I'm Rob and I'm in recovery from a gambling addiction. It's been over 630 days since I placed my last bet and I create content aimed at helping other people avoid making the same mistakes with their life that I made with mine.
What Are The 20 Questions of gambling addiction About?
The 20 questions of gambling addiction are the questions that are used by 12-step support groups like Gamblers Anonymous when a new member comes into the room to help them recognize whether or not they are in the right spot.
They are not the same diagnostic criteria used by the DSM-V to diagnose a gambling disorder, but they are incredibly practical and in my opinion if you are answering yes to even just a few questions on the list, there's a good chance your gambling is a problem.
What are the 20 questions?
1. Did you ever lose time from work or school due to gambling?
2. Has gambling ever made your home life unhappy?
3. Did gambling affect your reputation?
4. Have you ever felt remorse after gambling?
5. Did you ever gamble to get money with which to pay debts or otherwise solve financial difficulties?
6. Did gambling cause a decrease in your ambition or efficiency?
7. After losing did you feel you must return as soon as possible and win back your losses?
8. After a win did you have a strong urge to return and win more?
9. Did you often gamble until your last dollar was gone?
10. Did you ever borrow to finance your gambling?
11. Have you ever sold anything to finance gambling?
12. Were you reluctant to use "gambling money" for normal expenditures?
13. Did gambling make you careless of the welfare of yourself or your family?
14. Did you ever gamble longer than you had planned?
15. Have you ever gambled to escape worry or trouble?
16. Have you ever committed, or considered committing, an illegal act to finance gambling? 17. Did gambling cause you to have difficulty in sleeping?
18. Do arguments, disappointments or frustrations create within you an urge to gamble?
19. Did you ever have an urge to celebrate any good fortune by a few hours of gambling?
20. Have you ever considered self destruction or suicide as a result of your gambling?
What To Do If You Answer Yes To 7 or more Of Them?
If you answer more than 7 of these questions with a yes, it's an obvious sign that you have a gambling problem of some nature.
My four steps to getting and staying clean from a gambling addiction are
Finding alternatives for your time that mean something to you
Limiting your access to money so you can't use it when tempted
Limiting your access to gambling with self-exclusions
Going to support group meetings to build community and accountability
It won't all get better in one day but if you are actively pursuing a better life and aspiring to it each day, you will eventually get to where you desire to go.
If this content was interesting to you, then you should check out some of my recent videos at https://youtube.com/@rob_odaat
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