Are you addicted to gambling? Here comes a test.

I found the following proposal in Scandinavia.

Check if you can hold out:
- Refrain from playing one day a week.
- Give up one week a month.
- Refrain from addiction for a whole month a year.

What do you think of this proposal?

Interesting side effect:
If you persevere, approx. 39% of all days of the year are free of play.

I am in Scandinavia and our national gambling site actually sends an email to its members every now and then, and that email contains a link to a self test about this subject. But it is totally voluntary to take.

Well... It turns out I might be addicted to poker.

I'm just glad that I haven't spent a fortune in the process. Maybe if I get good enough, I'll become a professional player and my addiction would be a good thing. Or maybe I'm just thinking like an addict. The world may never know

Seems a bit harsh for a test. If you're not addicted, that really puts quite the limit on you playing. Especially the whole month a year.

I think the real test of addiction is to ask yourself:

Does gambling or playing poker get in the way of other PRIORITIES in life, such as work, family, physical health, etc.

If not, you're not addicted.. If so, then you can make a change to rebalance the priorities in a healthy way.. and if you can't do that.... then well you're an addict that needs help.

Hello. It seems to me that this test is stupidity, if you are a player and without playing for a month you lose the feeling of the game, and this is directly reflected on. your bankroll

Yes, I think this is a far too simplistic take myself.

I exercise in one way or another every day and I really do not like that schedule being interrupted - in fact I can build my routine around it at times. I would not describe that as being addicted but rather committed. And it is frustrating (as with Covid) when it proves impossible to maintain. Even if classified as an addiction, it is a positive in my life.

I believe you can't discuss poker/gambling without money as being the core issue. The frequency of playing should not be problematic if you are in control of your finances. But then it would not matter it you only went on a gambling binge once a week on payday - that would be a problem, period.

The suggestion sounds reasonable. In my opinion, one or two days a week should be reserved for other interesting projects. There is no need to skip poker for a whole week or month - poker is a game with people, there is also a certain social aspect to consider because people meet to interact with each other. This can be observed right now in these crazy Corana-times that people suffer a lot from a lack of social contact. The weekly poker tournament at home with friends is a nice thing, where you can cook first, then drink a beer and then play some cards. This would be a sensible way of dealing with poker. However, online poker can also lead to gambling addiction.

andi08 said:

I found the following proposal in Scandinavia.

Check if you can hold out:
- Refrain from playing one day a week.
- Give up one week a month.
- Refrain from addiction for a whole month a year.

What do you think of this proposal?

Interesting side effect:
If you persevere, approx. 39% of all days of the year are free of play.

Click to expand...

Long ago Prostitution, Drugs and Gambling were all illegal. Because each one has detrimental effect on people/families/society. Now that Gaming is here, let us try to understand it, and, perhaps, embrace it. After all, the gaming industry employs a lot of people and paying a lot of taxes to governments.

There are several types of gamblers:
1. Advantaged Players that play with a positive expectation;
2. Social gamblers that get involved once in a while, (including office lottery ticket group purchase);
3. Problem gamblers - they gamble lots, they lose a lot, but they are MAINTAINING;
4. Pathological gamblers - the person is no longer in control of his/her life, the game has completely taken over.

If we believe in Freedom of Choice, it is up to people to choose between Type 1-3. Type 4 becomes a social issue. Because of the Socioeconomic and Psycho Economic implications, pathological gamblers are hurting/costing the society, ie., fights, theft, domestic abuse, police/court/jail costs, lost of jobs/businesses, training/retraining, hospitalization, rehab/therapies, etc.

Bad news - Gamblers are not the only ones exposed to this harmful effect. Gaming operators/regulators are addicted to the revenue just as bad as the Type 4 Pathological Gamblers. To remain politically correct they give you "Responsible Gaming" initiatives. They get paid $60,000 a year to come up with work like:

Check if you can hold out:
- Refrain from playing one day a week.
- Give up one week a month.
- Refrain from addiction for a whole month a year.

If you have gambled for a while, you might have experienced this - after the fact, you asked yourself "WHAT WAS I THINKING??? WHY DID I DO THAT? AM I STUPID OR WHAT???" or "I AM SO FxxxED. NOW WHAT DO I DO?"

If you are even more experienced, you are already accustomed to this devastating effect. You justify your actions with all kinds of fancy excuses, ie., "all professional players go broke at some point of his/her career. Other players stake them or they find a way to come up with another bankroll ..." or "... who said this is gambling? A lot of pros make millions by doing this. I am learning to be one. One day I will get there ..." --- Every million won there are more in losses. "Rake" is the only guaranteed winner.

Other than their inner circle with partners in crime, gamblers are very secretive about their actions. They know they are better off without the gambling. But they just can't stop or don't know how to stop.

If you are still still reading, let me reward you for your patience. "WHAT WAS I THINKING??? WHY DID I DO THAT? AM I STUPID OR WHAT??? NOW WHAT DO I DO???" No, you are not crazy. No you are not stupid. In fact, your brain is reacting normally.

To be technical, actually, your Anterior Cingulated Cortex (the part of your brain in charged of financial risk taking) was temporarily blindfolded. This part of the brain reacts normally when you win. After you lose a big hand, your brain MRI goes wild, your heart beats faster, palms sweat, you become more aggressive. Because your brain is preparing you for the "FIGHT OR FLIGHT". If you don't flight, you are fighting. You want your money back, your are at a heightened state of mind, commonly known as "TILT". This reaction is ABSOLUTELY NORMAL. So don't hide it. Don't keep it as a secret. Admit it. And you can actually fix it.

Next time when you are under attack, you know it is your ACC. Unless you have the ability to suppress that aggression, otherwise you MUST leave. It is easy - PUT ONE FOOT IN FRONT OF ANOTHER AND START WALKING or SHUT DOWN THE COMPUTER. After 10 steps/seconds or so, you may ask yourself - why didn't I do it ($XXXX) earlier?

If you are a long term pathological gambler. You may appreciate the above effort, but you are far beyond "putting one foot in front of another", then you need more help. This message is already too long. Perhaps we can discuss further next time.

I hope this helps.

PS: If you think you have learned something, will you be so kind to reciprocate by showing me how to play better Poker please? I am a 6-month newbie. :adore:

I don't know, I'm probably an addict but stopping for a week seems exaggerated, I think that as they have already mentioned, addiction is reflected if you give priority to poker over other fundamental things in life like family

The excitement disappears when poker turns into work. Why do people go to work all their lives and no one will do the test, and have you become a workaholic? and they will offer not to go to work for one month a year.

No, not addicted to poker.

:top:

I think the proposal is simplifying a complex individual thing and addiction just sounds dirty or problematic tarring everybody with the same brush when that is the case with some people who have problems and no self control they might need help I agree,
But not all players who lose even are at risk of ruin,
Addicted yes I am a little if honest I love poker and no too also I can leave a very big bankroll alone safe in many different locations without online card access and happily play freerolls all day long.
It only becomes a problem really if it stops you paying your bills on time and putting food on the table.
Just play with a disposable amount of money for a year 10% of salary earnings would be my maximum risk to be honest,
Every year 11% of my earnings goes into a pension fund either way for example and save another 10-20% of wages elsewhere too even each year so even if I lose that 10% my overall worth grows every year.:dontknow:

andi08 said:

I found the following proposal in Scandinavia.

Check if you can hold out:
- Refrain from playing one day a week.
- Give up one week a month.
- Refrain from addiction for a whole month a year.

What do you think of this proposal?

Interesting side effect:
If you persevere, approx. 39% of all days of the year are free of play.

Click to expand...

No, I am not, I do not depend on the game and weeks, months and years can go by without playing, at least it has been so until now. If I know this is a big problem for many people, they should be addressed and not be tempted.

1nsomn1a said:

The excitement disappears when poker turns into work. Why do people go to work all their lives and no one will do the test, and have you become a workaholic? and they will offer not to go to work for one month a year.

Click to expand...

Haha, as an old saying goes, "you either win boringly or lose excitingly"

greatgame230 said:

I don't know, I'm probably an addict but stopping for a week seems exaggerated, I think that as they have already mentioned, addiction is reflected if you give priority to poker over other fundamental things in life like family

Click to expand...

knowing the problem is half of the solution

hugh blair said:

I think the proposal is simplifying a complex individual thing and addiction just sounds dirty or problematic tarring everybody with the same brush when that is the case with some people who have problems and no self control they might need help I agree,
But not all players who lose even are at risk of ruin,
Addicted yes I am a little if honest I love poker and no too also I can leave a very big bankroll alone safe in many different locations without online card access and happily play freerolls all day long.
It only becomes a problem really if it stops you paying your bills on time and putting food on the table.
Just play with a disposable amount of money for a year 10% of salary earnings would be my maximum risk to be honest,
Every year 11% of my earnings goes into a pension fund either way for example and save another 10-20% of wages elsewhere too even each year so even if I lose that 10% my overall worth grows every year.:dontknow:

Click to expand...

Gaming is new. There is not enough standard like 0.08 blood alcohol to be DUI. Some people consider gaming expenditure under the Misc Spending. Depending on the region, 2.9% seems to be a reasonable number. If you have a gross income of 100,000 you can lose up to 2900 "IF" you don't spend on any other Misc Item. A lot of people lose a lot more and remain trouble free. People with an addictive personality is a totally different topic. Marathon runners, drummers practice 10 hours a day, or workaholic CEOs are all ADDICTS. It is just that the cost to oneself/society is different. Bill Gate thought taking 2 hours off work to get married was a sacrifice. Now he thinks it is ok to edit human DNA. His addiction of "getting to the next level" is a million times worse than all pathological gamblers ... combined.
After all, gambling losses is not ALL BAD. You can be assured your money is feeding a lot of families. It shows you the side of you that you never knew existed. It teaches you humility and how to accept/adapt/regroup. Good pre-requisite for entrepreneurship. Elon Musk was down to his last 40 million (from a billion he got from paypal) with his 3 losing projects. Now he is the richest man. Wonder if he played poker when he was young???

That test is welcome for those who really have problems with gambling addiction and lose a lot of money there but for those like me, for example, who play a few tournaments 3-4 days a week, I don't see the point.

Curious information. So if you want to stay exactly 50% of the year without playing, you must refrain from doing it 2 times a week, one week a month and 34 days in a year.
I think the frequency of times someone uses to gamble is not enough information to qualify someone as an addict.
If we talk about poker, it is known that one of the correct alternatives to beat the variance is to increase the volume of play. Which implies increasing the frequency of time dedicated to poker sessions.
So the most important thing for me is the control we exercise when we make a decision for the game. Whether it is a longer session, dedicating more time to study, etc.
The problem appears when we lose control of our decisions and that affects our daily lives.
Personally, I have never reached that point. So I think the most important thing is to have a cold head, and know when to stop a session of poker, or any other game.
Self-control is vital for every player who wants to progress in his area.
Greetings.

lol very good this this I don't think I support even a day without playing poker when you love and enjoy something you feel the need to stay there in the game

For me, gambling is not a problem. They have no influence on me. I am firmly aware of the fact that gambling cannot lead to enrichment.

I can do that easily, I actually don’t play every day and when I’m on my vacation I usually don’t play too for about 20 days.

I try not to make an addiction of poker but I can't deny that I am really addicted to play CC freerolls everyday lol

I found this proposal interesting. This proposition even serves to identify various types of addictions and not just gambling. Just an observation, poker is not a game of chance, but a mental sport.