Every night, Kenny comes home from work, flips open his laptop and starts placing bets on two of his favorite online poker sites. Jessica likes to play the video lottery terminals a few times a month when she is out with friends. Jeff places bets on his favorite sports teams before the big game. And Cathy stops at the casino a few nights a week before heading home to make dinner.
Do all of these people have a gambling problem? The easy answer is no, not yet. Gambling is on the rise across America with new and different types of gambling popping up everywhere. It used to be that compulsive gambling would take place primarily in casinos in a few select cities. However, big casinos are popping up everywhere and more than that, there are more options for people who want to gamble.
Online gambling is quickly becoming a popular and easy way for people to gamble without ever leaving their home. Many people would not immediately think that Kenny has a gambling problem because he never even leaves his home to fuel his addiction. Online gambling is probably one of the most dangerous types of gambling because of its accessibility. Anyone can log on and set up an account that allows them to easily withdraw money directly off of their credit card or out of their bank account.
Because online gambling is so immediate, it takes seconds to determine a win or lose, people can quickly cycle downward and into a cycle of addiction. Generally this happens much faster with online gambling than with traditional gambling such as black jack, poker or horse races.
Video lottery terminals are another quick and easy way that people get drawn into gambling. It usually starts very innocently, with a few dollars here and there. However, with the instant response of the video lottery booth, the immediate win or loss, it is all too easy to put more and more money into the lottery booth searching for the win response.
No matter what type of gambling they favor, compulsive gamblers often have a very misguided sense of the probabilities that are associated with gambling. Often they feel as if they are due to win, and that the next hand will be their hand. If they are playing on slot machines or video lottery booths, they may feel that after a series of losses, the machine is ready for a win and they cannot quit playing it because it will pay out soon.
Typically, compulsive gamblers have strong superstitions regarding their gambling. They may have little rituals that must be performed before playing, or maybe a certain table is the lucky black jack table, certain numbers always should be played on the lottery and so on.
Gambling is big business with profits of over $47 billion annually for casinos and lotteries combined in the United States. It is estimated that two thirds of the adult population have at some point placed a bet of some kind. With numbers that big, compulsive gambling is a very real danger. Whether you like to bet on your favorite sports team occasionally, or put a few dollars into the slots, you could be at risk for developing a dangerous gambling addiction if you are not careful.
