We All Start 'Just for Entertainment',,, But When Does It Become a Problem?

[Cantsay]

This has become a hot topic now in the gambling discussion board, and I am sure it is going to be an eye-opener for a lot of gamblers here.

So many people believe that the fact that their intent in gambling is to have fun, it means that there is an automatic shield that prevents them from getting addicted to gambling. They feel that only those who explicitly state that they are gambling for profit get addicted to gambling.

Recently, I heard someone say that they gamble every single day, but because they are gambling for fun, it means that they are automatically safe from addiction.

[EluguHcman]

Many people call gambling just a hobby. We say, "I just play for fun", "Nothing more than entertainment." Tbh, most people probably start like this.

But question is, "It's just a hobby",,, until when?

When is it no longer a hobby?

Even at the times it feels like we are partly gambling beyond our plans or affordability, trust me, the game will stiridiculous as hobby even when the resultance is like tons of alarming to ridicule the gambler.

Some still do find it fun even in an abnormal state of health or financial struggles, that is why even after realizing how much you are loosing, the urge to keep it up will always be there which also, the desperacy to keep sustainable in the long term had also led many of them to borrow funds just to continue.

Of course these kind or gamblers had made it a hobby. Of course gambling responsibly is a different scenario. Just in case of misinterpretation.

[Nwada001]

First, I’m not among those who started gambling with the hobby idea; I do it from the start for both, not just trying my luck if I can make money from it or just for entertainment purposes, so yeah, I know my limits, and I try to watch it.

Each time I notice I’m being too aggressive, I try to stop. I don’t convince myself it’s just small money and it’s something I can risk or pay for entertainment; there is a limit to it, and no matter the amount I’m spending. result could still trigger emotional reaction so once’s it’s getting to that point I take a break.

[savetheFORUM]

For me, it's probably when you make an excuse to yourself that once you recover what you've just lost, you will stop and you won't make the same mistake again. When that starts happening, one should understand that gambling is no longer a hobby but it is becoming a habit and habits often turn into addiction, and the initial stage of the addiction is the fact that you now care about the money you've lost, which shouldn't be the case if you are considering it a hobby because you don't look back when you spend money on something you just love doing or you do as a hobby, you don't want to recover the money, you just spend it and that's it, this is often done by gamers where they spend money on games but they do it because they love playing those games and they aren't doing that to make something out of it.

As long as you gamble with a budget that you don't care about losing, you just gamble to have some fun, and if you lose the money during that, you don't try to make another deposit to recover the money because you had already decided that it is your budget for your gambling activities, but if you have now started getting worried about the funds, and you only want to win and lose no money, and when you lose, you try to recover your losses instead of focusing on the experience, then you are sliding away, and this isn't a good sign because this is how addictions start.

[tvplus006]

...My question is, do we understand at what point we cross the line between hobby and addiction?

As a rule, we notice that gambling has ceased to be entertainment for us, but has become an addiction too late, when it is no longer possible to stop on our own. If you start to treat gambling not as entertainment, but only as an opportunity to make money, you turn into a gambling addict.

[Sanitough]

Gambling stops being a hobby and a good source of entertainment when you are already gambling with your greed for money, when you already start to believe that gambling won't be a real source of entertainment if you are not making money on the side. Hence, the more you see yourself shifting from this,  the easier for you to determine that you are now a gambling addict, not just a gambler trying to enjoy one's hobby.

And the bigger problem starts when gambling addiction becomes uncontrollable and losses have become unbearable. Because let's be realistic, there are gambling addicts who still managed to control theirselves, but those who have severe gambling addiction, they're the ones that needs immediate counseling  or rehabilitation.

[Mayor of ogba]

Gambling is a hobby when we gamble with what we can afford to lose, when we don't chase our losses, and when we know when to take a break, this will help us to stay in check and never open door for addiction. But when we start going beyond our budget, I think that's when it's no longer a hobby because as we are using the money we can't afford to lose to gamble, if we lose it we will be trigger to start chasing our losses in order for us to recover the money we lost, and by so doing we are gradually getting carried away, which will cause us to become gambling addicts if we don't refrain from such practice early.

[OgNasty]

I think gambling becomes a problem when you start missing things in your life because you are too busy gambling or you start failing to meet your financial responsibilities due to losses. Sure, those might seem extreme, but I’ve seen it quite a bit even in people in my own life so I’m sure it is quite commonplace.

[Furious 7]

There will be many people who say things like that but now this is just like a reason for justification moreover gambling still has a less good stigma in some areas so saying this as a hobby or as entertainment is the safest way that we can gamble and not considered a bad stigma because we are in gambling.

Because when we gamble the stigma of a bad gambler will always be attached especially when we feel addicted so than things like this are felt then from the beginning making claims about hobbies or entertainment will feel more reasonable because at least we will feel different treatment because it is felt to be able to refrain from addiction even though we gamble.

But actually for the problem of addiction whatever our purpose in gambling the risk will still be there so don't make any excuses because if you don't want to feel addicted then don't gamble. But if still gambling then we must be ready with addiction because all gamblers who do almost every day / every week then that's the category of gamblers (for me) although it may be different losses but those who have been gambling long enough and can not leave gambling should it can already be categorized as addicts.

[Maslate]

The thing with gambling is, it won't be a problem if its not creating issues on your part. Let's say, you are gambling with a huge amount just to experience the peak of gambling entertainment, now losing it despite how huge the amount is  never a problem since you are also earning a lot. So as long as you can still manage your losses and the emotions you pour into gambling, then gambling still serve its purpose for you.

However, once you break the rules in gambling, once you exceed on your limits, once you step forward and start taking leverage, that's when you can tell that gambling becomes a problem, that gambling becomes an additional burden in your finances.

[Texac]

and probably when you begin to cause looses which makes one open to more looses because someone can't recover what they have lost so long gambling is concerned so we should be specific on what we gamble for either for fun or profit making.

Hmm, this kind of mentality actually forces you to gamble more to cover your losse. How can we teach new gamblers that accepting losses is the greatest discipline!

after anyone defeats that urge of gambling irresponsibly, they can manage other part of their lives without being greedy

You know, irl many gambler think they have completely controlled their urge but after while they return to their previous habit. So the main thing is how to protect yourself in long run.

It would help a lot if we could notice these signs before they become extreme. Noticing the signs on time and taking a break might help. Some people feel like, because they have been gambling for a long time and have never gotten addicted, they feel they can't get addicted, but that is not true.

In fact, such overconfidence is what traps many. In my opinion even those who think they have complete control over themselve should take break from time to time.

For me, it's pretty simple. I have a fixed budget. I never go beyond it. My weekly limit is no more than $100. But most time it's around $50. Once that money is gone, I don't touch my card or deposit any more.

That's really good, but not everyone has the willpower you have, dude. Newbies set a budget first, but then go over it with emotional decision. In such case I think family accountability can also help, if you find them supportive.

[lombok]

The thing with gambling is, it won't be a problem if its not creating issues on your part. Let's say, you are gambling with a huge amount just to experience the peak of gambling entertainment, now losing it despite how huge the amount is  never a problem since you are also earning a lot. So as long as you can still manage your losses and the emotions you pour into gambling, then gambling still serve its purpose for you.

However, once you break the rules in gambling, once you exceed on your limits, once you step forward and start taking leverage, that's when you can tell that gambling becomes a problem, that gambling becomes an additional burden in your finances.

Being rich is not a good reason to squander your riches at the casino table. The realms of entertainment and destruction are an easy line to cross. When you lose control, big issues are set to follow, and destroy your finances. Stop this vice to live a tranquil life and not be in the family debt trap.

[alastantiger]

How possible is it for a person to have gambling as a hobby without becoming addicted to gambling? A hobby is an activity you enjoy doing. In my opinion, if anyone enjoys gambling, they will be most likely to spend any of their free time gambling. It is fine if they dedicate only their free time to gambling, as it is supposed to be.It will become a problem if they can no longer regulate when they gamble. If they gamble both during their free time and during their work or study time, and every other time they are not supposed to gamble, then they should watch themselves so it doesn't get out of hand.

Majority of gamblers who are addicted right now did not just start as it being a hobby or for entertainment, they all use that excuse but really that is not what they are gambling for. Many of them started gambling because they lacked money and they thought the quickest way to get money was to gamble and that is why they are in this problem right now. A perfect time to stop gambling is when you notice you no longer have control of your gambling behaviours. The behaviours involve you over gambling and using your work time as you have said for gambling but also it involves you overspending and this involves you making use of money meant for things that are important to you for pleasure and if this continues for a long time as a result it will make you to become financially dependant on people for survival.

We have many people in this condition currently but they will not accept it instead they will keep on denying the fact that they are not addicted to gambling but still thinking they are only gambling for entertainment which is not true. If they don't tell their self the truth then they will remain in this way for a long time but anyone that is willing to change can always do that before it becomes late to stop.

[Cantsay]

How possible is it for a person to have gambling as a hobby without becoming addicted to gambling? A hobby is an activity you enjoy doing. In my opinion, if anyone enjoys gambling, they will be most likely to spend any of their free time gambling. It is fine if they dedicate only their free time to gambling, as it is supposed to be.

It will become a problem if they can no longer regulate when they gamble. If they gamble both during their free time and during their work or study time, and every other time they are not supposed to gamble, then they should watch themselves so it doesn't get out of hand.

Even when they gamble only during their free time, gambling outside of their budget can also be a problem. So many things may indicate that there is a problem, and this will be different from person to person.

Someone told me that they gamble every single day and that they are not addicted to gambling. When I asked why, they claimed that they are not addicted because they take gambling as a thing of fun, so because they are not fixated on the whole profit that comes with gambling, they are not addicted to it. And I was confused when I read it, because from what I have seen, you actually don't need to make it obvious that the reason you are gambling is for profits before yo get addicted to it, just gambling consistently is enough to put you at the risk of getting into gambling addiction.

[Onyeeze]

Gambling can be a hobby to anyone who choices gambling to be it hobby, so there are people who also choose gambling for entertainment those people are different kind of people notice gambling in such a way, because of the way they understand the gambling that is why they choose gambling as a kind of entertainment, why other people chooses gambling as way of making money as source of income so that is based on the way they understood gambling that made them to choose gambling that made to choose gambling in such way, and the summary gambling is entertainment and it is because problem to The Gambler based on the target of the person into gambling so when you are converting your entertainment to your source of income it can make you to go against your budget and once you go against your budget you are no longer involving in gambling because of entertainment but converting it as a source of income

[Sonia_123]

Alot of gamblers were not properly guided and the love of money came to play, instead of playing for fun, money became the center of the game.

Cashing losses and wins became the game instead of accepting defeat, one keeps on chasing untill they become addict.

Gambling became a problem to gamblers when they refuse to manage their resource, setting in limits in bankroll and time which helps in managing your gambling activities..

[coin-investor]

My question is, do we understand at what point we cross the line between hobby and addiction?

Usually it starts with a change of mindset; it includes extending playing hours, adding more funds to the allocation, and seeking strategies on how to beat the casino.

Its not a hobby anymore when all the above are present, you showed to people that its still a hobby but deep inside you, you are trying to beat the house and recover your loses.

Mindset is everything, its where your focus and goal starts, so always kep track of your mindset if it changes from what you had when you started.

[Oasisman]

Many people call gambling just a hobby. We say, "I just play for fun", "Nothing more than entertainment." Tbh, most people probably start like this.

But question is, "It's just a hobby",,, until when?
When is it no longer a hobby?

Until when everything exceeds what is considered to be your normal "just for fun" gambling experience. Generally, the betting size, frequency (time and day), and emotional response. Regardless of how small or how huge you exceeded what's considered "normal" among the three I mentioned, that is when things about gambling become more than just a hobby or just for fun.

Do you still remember how you reacted when you had your first loss? Does it feel better now, just the same, or does it feel worse?
At first, most of us just had to say, "Oh, I'm unlucky, better luck next time," laugh it off, and call it a day.
If your emotional response changes, like you become very frustrated after a loss, it will almost immediately cause a chain effect on your betting size and frequency, and how much time you allocate to gambling on a daily and weekly basis. I believe these changes are enough to determine you're not gambling for fun anymore.

My question is not ''Am I addicted?''
My question is, do we understand at what point we cross the line between hobby and addiction?

Good question!
Well, most addicted gamblers probably don't know they are into it already. Most of them are in denial. Some knew but chose to ignore it, but certainly those who understand will be the first to call for help.

[Joy- maker]

My question is not ''Am I addicted?''

My question is, do we understand at what point we cross the line between hobby and addiction?

If you are the type who gambles occasionally for entertainment and always stick to a budge you may view gambling as a hobby. Gambling becomes problematic when you start chasing after your losses, borrow money to gamble or gamble even when it causes serious problems.  At that point what you once viewed as hobby has likely crossed into addiction and you need to tackle it immediately before it get worse.

[uneng]

Most people don't start gambling for entertainment. They start gambling because they identify it as a profitable activity which can potentially generate them a source of income. As consequence, they feel happy about this possibility, what is easily misunderstood as entertained.

People don't cross the line at some point, rather they already begin crossing the line, because they expect unrealistic goals from gambling. What comes on the sequence is just the consequence of their wrong views and concepts regards gambling.

Fact is that gambling as entertainment isn't for most people, because most people can't give themselves the luxury of gambling their money away for fun.