Gambling addiction often starts as a fun activity, and it can be adopted by anyone from any class and line of work. You start it as a form of entertainment, but it begins to root in your mind, and soon you find yourself addicted to it. Gambling addiction is just like any other form of addiction because you will crave to gamble just like you crave in drug addiction or alcohol addiction. At some point, you will find it hard to control your urges for gambling and think that there isn’t anything you can do to stop it, but there are many ways to overcome this obsession. First of all, you need to admit the issue and lookout for signs that may have caused this addiction in the first place.
- Gambling addiction is often adopted to avoid family issues, to seek freedom from anxiety, loneliness, and guilt.
- Thoughts of becoming rich overnight and making lots of money without real effort.
- Urges to gamble at least once in a week and feeling annoyed when trying to stop gambling practice.
- Gamble with high stakes to get more significant rewards to achieve thrill & excitement.
- Do not care about family, friends, and managing jobs or work hours to gamble.
- Always lying to family and friends to conceal your habit of gambling.
Once you discover your trigger points, it will be easier to recover from gambling addiction. You may have to come up with a better alternative to limit your time for gambling. Finding festive activities for problem gamblers is very important to help ease their recovery procedure. A gambler can adopt many healthy alternatives to take away his mind from the shining lights of casinos. I will be covering some of these healthy and entertaining activities in this article that might help you if you are a problem gambler.
I was looking for healthy activities and after thinking hard, I decided to have a dog. I knew that I have to be very responsible with my new friend. I wanted a small, active dog so that I would be forced to get out and be active too. Best thing I ever did. I named her Coco and she is just one of those dogs where when I look into his eyes, I know exactly what she’s thinking. Sometimes the way she looks at me, I can tell Coco having real human thoughts in her tiny, little brain. I noticed that she’s perfect for my new healthy activity. People who have been gamble free a long time say the urges lessen and they definitely have for me – but they are still there. For me having a dog, helped me a lot with gambling urges.
I will list some healthy activities down below.
Healthy Activities for Problem Gamblers
Distracting yourself during cravings for gambling is a great way to with your addiction, but to continually improving your condition, you will need to find better alternatives to gambling. You can shift your focus from bad habits towards healthier and more beneficial habits by staying positive and replacing gambling triggers with positive activities. Some alternatives can be,
1. Physical Activity:
It’s a good start because by staying active and working out daily, you won’t be having enough time to gamble away your money. This not only helps with your addiction but will always make you sharp and physically healthy. You can,
- Go for walks
- Join a gym
- Start yoga classes
- Meditate
- Do team sports
2. Spend Time With Family & Friends:
Spending time with your loved ones and friends will make your problems go away and keep in check your anxiety levels. You don’t need to find an escape in gambling anymore. If you dedicate some time from your weekly routine to family & friends, it will surely help you with your addiction.
- Plan a picnic
- Go for a movie
- Nigh out with friends at some decent place
- Spend time with your children
3. Volunteer Work:
Helping someone voluntarily will satisfy your heart and keep you away from bad distractions. You can do volunteer work for charitable organizations to utilize your free time.
4. Travelling:
It opens your mind and takes away all your anxieties, stresses, and loneliness. Travelling is a great way to deal with gambling addiction as it is a positive addiction in itself. Moving to new places and meeting with new peoples allows you to communicate well and forget your sorrows and problems. Please don’t waste your money on gambling; Explore the world instead.
Gambling is just like any other form of behavioral addiction, and it is vital to find suitable alternatives for problem gamblers to replace the addiction with healthier habits. With the passage of time, gamblers often neglect other interests in life as they get their dose of excitement from gambling. So, if you’re planning to quit gambling, you will have to find your excitement somewhere else. The best to do it is a 3-step approach that I suggest all the gamblers should follow.
- Admit Your Addiction
- Look for Trigger Points
- Replace the Triggers with Healthier Alternatives
Takeaway
In addition to problem gamblers, some addicts consider gambling as a source of entertainment. These people remain in denial of their addiction until it is too late for them to develop an alternative course of action. If you’re a problem gambler or addicts who consider gambling as a fun activity, I will advise you to quit gambling while you have the chance and develop healthier alternative habits to cope with the issue. Once gambling takes hold of you, it will become difficult for you to quit.
For this purpose, I have developed a platform, https://gambling-addictions.com/, where you can find sincere advice from ex-addicts and also share your story to reach out for help.
Gambling Addictions 