Depression, Anxiety and Gambling
by Jerry "Jet" Whittaker
February
28, 2006
Dog races, card games,
slot machines, dice, sporting events, lotteries,
Internet gaming, bingo, the stock market... the list is
endless. Gambling has increasingly enveloped our society
and is widely endorsed as a fun and exciting form of
entertainment. But some people have to bear serious
social, financial, interpersonal, and emotional costs
because of gambling and it can even lead to significant
health problems.
Characteristics
associated with Gamblers:
The American Psychiatric
Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV)
has characterized gambling consisting of five or more of
the following behaviors:
-
Preoccupied with gambling
-
Spending huge amounts of money
on gambling in order to achieve desired excitement
-
Repeatedly trying to control,
cut back, or stop gambling
-
Restlessness and irritability
in response to cutting down attempts to gamble
-
Gambling to escape problems and
feelings of helplessness, guilt, anxiety, or
depression
-
Returning to gambling after
losing money (chasing losses)
-
Lying to others to conceal the
extent of gambling
-
Committing acts of forgery,
fraud, theft, to finance gambling
-
Depending on others for money
to relieve serious financial problems caused by
gambling
Many compulsive gamblers
suffer from addictive disorders such as alcohol and
substance abuse and mood disorders such as
depression
and anxiety.
Diagnosing the problems
of Anxiety and Depression:
Diagnostic instruments
used to identify gamblers are the South Oaks Gambling
Screen (SOGS, 1978) and the American Psychiatric
Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual
(DSM-III-R, 1987 and DSM-IV, 1994). DSM-IV characterizes
it as a disorder of impulse control and a chronic and
progressive failure to resist impulses to gamble and
gambling behavior. These are accompanied by features
such as mood disorders, stress related medical
conditions and personality disorders.
Depression and Anxiety
among Gamblers:
Many problem gamblers list
stress, anxiety and depression as major symptoms of
their gambling behavior. These symptoms are associated
with feelings of despair, dread and worthlessness.
Problem gamblers may be suffering from stress and
anxiety, which is often related to some kind of
financial crisis. They could be heavily in debt, or have
no money to live by.
Depression, anxiety and
associated symptoms are most likely to be related to the
problem gambler's history of losses, lies, secrets, and
broken promises. For the individual these symptoms may
be a possible connection with financial pressures and
perhaps a history of excessive gambling. It may be
difficult for the patient to disclose this kind of
information which is a far more common scenario than is
generally recognized.
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