Is Online Poker Addictive?

[Vorem]

Poker can easily make a person addicted, especially players who do not seek to improve their poker skills, and play poker like in slot machines, in roulette. I often meet people on the Internet publicly, asking for one cent per game, no matter how much they have in their account in the room, they will still lose this money

 

[ritchimagine]

I have played poker a little bit and I enjoy it. I play near the top 10% but I need to improve my game to the top 2% to cashin on freerolls. Are there any suggestions?

 

[TeUnit]

I think it could be addictive to some, but really think it depends on the person.

 

[tagece]

I think the article is very correct.

Poker, online or not, has a bad fame. The common image of the game for those who never play it, is a bunch of people smoking, drinking and losing their houses at the tables.
In fact, I think most of players are just looking for fun.
There are addicted of course, some for gambling, some for the game itself. They have the kind of personality that tends to addiction.
I saw people addicted to poker as I saw for Candy Crush, Dota or Counter Strike. They love the challenge, the opportunity to prove themselves.
And I always see gamblers who are addicted to risk money and lose the rent money or even spending all their salary in one night. For these people, the game they play doesn't matter in fact. It could be slot machines, sports bets, or any kind of thing that promises a chance of big winnings.
Poker rooms have games for these players. spin and go's, hyper knockout, aleatory prizes, all the kind of things addicted in gambling loves. I try to avoid those.

 

[makisaa]

No I do not have addiction to online poker or generally to poker. I just play systematically. I think that addiction can occure when the player has not understood the maths of the game and generally how it behaves to you. It has ups and downs. Another factor is luck, and like the greek pholosophy says, the most ulucky person is the one who can not tolerate his bad luck!

 

[Clowntown]

Online poker can abolutely be addicting especially when you're winning or losing a lot of money. When you win a lot you want to keep winning and play more and when you lose a lot you tend to want to win it back. This is why bankroll management and self-control are so important for poker players to have.

 

[MIljanho]

Its addictive for sure like live gambling. And i think its easier to become an addict online than live.

 

[Nikka18]

Yea I am addicted to it. I'm being honest. Sometimes my partner gets a little angry because of it lol.
But I've learnt time management. So I'm a little Bette at it now

 

[Jooseme]

I think all forms of poker are highly addictive because everyone has a chance to win and usually does. Once a person gets a taste they think they can ride that wave, but this is how most people go broke. It's a sick game

 

[timberwolf94]

Of course it is. Lol just look at the people on the sites

 

[guccipix]

Well I’ve been extremely depressed for a while now and online poker has sort of been a distraction. A great solution for me to stop playing online would be if I had a latge enough bankroll to start playing live only, for the same reasons you stated: so when I’m not playing I can focus on other things. Getting to play in the Cardschat freerolls would be a really great help.

 

[JOKE on YOU]

I think anything you love is addictive

My next door neighbor spend thousands on his street racing car., is he addicted?

 

[CRStals]

This is a serious topic that needs to be looked at several ways in my opinion.

I don't personally believe I'm addicted - while I might talk and think a lot about poker, I do not put poker ahead of family time in the early evenings or on weekends (which means I miss a lot of the bonus CC events), I don't play every night but more like 2-4 times a week, I have no actual money invested to play (I withdrew all my deposits last year when I cashed a few bigger tournaments) and I cut my losses when I lose.

However, I feel that poker, especially online, is one of the most dangerous sources of addiction for people. Why?
- Gambling addiction is not widely considered for poker in my opinion mainly because you hear of so many grinders that it's considered a thing to grind long sessions, which may in fact be an addiction
- Online poker is faceless & easy to sneak money into a site if you know how to
- Poker is am easy game to learn, but a very theoretical game to play well that in turn can lead to playing emotionally.
- Online poker doesn't offer the same limits that can be applied in brick and mortar casinos through self regulation.

It's important to set limits and stick to them like glue, but because it's the online, faceless, fake ID world, it's easy to blend in, blur those limits and play out of your means to develop that obsession & addiction.

 

[cubons]

Definitely, we are in some way addicted to poker game. I used to play poker with friends every single day! At this point, I realized that I`m getting addicted and I love that excietment what poker brings to me.
Every profesional poker player can tell you that you need to control your game and your bankroll.
Patience is a key
I think addiction is not a bad thing if you control yourself

 

[Mare10]

everithing is addictiv but we must found as lucky in some "addictive" and be dependence in addictiv

 

[Ero2407]

I think that it depends of the person, if he has the willpower, he will not addicted on poker not on alcohol, but if he does not have this quality, then he can be addicted on anything

 

[kraemer]

gambling can sure turn into an addiction and therefor poker comes with this risk...

It is always good to watch out for problematic patterns in your own play, like the infamous „I will win back those chips from you“ mindset...

Everybody who makes poker his hobby should educate himself about gambling addiction and how to spot and prevent it...

The easiest way to keep yourself out of trouble is good bankroll management as it will stop you from making typical addict moves like switching to higher stakes for loss recovery....

 

[sergik1992]

Thank you for great article! After reading this one I opened some new details of my biography (where I got desire to play poker) So when I was a child illnesses hunted me and I had a lot of free time without school. Fortunately my father was able to spend it with me. Very often we played chess and I think exactly then I got desire to play and to win.
To my mind I am addicted to poker. But I am also addicted to my family, friends, CC <3
Last time poker became more than just a hobby in my life, but I hope, that I 'm not a gambler)

 

[sergik1992]

I think anything you love is addictive

I completely agree with your point!

 

[No1eJoker]

I think we're all a little bit addictive , I've been spending more time playing poker in the last 7-8 months, and sometimes I got negative critics from my friends.. But I'm playing more poker as hobbies than I did not go too far like some gamblers and risk big amounts money...

 

[Helloween]

The topic is really very serious. I am not threatened by poker addiction. And I do not give much time to the game ... However, I'm familiar with people who lost a lot of money in on-line casinos. So I know how hard it is to get rid of the game addiction. So remember, poker is primarily a game. So poker, as well as other pleasures in life need to be received in limited quantities.

 

[Poker Orifice]

The topic is really very serious. I am not threatened by poker addiction. And I do not give much time to the game ... However, I'm familiar with people who lost a lot of money in on-line casinos. So I know how hard it is to get rid of the game addiction. So remember, poker is primarily a game. So poker, as well as other pleasures in life need to be received in limited quantities.

I'm not disagreeing with your comment regarding whether or not an addiction to online poker can be very serious but I am disagreeing with 'losing a lot of money' as being any kind of measuring stick to whether or not it is a problem or not (problem as in 'addiction'). A person can just as easily be winning money regularly & steadily with online poker and still be very much addicted.

There is also different things that different individuals might be come addicted to regarding online poker. Some could become addicted towards the gambling & money aspect, others simply the game & wanting to become better at it. Some will just enjoy the escape which could potentially become addicting.

My answer to the intial posted question by OP is >>> "It depends"

 

[Vuske111]

Yes i think its very addictive,every game where you can win a lot of money is addictive but you need to contoll youself and not go to far,im trying to play less now because there was a time when i would just play all day and do nothing else

 

[gocho2009]

I commented that from my own experience I can say that for me it was addictive, neglect my wife and children, my family circle realized this, the only one who did not realize it was me, I refused to accept it !, my illness came to so much that I lost a lot of money, but what was really painful for me was losing my family, my wife asked me for a divorce. After that I went to a rehabilitation center to treat my problem, I was there for about a year. I can say that it exceeds my addiction, now I only play for fun and no more than two games a day. That's why I can say that online poker can become addictive

 

[Paya_31]

Hi, how are you?, for my linia poker is addictive and more when there's money involved. Also when you first start playing, what I do is set schedules to play, try to not enough time, but there costs corresponding to not affect your personal life. It depends on each. regards