People get addicted to drugs and many other things, but gambling is the worst of all. It all starts with doing it once or twice, hoping for a big win. Gambling makes you optimistic that you could be the lucky winner. After the first big win, you sink deeper into it like never before. With time, you develop an addiction, which directly impacts your lifestyle.
Ways in Which Gambling Can Affect Your Lifestyle
Addiction to gambling affects your life in different ways, like:
1. Financially
You need money for gaming, which requires proper budgeting. Otherwise, the habit may prompt you to spend even the last coin forgetting to pay bills. You may also consider taking loans to gamble, which is risky, especially if you lose.
You may end up in a financial crisis, which results in critical monetary concerns like auctioning off your property and court summons due to failure to repay debts. Many people get trapped by their financial situations, and it becomes uneasy about telling your family or close friends how much debt you have.
2. Family and Relationships
Over time, gambling negatively affects your relationships with family and the people around you. Some of the things that may hurt relationships include:
- Stealing from family members or friends to gamble
- Having no time for your family because gambling preoccupies you
- Being dishonest to your family after losing
- Failing to attend to important things and spending a lot of time gambling
- Initiating fights at home especially on money issues
Gambling physically and emotionally distances you from your loved ones, and it can break families. It also drains your finances, which may affect your children like lack of money for school fees and other basic needs. This may bring stress in the family, and can lead to break up with your partner or parents, resulting in long-lasting consequences.
3. Anxiety and Depression
A study by the Royal College of Psychiatrists confirmed that gamblers have high chances of suffering from mental health disorders. As you get deeper into gambling, you may start feeling stressed and depressed, especially after losing several times. This affects your wellbeing through lacking sleep, being irrational, and you develop decision-making difficulties.
Depressed gamblers may experience the following symptoms:
- Lack of sleep or sleeping too much
- Feeling worthless and hopeless
- Having suicidal thoughts
- Losing interest in your daily activities
- Feeling restless and physically tired
- Continually thinking about your problems
- Gaining or losing weight
- Losing appetite or having a high appetite
Online gambling sites such as IndiaSlots provide players with risk warnings on gambling and it’s wise to read and understand the rules before signing up.
4. Suicidal Thoughts
Excessive gaming can make you have suicidal thoughts. Gamblers with mental issues like depression and anxiety, and those who drink heavily are likely to contemplate suicide. Someone who has ever threatened to commit suicide is at a higher risk. A person who has suicidal thoughts needs immediate attention to help them deal with the situation early in advance.
Helpful Things Do When You Feel Suicidal
You don’t have to battle all alone since it continually drains your energy, and you may end up committing suicide.
Here are some actions to take:
- Avoid drinking alcohol because it will worsen the situation
- Open up to your family to let them know what you are going through
- Have a conversation with someone you trust for advice
- Visit a doctor and let them know your situation as well as your gambling
- Go for counseling for the best action to take
- Walk away from things that can make you end your life like guns and medication
Conclusion
Although you may start gambling because you think you can win, it’s also worthwhile to know the negative side of it. Gambling is not bad as long as you have set limits and have control over your actions. Besides, don’t treat betting like your full-time job because it may leave you depressed, especially after a series of losing. Please do it for fun, and only gamble with money that you are ready to lose.
