Warning Signs of Online Poker Addiction
online poker addicts may not be aware of the huge dents they are making in their savings. Where they once played for real dollars, they now see only “credits” in a browser window. An addict can spend hours on end at the keyboard, losing track of time and forgetting to sleep or eat. Loved ones are ignored in the process. Nothing seems to matter but the game.
But online poker addiction does not happen overnight—one day fine, the next day dependent. It is a process that takes over a susceptible player gradually, almost imperceptibly, until certain signals emerge to announce trouble ahead. Interest is turning into obsession. Others begin to notice changes, such as the following.
• Unable to differentiate between money used for gambling and used for living.
• Inability to take a day or a weekend away from online poker rooms.
• Borrowing money from friends, relatives or financial institutions to play poker.
• Lying to family about amounts of time spent online and money lost playing poker.
• Loss of job interest and instead thinking about game strategies at the workplace.
• Mood swings characterized by sullenness, short temper, anxiety and/or depression.
Observing one or more of these symptoms, in one’s self or in someone close, should trigger concern. It could be time for an intervention. The situation may warrant immediate action to stop a growing compulsion from becoming full blown addiction.
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