Pathological gambling

Alternative Names

Gambling - compulsive; Compulsive gambling; Addictive gambling

Symptoms

People with pathological gambling often feel ashamed and try to avoid letting others know of their problem. The American Psychiatric Association defines pathological gambling as having 5 or more of the following symptoms:

• Spending a lot of time thinking about gambling, such as past experiences or ways to get more money with which to gamble
• Needing to gamble larger amounts of money in order to feel excitement
• Having had many unsuccessful attempts to cut back or quit gambling
• Feeling restless or irritable when trying to cut back or quit gambling
• Gambling to escape problems or feelings of sadness or anxiety
• Gambling larger amounts of money to try to make back previous losses
• Lying about the amount of time or money spent gambling
• Committing crimes to get money to gamble
• Losing a job, relationship, or educational or career opportunity due to gambling
• Needing to borrow money to get by due to gambling losses

Exams and Tests

A psychiatric evaluation and history can be used to diagnose pathological gambling. Screening tools such as the Gamblers Anonymous 20 Questions can help with the diagnosis.

References