well, for one you arent only throwing money away to the casino... you are also throwing it back to the government. every gambling winning that has to be reported is taxed at about 27%. so lets say you hit a jackpot for 3000... you have to pay 27% of that to taxes, even if you claim and prove it as a loss and get out of paying taxes on that amount, it still counts towards your yearly income, which could put you at a higher tax bracket, which could cause your total tax rate to go up. which makes you look like you make more than you do and can affect applying for any financial aid or sliding scale. also... say you tip the dealer, the dealer gets taxed on the money you already got taxed on as well. just food for thought.

Tips to help you stay away.

Self barring is a great tool, also cutting or scratching your magnetic strip on your cards... they can manually punch the number in most grocery stores and/or restaurants, but wont work to slide through an ATM to get cash out.

Dont linger or focus on the money lost or trying to regain financial stability right off hand. sure, its the end goal, rebuilding your life, but start day by day, minute by minute and allow yourself praise for the little accomplishments, the rest will follow. focusing on the future result helps feed the notion that all you need is one big win to get even and stop. this never happens. if you can secure today, you can secure tomorrow.

Everything a casino does is geared to draw you in and keep you playing. there are no clocks in casinos... because they dont want you to truly realize how long you have been there, they want you to lose track of time.

when you get that feeling that you will win... you probably wont. and even if you do, you will probably give it all back plus some chasing your winnings you gave back. if not in the same day then soon thereafter. so... does it really matter if you win?