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What are some characteristics of a person who is a
compulsive gambler?
- Inability and unwillingness to accept reality.
Hence the escape into the dream world of gambling.
- Emotional insecurity.
A compulsive gambler finds he or she is emotionally
comfortable only when "in action". It is not uncommon to hear a
Gamblers Anonymous member say: "The only time I felt like I
belonged was when I was gambling. Then I felt secure and
comfortable. No great demands were made upon me. I knew I
was destroying myself, yet at the same time, I had a certain
sense of security."
- Immaturity.
A desire to have all the good things in life without any great effort
on their part seems the common character pattern of problem
gamblers. Many Gamblers Anonymous members accept the
fact that they were unwilling to grow up. Subconsciously they felt
they could avoid mature responsibility by wagering on the spin
of a wheel or the turn of a card, and so the struggle to escape
responsibility finally became a subsconscious obsession.
Also, a compulsive gambler seems to have a strong inner urge
to be a "big shot" and needs to have a feeling of being all
powerful. The compulsive gambler is willing to do anything
(often of an anti-social nature) to maintain the image he or she
wants others to see.
Then too, there is a theory that compulsive gamblers
subconsciously want to lose to punish themselves. There is
much evidence to support this theory.
Return to
Frequently Asked Questions about compulsive gambling
and Gamblers Anonymous.
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