Gamblers Anonymous

How similar is the path that a compulsive gambler and a video game addict are taking? Do they go through the same orientation and same patterns?

Addiction is already defined as a state of being too dependent on something up to the point that it becomes abnormal and destructive to a person’s whole being. Alcohol and narcotic drugs are the most common agents identified in substance addiction. Compulsive gambling and video game addiction, on the other hand, fall in the same category of behavioral, non-substance related addictions.

The compulsive gambler and the video game addict goes through the same path of addiction. They start out with getting introduced with the game play. They initially spend a few hours trying out a round or two. Then they fall into a pattern that soon goes out of their control. They soon make the harmless, influential game the be-all and end-all of their everyday lives.

The most common symptoms shared by a compulsive gambler and a video game addict:

– Lack or loss of control: Both the compulsive gambler and the video game addict lacks or completely lose control with the amount of time and money spent in playing. The video game addict claims to spend only a few hours to just move up one level or two or three. Until he finds himself completing the whole adventure for the entire day. Gamblers may purchase a certain number of chips before game play and declare it as their maximum only to find themselves walking to the nearest ATM machine to get more funds.

– Displaying an escapist behavior: Zoning out, avoidance, compulsiveness, and denial are just a few of the most common signs of an escapist behavior. The gambler and the video game addict zone out from the real world when they are in their gaming world. They devoid themselves of any feelings or emotions either to ignore an unwanted situation or to simply just numb themselves. The frequency of their game time is proof of the compulsion they have for their addiction. Finally, denial within themselves and with the people surrounding them their addiction is taking its toll in their lives.

– Losing or narrowing of interests: The only thing they will talk about is their game- their wins or level ups or their new tricks or avatars. They even spend their waking hours away from the game still thinking about it. Other hobbies they may be involved with previously are forgotten. Friends and family who encourage them with their old hobbies or get them to try new ones may be doing so in vain.

These are only 3 symptoms very common with compulsive gambling and video game addiction. They still need to be further explored and explained in order to completely understand how they came to be. It may come easy for people to identify substance addictions because of physical manifestations that are present. While non-substance addictions may seem hard to identify because of the psychological and behavior patterns that need to be closely monitored.

What is important is we are aware of any untoward or uncommon behavior that a friend or a loved one is showing. Compulsive gambling and video game addiction may seem to be two different things altogether. But their common symptoms should be enough to catch our attention. When we are equipped with the knowledge about these problems then we can properly identify, address and treat them.

Everyday in my inbox I get messages from gamblers or just people who want to make money and see gambling as a way to do it. I earn a good living from gambling and have adapted several so called gambling systems along the way to help me make money.

When I read the mail I get invariably they are tales of gambling woe. People who have tried xyz horse racing system or roulette system. I always reply and I always ask the same question, what was your aim when you purchased the system and what did you expect? The answer is nearly always the same as well, “well I had a couple of hundred and I was told if I follow the system I could turn it into $10,000.

Now there are gambling systems that can do this and quite a few of them. But you need to understand the gambling system involved, you need to understand the gambling activity involved be it horse racing, roulette, black jack or football betting, and most importantly you need to understand one thing, you the gambler.

A gambling system is only as good as the person using it, if you do not know what you are doing , sure, you will give money away and it amazes me that people do this. I have never played Black Jack, I am not interested in Black Jack so I would never gamble on Blackjack so why would I buy a system on it. If the sales copy was so good that I did get sucked into buy it or any gambling product, then me being me, I would see if it worked on paper first. if I paper traded, understood the system and the game involved then I would put my money down.

If you want to earn money gambling (and trust me it is a great way to make a living, tax free in the UK) then firstly look at an activity that interests you, then look at finding a means of gambling on that activity, make sure you have money available to gamble, not credit cards or borrowings, and then paper trade the system until you are convinced it works. Then and only then can you risk money gambling and by that time it is not gambling it is purely a means of investment.
Don’t just throw yourself at it and give your money away

Gambling treatment and recovery programs are now a click away. With the ever expanding internet you can almost find anything you are looking for through the search engines.

There are a number of websites that have popped up over the past few years that deal directly with gambling addiction. These site have created various programs that may help the compulsive gambler beat there addiction. There are even websites that are available to help family and friends of the compulsive gambler.

There are times where compulsive gamblers looking for help finally find a website that peaks there interest. At this point they are hopeful but pessimistic that this is really going to help them.

Compulsive Gamblers are unique individuals who have lost trust in people and humanity. This happens as they fall deep into the grips of their addiction. As they begin to realize what they have done they continue their distrust, may become arrogant and or misunderstand simple concepts. As they begin to surf the web they continue their distrust and sometimes even take it out on the people that are trying to help them. The following is a few examples of emails from compulsive gamblers sent to stop gambling websites:

Hello can you email me back so I know if this is an automated response or a real live person?

I received confirmation for the chat room. The fees states 19.95 per year. Is there going to be a monthly recurring fee?

I paid $24.95 for your manual. I have not received the book yet. You are supposed to email it to me. This email came in ten minutes after the person ordered it. They then followed up ten minutes later with, are you a real company or did you rip me off. Then they send a third email. It’s been a half hour where the ______ is my manual. The owner of the site emailed the manual forty five minutes after the order was received. The person wrote and explained that it clearly states the manual will be mailed with in one hour after you place your order. The website Help To Stop Gambling Addiction understood what was going on and took the time to help the person realize that they were not out to rip them off but to help them. The compulsive gambler apologized for their abusive behavior and is now in recovery thanks to the website.

Why are you charging a fee to help people that have an addiction?

How could you charge $19.95 per year for your chat room? The website emailed back the compulsive gambler and asked them how much did you lose last week gambling? The gambler replied $750.00. The website emails the person and asks a simple question. How could you throw away $750.00 last week but are not willing to invest $19.95 in yourself that will give you a peace of mind and someone to listen to you seven days a week for a year? Then the website asked what did you get for the $750.00 you lost last week? I am pleased to say this person to is now in recovery.

When dealing with an individual with a gambling addiction, you have to reach out into their world and draw them into a healthier way of living. I believe compulsive gamblers have a greater chance of treatment and recovery if they can relate to the individuals who are helping them.

Most folk are under the belief that professional gamblers have one bet, play one game of poker, or various other form of gambling, and then collect the winnings and go back to their big mansion for a few months rest, before having another gamble!

I pray it was like that, but in legitimate life it is extremely different. I personally work 10-12 hours a day, 360 days a year, and still do a bit on the days off, including Christmas day. When you see professional poker players they are spending 3-5 days at a table in a tournament every week, sometimes sitting for 12 hours, and when they are not doing that, they are at home playing poker on the computer.

So if you are looking for a simple life, do not take up betting as a profession. Yes it can pay well, very well, but you need to put in a lot of work, and it can be 2-3 years before you are making any meaningful money. Anyone who tells you otherwise is possibly lying just to get your money.

When you see tipping advertisers stating things like “We made $26,000 to $100 stakes in the last 12 months”, it looks breathtaking. However, they need to receive your attention as a 1/8th ad in a paper costs around $500, and they need that funds back before turning a profit. And how numerous average gamblers have $100 to bet, especially when you need a betting bank, and with $100 stakes, the cash you need before you even place one bet is around $3,500, any less and you can easily blow it all. Then divide the $26,000 by the $100 to work out how many and various points you make a year, and that is 260, then divide by 52 to see how countless points profit a week, and that comes to 5pts a week. Wow!! If you are just starting off you are likely to only be using a realistic $5, so that is $25 a week average. That may not sound much but you have to learn to walk before you can run. If you cannot profit with 10c bets, how the hell will you profit with $100 bets?

Also think why various tipsters advertise every day. This is because they have such a high turnover; they need to keep replenishing the customer base. This does not always mean the tipster is rubbish, in most cases they may be profitable long term, but the average Joe Punter always wants profit NOW and every day, and average Joe points more than 5 points per week, whereas a full time professional would be happy with that.

If you are going to gamble to profit, then for the first few months this should be your conditioning were you will be doing a lot of work for little return, but you will also learn how to handle losing runs, how to cope with mistakes, and if it does all go improper and you lose the betting bank, you should have learnt a lot from it for as little loss as possible, as you should only ever bet what you can afford to lose, especially while proving to yourself you can profit. You may have a spare $10,000 available, but prove you can profit with a $1000 bank original, and then add to the bank monthly.

So here are the 8 tips you need to learn, and stick to religiously if you want to stand a chance of ever profiting from gaming.

1. Patience: If you want big profits now, try the lottery. Building up you betting banks takes time a lot of time.

2. Betting Banks: If you do not have a betting bank to beginning with, and you are just betting from whatever is in your pocket, you will never make a profit. It is as simple as that. Most punters lie to themselves that they are breaking even. Do not do that, be truthful.

3. Staking: You see betting plans for sale on EBay, most of them may make you a few dollars quickly, but it is 100% guaranteed they will bust your bank as these are designed by amateurs who have no understanding of betting maths in the actual world. Always inception with levels, if you cannot make bankroll with that simple staking plan you will not make bankroll with anything more complicated. Once you have proven over a few months you can turn a profit with level stakes, and then you can switch to each bet being between 1%-3% of the bank. Most professionals will start at 3%, but get it down to 1% as the bank grows.

4. Bank Management: Managing banks is not just staking, it also involves listing every bet on a spreadsheet so you can monitor things like average odds, strike rate, losing runs, etc. If you do not list every bet, you will have no idea where you stand, and no way of having data to look back and learn from.

5. Risk Management: Most people follow one tipster, or one system. This is usually suicide, you do not see the big boys in the city markets investing everything in one stock do you? No. They spread it around, and so should you. Use a number of systems, proven tipsters, method bets, etc. And ensure you have a separate betting bank for each (you can use the same betting account, as the spreadsheets you keep will advise you the amount which is in each bank).

6. Alcohol: NEVER drink while betting, you will bet more than you should, you will bust banks, you will play bets you would never do when sober.

7. Forums: Join a forum where you can percentage ideas, this can prove a huge aid, but make sure it is a decent one, and not full of idiots just spouting off how good they are!

8. Fun Bets: You are often told not to do any ‘fun bets’ if you pray to turn professional, but this will not happen, as it is hard to break old habits at maiden. The best way to treat fun bets is to handle them as you would any pro bets. Separate betting bank, list all bets, and it will not be long before you lose the bank and realize how wonderful your own tipping is!

This advice goes for betting in any country, on horse racing, greyhounds, soccer, NFL, poker, etc.

You can also find countless free horse racing systems, staking systems, poker systems, on the internet, ignore them, they are only free for a reason, as they lose bankroll.

These days it is possible to receive horse racing software, poker software, etc that can help you, they will only make you money if you are already doing so, they just enhance your skills, not make them. Search the web for reviews on every product before parting with any money; ask people on forums which software is the best.