![\"all](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Why_Gamblers_Get_High_image_2.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nPractically all addictions, whether it be smoking, drinking, drugs, sex, food<\/a>, or gambling release high levels of dopamine and serotonin. What these drugs or behaviors do, activate different parts of a person\u2019s neural circuitry, connected to the reward system in the brain. So when you eat a piece of chocolate for example, your brain releases endorphins that tell your body \u201cthis is really nice, we need more of that\u201d, and before you know it you\u2019ve devoured an entire bar. When in fact, it\u2019s not your body specifically requiring that chocolate, it\u2019s just making you think you need it because of the hormones, the chemical reactions it releases, and the familiar feelings of pleasure it gave you at the time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s the same with heroin \u2013 because the effects are immediate and intense, it\u2019s incredibly easy to want more. But as your body grows accustomed to the drug, you begin building a tolerance to it as it becomes harder for your brain to produce the same levels of dopamine as it did when you first tried it. That\u2019s why many users will always say \u201cnothing ever compares to that first high\u201d. That being said, someone who tries a drug once, or gambles for the first time, doesn\u2019t necessarily become addicted instantly. There is a fine line between experimenting and getting hooked on something. This varies from person to person, as some individuals are more susceptible to developing an addiction than others. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s not just the effects on the brain that cause someone to develop a habit either. Countless research has been conducted to reveal that lifestyle, environmental and social factors all play a part in these cycles too. That\u2019s why an ex-alcoholic who hasn\u2019t touched a bottle in 10 years, may then visit an old pub they used to drink in and end up in a complete inebriated mess later. The familiarity and association of places, people, and objects can have a direct influence on a person\u2019s neurotransmitters, which in turn, can affect their perception and willpower. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In gambling, it\u2019s easy to think you\u2019re going to win, simply because your brain is familiar with the motion and experiences of when you may have won in the past. But that doesn\u2019t necessarily mean it\u2019s guaranteed to happen again. And people chase after the belief that it will. That will make them feel exactly like they did the first time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For problem gamblers, their addiction is usually down to an\ninner emotional conflict they have with themselves. They are desperate to feel\nthat ecstatic full-body sensation you get when you win, in order to counteract\ntheir feelings of worthlessness, self-hatred, rejection, loss, or whatever\ndestructive emotions are weighing them down in their lives. So when it comes to\nwinning, especially BIG wins, it serves as the ideal way to cover up such\nnegativity and help them forget \u2013 even if it\u2019s only for a moment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In many cases, this is fine. Because as humans, we\u2019re often encouraged to blow off steam in ways that we enjoy. But the actual \u2018problem\u2019 is knowing when to stop. Or when too much of a good thing can easily turn into something bad. When gamblers continue to lose, this fuels their need to cover up these negative emotions even more, when really all it is doing is digging them into a deeper hole and not doing anything to help them resolve their internal conflict. If these people were not able to gamble, they would simply find other ways to try and make themselves feel whole instead; whether this be through substance abuse, unhealthy relationships or other forms of addiction. <\/p>\n\n\n\n One theory goes that gamblers are just as addicted to losing\nas they are winning, according to one researcher at the Clinical Neuroscience\nInstitute of The University of Cambridge. Using an MRI scan to assess the\ndifferent parts of the human brain which are active when gambling, they\ndiscovered that when the person nearly loses, the same parts of the brain react\nin the same way they would work if they had won. This is because when a player\nfinds him or herself close to winning a game, i.e. (seeing two cherries or a\ngold bar on a slot machine) they are subconsciously encouraged to continue even\nwhen they haven\u2019t achieved the desired result. This is also because they feel\nthey are inching closer to a win in the rounds that follow. Near losses, still\nmean there is hope and potential to win, so that fact alone is enough to keep\npeople playing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Another interesting theory, is that gambling addictions actually derive from the act of betting, and not whether the person wins or loses. As casinos are designed in a way to entice people to play. It could be through lavish d\u00e9cor or a warm, cozy, and stylish environment, enthralling sounds and dazzling lights, or even how machines and games pay these little rewards. Free games, bonus rounds and discounts \u2013 these are all part of the experience. And they’re there to keep you playing for as long as possible. Even when you\u2019re on a losing streak! It\u2019s very clever marketing when you think about it. But not everyone who walks into a casino is able to appreciate these things as they are, or recognize when it\u2019s time to call it a day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n According to a behavioral psychologist from the Nottingham Trent\nUniversity, all of the things a casino flaunts at players are just extra\nincentives for a person\u2019s habit. They conducted a survey of 5,500 gamblers to\nestablish what the act of gambling meant to them and their motivations to do\nit. The strongest response was \u201cto win big\u201d followed by \u201cit\u2019s fun\u201d and \u201cbecause\nit\u2019s exciting\u201d. These sound like perfectly logical reasons on the surface, but\nessentially what\u2019s happening is people are just \u201cbuying entertainment\u201d when\nthey walk into a casino or gaming floor. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n “People seem to be satisfied with relatively small wins,\nand will tolerate even smaller losses,” one of the co-authors of the case\nstudy Sridhar Narayanan said at the time. “They tend to be conscious that,\nin the long run, they are more likely to lose than win.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n So, if players are conscious of the fact that they could\neasily lose, why do they keep playing? Because in a warped kind of way, their\nexpectations go down when they lose or have lost a few times, so that when they\nfinally do win \u2013 they are much happier and satisfied with the outcome. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It is estimated that every year, around 23 million Americans face financial debt just from gambling alone. And the average loss is estimated at approximately $55,000 per player. Many will result to stealing from friends or family, maxing out credit cards, savings accounts, college funding, etc. just to pay off these debts, and most of the time they aren\u2019t actually paying them off. Instead, they are gambling even more in the hope of recovering what they have lost in one big win. Naturally, this is a flawed methodology and very rarely works. What the person should do is seek professional help for combatting their addiction<\/a> and start the road to rehabilitation by taking the following steps.\u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\nEnvironmental factors<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Addiction usually stems from something deeper<\/h2>\n\n\n
![\"don't](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Why_Gamblers_Get_High_image_3-1.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nGamblers still get high from losing<\/h2>\n\n\n
![\"gambling](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Why_Gamblers_Get_High_image_4.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nThe act of placing a bet can be the addiction in itself<\/h2>\n\n\n
![\"gamblers](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Why_Gamblers_Get_High_image_5.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nFeeding the gambling habit<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Overcoming a gambling addiction<\/h2>\n\n\n
![\"gamblers](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Why_Gamblers_Get_High_image_6.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nMake the choice<\/h3>\n\n\n\n