Poker addiction. Gambling: poker addiction. Gambling Addiction

Popularity poker(especially the variant called "Texas Hold'em") is growing exponentially and more and more people are getting involved in the game. Experts have no doubts that poker owes this avalanche-like popularity to the invention of poker rooms - special sites that allow you to play this game over the Internet with other similar players from all over the world. Many wives have genuine anxiety when one day they find their husband sitting at the computer and playing cards on the Internet. He, of course, says that this is just entertainment, but we know that dependent people do not admit their addictions even to themselves, let alone to those around them. How dangerous is this gambling really?

Well, let's start with the fact that poker- sports game. Each poker room is a huge community of poker fans who fight each other for money within set by the game rules. That is, a person does not play against the casino, but exclusively against other players. The poker room itself exists by charging a small commission on each win at each table. This means that poker is not the same as, say, roulette, where the probability of winning is always less than the probability of losing. Don't compare poker with slot machine, and with all other games of chance, in which only the casino always wins.

It is not obvious at first glance, but only momentary victories or defeat largely depends on luck. In the long run, skill alone determines whether a player wins or loses, and by how much. The very concept of "distance" in poker is enshrined in a professional dictionary. By the way, there are many professional poker players: Doyle Brunson, Daniel Negreanu, Eric Lindgren, Annie Duke. These are not some cheaters who have aces pouring out of their sleeves, but people who have earned themselves whole fortunes with their own brains and skills.

And skills poker requires a lot: here is the ability to think analytically, which helps to determine the strategic situation at the table, and the psychological skills needed to understand whether the opponent is bluffing or not, the ability to count cards, and good memory, which allows you to keep in it a lot of previous distributions, moves and combinations.

Of course, it is unlikely that your husband, recently decided to play poker, has all these skills developed at a sufficient level. But this is not necessary. Even as a beginner, you can play a small plus. So your husband's new hobby can also be a source of a little extra income. Of course, it is quite possible that he will lose. But, if he loses small money, then it's not scary. Should he, after all, have some kind of territory and money for personal entertainment? But, believe me, in our country there are a lot of people who use the game of poker as a combination enjoy your holiday with the benefit of making money for yourself and your family.

Another thing is if a person develops gambling addiction . This, of course, happens, but you should not immediately blame poker or the casino for everything. A predisposed person may develop an addiction to both the game of checkers and computer games- from anything. But poker itself is a mathematical and psychological game rather than gambling.

Signs that can identify gambling addiction, quite simple
1. The husband begins to devote more and more time to the game every week.
2. He becomes withdrawn, he is no longer interested in things that previously occupied him. He stopped going fishing, does not watch his favorite series, spends all weekends just playing.
3. Irritability appears. Any attempt to talk to him about the game infuriates him, and the accusation of gambling addiction even infuriates him.
4. He starts spending more and more money, making more and more deposits in poker rooms. Instead of blaming itself, the site blames its failures, but at the same time continues to invest money, not noticing its own inconsistency.
5. He starts having problems at work, the man stops communicating with his family.

Of course, a person with addiction It's always a misfortune for the family. It doesn’t matter what exactly this addiction is from: alcohol, poker, or anything else. Treatment is supposed to be standard, as for any other addiction: intervention, a serious conversation, the help of professionals.

If your husband there are no signs of addiction, but you are worried that they may appear, if he continues to play, then just talk to him. Explain your concern to your man. He will most likely understand you. Agree with him that he will not get carried away and play more than a certain time limit, for example. And will not lose more than a predetermined amount of money. Even professionals set such rules for themselves, and modern poker rooms have special features that allow you to set such restrictions for yourself.

Making sure that poker game does not pose a threat to the mental health of your lover, you will stop being jealous of a pair of card ladies. Better support him. In poker, self-confidence plays an important role. Express your sincere conviction that your man is the smartest, and you can safely assume that you have made your female contribution to his future success.

At poker and many other pluses: it develops the mind, for example. And you don’t have to think about what to give your husband for the holiday! Cigars if he smokes, some nice cowboy hat, artistic deck of cards, other poker paraphernalia. Well, in the best case, poker can even be an excuse to take the whole family on a trip to one of the many tournaments that are held today on a large scale around the world.

Dependence gambling went through a lot of people after the closure law came out gambling establishments and casinos, but now with the advent of the Internet, you can again see how the field of games for real money is developing.

It is quite legal to play poker on the Internet, despite the fact that in our country such activity is prohibited. The fact is that the "cunning" owners of online gaming portals register their company in another country, thereby legally engaging in activities.

I would like to say separately about the popular gambling game - poker, which in recent times given great attention.

Gambling Addiction

The gaming business is really developing, and this is due to the fact that gamblers simply cannot stop and continue to hope for good luck to “cut the dough”.

It is accompanied by many negative aspects, which in combination can adversely affect a person’s life. The main problem is permanent deposits Money, which tend to end.

Some people do not even think about what they will eat tomorrow, and how they will pay off loans, trying to win at least some money. Naturally, such people fail quite often, and this is due to the fact that they are driven by excitement.

It is excitement that pushes them to risky bets and does not allow them to correctly assess the current situation, “clouding” the brain. If poker is used solely for making money, the player must take into account many different subtleties, make deliberate decisions and, as necessary, refuse to take big risks.

If you look at addiction from poker on the other hand, it can even be a positive factor in the development of the player's performance.

If you learn control your emotions and being a moderately gambler, you can organize a system of earnings, accompanied by the personal interests of the player.

Many people fail to motivate themselves to be active by trying to stimulate their activity. different ways. Gambling people have an excellent tool for stimulating activity - this is excitement, and if you direct it on the right path, you can achieve success.

It is interesting to watch young players obsessed with the dream of breaking into a narrow circle of poker players who earn tens and hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. The outside world has instilled false ideals and images in such guys and girls. Gaming sites instill in the mind the idea that you need to look successful, drive an expensive car, have a house on a secluded piece of ocean coastline. And that all this can be obtained by playing card games.

Poker addiction as gambling addiction

In Western scientific studies on the problem of poker addiction (for example, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5387767/), factors such as boredom, depression, stress, inner anxiety, irrational beliefs increase the risk of a poker player becoming seriously addicted.

In Australia, in recent years, the problem of poker machines has been growing, in which Australians lose a total of billions of dollars annually. In this country, 20 percent of the world's number of such machines is concentrated. Representatives of the Australian organization for the reform of the gambling industry estimate that about 400 people in Australia annually commit suicide due to problems caused by gambling. How many of these suicides are related specifically to poker is difficult to calculate.

In a 2014 French study (Eroukmanoff V., Costes J.-M., Tovar M.-L. (2014). Les joueurs de poker, une population présentant un profil particulier? Paris: Observatoire des jeux) it was suggested that The proportion of problem players (with a high degree of addiction) in online poker is higher than in other gambling games. Approximately 20-25% of all online players have problems with the game, and 14% of them suffer from excessive addiction.

Also, do not forget that the availability of this game thanks to the Internet increases the chances of "getting sick" with poker. No need to “steam”, go somewhere, make an appointment. It is enough to turn on the computer, open an online poker room - and start earning money (that is, losing life).

The example of successful players is a dangerous example for amateurs

Poker player Phil Ivey

Top players who have won millions of dollars in their careers, by their example, encourage ordinary players to devote too much time to the game.

Phil Ivey, Viktor Blom, Ivan Demidov are some of the the best players in the world. But they have unique abilities, incredible intuition to be able to beat everyone else. Are you sure that you are the chosen one? Also, do not forget that these geniuses may have psychological problems that they can successfully hide. So, Viktor Blom, a young Swedish professional, could lose several million dollars in one day - a clear sign of loss of control over himself.

Gambling video bloggers as an example of gambling addicted players

Poker vlogger

Look at least at YouTube poker players who, not being afraid of publicity, sometimes reveal indecent details of the poker game to a wide audience.

Hundreds of thousands of dollars annually - the approximate earnings of top poker players in online poker.

Most poker bloggers are constantly nervous and annoyed when they play. They are enraged by lovers who “move” them. They are enraged by the money that floats out from under their noses. They are already infuriated by the fact that they sit for hours in front of a computer monitor and burn their lives. Just. Wasted.

Years and decades wasted for the purpose of "working for yourself" and "being financially independent."

This is poker addiction, which is part of a larger gambling addiction. And gambling addiction is part of a person’s involvement in samsara, in vanity of vanities and illusion.

Contacting a specialist as a way to solve a problem

If you don't have the strength to deal with game problem- you need to see a psychotherapist. Do not spare money and time and, together with your doctor, develop a plan for a phased release from a bad habit.

Game addiction is an addiction to money, to gambling, to the fear of being a loser, to worrying about the opinions of others. The opinions of others must be accepted and taken into account, but putting the point of view of other people above the goals of your soul is wrong.

Playing online poker is a vivid image of a thoughtless waste of time on an empty activity. The player collects combinations of cards and tries to beat the other player using mathematical odds and bluff. And take his money. What could be stranger?

Until 2009, I had little experience with gambling. However, that changed one night in 2009 when I was invited to home games in Texas Hold'em. I had no idea what was going to happen, but I was sad when I walked out of the $20 poorer game. Despite such a small loss, my interest in poker only grew stronger.

In mid-2009, I was invited to my stepbrother's birthday party in Las Vegas. Before that, I decided to read a couple of books on Texas Hold'em, since I had very little experience (a couple more meetings with friends after the one described). Not wanting to look like an ass (the term for a bad poker player), I decided to gain experience online. I didn't know then that there was poker addiction.

While you are playing online poker with play money, you are wasting time because people play there in a completely different way than they play for real money. This highlights the main reason I love poker - psychology plays a big part in it. Poker is a game of incomplete information and players make educated guesses about what will happen next and what is in their opponents' hands.

After a month or two of regular play in online poker it's time to go to Vegas. I was the only person in our group who was interested in poker, but I spent the first day at the blackjack tables. I didn't have much luck with blackjack, but I found the game pretty fun. The next night I decided to leave my group and went for poker tables one.

The first sit-and-go tournament (single table) I played pretty smoothly until I busted early. The second tournament gave me an experience that I will never forget. I got some good hands and every decision I made seemed right to me. Gradually, the players left the table until we were left alone with one guy. At this stage, I was incredibly excited, because even if I didn't win, I was guaranteed to receive the second place payout. After a few hands, I got A-Q offsuit, which is considered a strong heads-up hand. The opponent apparently also had good hand, and we went all-in preflop. When he showed his cards, I sighed; he had A-K offsuit, which means he dominated, and my chances of winning were only 24%. Luckily I caught a queen on the flop and that was enough to win the hand. My opponent got a bad beat, but I didn't care because I won in Vegas for the first time!

I originally started playing online poker to prepare for Vegas, but after returning home, it was hard for me to forget about it. Almost every night when the kids went to bed, I played for 1-2 hours. While I was pleased with myself, I began to realize that the game had negative consequences:

1. It annoyed my wife (not without reason they say that "a happy wife, a happy life").

2. It distracted me from more important things (like blogging)

3. In the beginning, I played when the children went to bed, but later I began to play in the evening and began to move away from the children. My eldest son Xavier (at that time he was 2.5 years old) especially felt the fact that I had ceased to control my emotions.

4. When I played late at night, I was more tired the next day and my productivity at work dropped.

Of course, I was aware of these consequences for a while, but still it was difficult for me to quit the game and admit poker addiction. Ultimately, on one of those nights, I saw that my balance hadn't changed at all, meaning I hadn't won or lost money playing poker in the previous months. I realized that I have nothing to show for all those nights when I skated online for months. A little later, I cashed out my money (they sent me a check in the mail) and then deleted the software from my computer.

Thoughts on Online Poker

The biggest win happened in Las Vegas, and later online poker created a mild addiction that began to have a bad effect on my life. So what do I think about gambling and online poker in particular? Below are some of my thoughts:

1. Online poker can be interesting and exciting

It is human nature to strive for vivid emotions associated with some risks. The feeling of anticipation contributes to the adrenaline rush, which is sought after by many people who want fun and entertainment. In addition, gambling offers a distraction from everyday life.

2. Online poker can be addictive

Many people lose control of themselves by gambling and gain poker addiction. In this case, the players start any way to spend as much time as possible in the game.

3. Online poker can cost you a lot of money

Some players, having lost a large amount, begin to spend more and more money in the hope of recouping in the near future. Often this can lead to going into debt in an attempt to recoup lost money.

4. Online poker may give you false hope

In 2003, Chris Moneymaker won world series poker. This win revolutionized poker as he became the first champion to win via a satellite on an online site. His success has been repeated by several players such as Peter Eastgate (2008) and Joe Cada (2009) who won the World Series of Poker after learning online.

This clearly shows that some people are able to make good money and even get rich from gambling. However, such people are a minority (just think, these millions must come from somewhere). It follows that the hope of getting rich playing poker remains elusive for most people.

5. Online poker can affect important things in life

The other day I was talking to a colleague who plays online poker. He noted that many of his friends no longer play online poker. "Why?" I asked. "I think they just have more important things to do," he replied.

"Exactly" - I thought.

Given that poker can be interesting and fun, it's okay to play it from time to time. But this is not an activity that energizes (in fact, after a couple of hours of playing, I feel some kind of emptiness). The game has no lasting value (unless you're winning big, but... see the "false hopes" section). Instead, I could devote my time to an interesting project and create something that will remain after me. Make something amazing, something epic!

Peter Clemens