambled in their lives and 60% gamble in a given year.

Available research seems to indicate that problem gambling is an internal tendency, and that problem gamblers will tend to risk money on whatever game is available—as opposed to the availability of a particular game inducing problem gambling in otherwise "normal" individuals. However research also indicates that problem gamblers tend to risk money on fast-paced games. Thus a problem gambler is much more likely to lose a lot of money on poker or slot machines, where rounds end quickly and there is a constant temptation to play again or increase bets, as opposed to a state lottery where the gambler must wait until the next drawing to see results.

Health Blogs

Food addiction is a topic that has been debated by medical professionals for years. And who is surprised? How many women do you know claim they are addicted to chocolate, salty chips, or ice cream? These are individuals who emphatically state that they truly “cannot” stop eating the identified item once they start. New evidence ... Read More »
It’s 2013. Another New Year is upon us: 12 months, 365 days. Right now, people across our country are embarking on the age-old tradition of making a New Year’s resolution. Friends and family members are promising one another they are definitely going to hit the gym five days a week, or never let that laundry pile up, or call their ... Read More »
As 2012 comes to a close I thought it would be helpful to review some of the major tenets of goal setting. I typically write about this at the end of each year because so often people feel reinvigorated to make resolutions, which could also be looked at as goals. As I have said in the past, you don’t need the end of a year or a major ... Read More »

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Community Advisors
Dr. Kimberly Dennis
Psychiatrist,
Timberline Knolls Residential Treatment Center

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