Welcome to Lottery Addicts Anonymous
You don’t need me to tell that dealing with an addiction can be a bitch. You have that voice in the back of your head urging you to partake in something you shouldn’t be doing. That voice makes it difficult to ignore. Heaven forbid you come face to face with temptation… You’re a goner.
For alcoholics and drug addicts, their dependence usually is a physical dependence. Your body goes through a withdrawal and you just feel like crap. With gambling and lottery addiction, it may not lead to a physical dependency (imagine whenever someone has a quarter in their hand, they get the shakes unless they can do a scratch off), but it can lead to some serious conditions. You could wind up in jail, financially ruined, mentally unstable, and even death. Just like other addictions, gambling addiction doesn’t discriminate. Anyone can become addicted to gambling. And like most addictions, it is incredibly difficult to quit it cold turkey. There are ways to prevent yourself from going over the deep end and ruining your life.
1. Decide when enough is enough
One of the very first steps in any recovery program is to know when you have a problem and admit that you need help. Wake up one morning and before you even get out of bed, tell yourself that you do not need to pick up a lottery ticket. It’ll be hard, of course, but just take it one day at a time.
2. Pick up a new hobby
If you’re someone who has a propensity for scratch offs and you spend a lot of time on them, try finding another activity to take up the time. These new activities will help take your mind off of the need to pay the scratch off games, or any other gambling type activity. If you like to go to bingo and that is your game of choice, go to a movie instead. If scratch offs are your thing, do a crossword puzzle.
3. Remember: Losing Sucks
Everyone hates to lose. The next time you want to go and purchase a lotto ticket, remember how much money you spend and how disappointed you feel when your winning numbers don’t come up. Use that as motivation to prevent you from purchasing more tickets.
4. Knowledge is power
Read anything you can able gambling and lottery addictions. There are self-help books, seminars, webinars, and regular books. You can even join websites and communities so that you can meet and hear other people’s experiences with gambling addiction. The more you know about the problem and the more you learn from other people, the better equipped you will be when it comes to your own addiction.
5. Talk to someone
Talking to someone who specializes in addictions can be a great help—especially if they know a lot about gambling and lottery addictions. This person can help you understand how serious your condition is or could get if it isn’t bad already. The counselor will help you determine why you want to gamble and be that support for when you cave.
Gambling and Lottery addiction is a serious addiction, just like any other addiction. It can ruin lives if it goes unchecked. Please, if you know anyone who has an addiction to the lottery or gambling, urge them to seek help. They may be resistant to it now, but in the long run, they will thank you.
