Gambling Disorder

 

Identification and Treatment for Gambling Disorder

Gambling disorder is a strong urge to gamble, even though it causes serious problems. You may feel that you can't control your gambling in spite of its impact on your finances, relationships, or self-esteem. It's a type of addiction. It may also be called problem gambling.

Places to gamble, websites, games, and lotteries are often developed in a way that keep a person gambling-- using high‑speeds, vibrant sights and sounds, telling the gambler that they almost won, and responses that feel personalized. These tactics make it harder to stop gambling. Pennsylvania was in the top 3 states for the amount of online gambling.

Teenagers may be more likely to experience problem gambling due to their developing brains, being impulsive, and being more likely to take risks. 

Symptoms for problem gambling

There are many possible symptoms of gambling disorder. For example, you may:

  • Try but fail to quit or cut back on gambling.
  • Need to gamble more money to get the same thrill.
  • Feel restless or grumpy when you try to control or stop gambling.
  • Have repeated thoughts about gambling. For example, you may spend a lot of time thinking about past gambling. Or you may think about how to get more money to gamble with.
  • Lie to others about your gambling.
  • Gamble more to try to get back money you've lost. (This is called chasing your losses).
  • Use gambling to relieve negative emotions, like guilt or stress.
  • Harm or lose something important, such as a relationship or a job, because of gambling.
  • Need help from others to handle money problems caused by gambling.

How is gambling disorder identified and treated?

Gambling disorder is a complex problem. A doctor will ask questions about your behavior, such as whether you've ever lied about how much you gamble. The doctor may also review your medicines. (Certain medicines may make gambling behavior worse.) You may do a mental health assessment to find other conditions that may need treatment.

Usually a combination of treatments will work best. These may include:

  • Counseling from a behavioral health provider. For example, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can help you learn to manage your urge to gamble. It can also help you find other ways to cope with stress. 
  • Family therapy may be added to treatment for gambling disorder to help you repair relationships that were damaged by your gambling.
  • Support. Self-help groups like Gamblers Anonymous support and educate people who are trying to regain control of their life. 
  • Medicine. No medicines are approved to treat gambling disorder. But in some cases, a doctor may prescribe medicine to see if it reduces your urge to gamble. One example is naltrexone. This medicine is often used to treat opioid and alcohol use disorders.

Gambling disorder is serious, so it's important to get help for this problem. To find a treatment provider, talk with a representative at Community Care Behavioral Health Community Care’s toll-free line 1-833-822-3010.

For more information on gambling disorder:

Information from UPMC: Gambling Disorder - UPMC Health Library

Information for members and families from Pennsylvania: Problem Gambling Services | Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs | Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

If you have other questions or need help scheduling an appointment, call us.

If you're thinking about suicide or self-harm, call the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988. Or text HOME to 741741 to access the Crisis Text Line. Go to 988lifeline.org for more information or to chat online.