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Are you a compulsive gambler? Test yourself

How do you know if you are a compulsive gambler? Do you believe that if you just keep on gambling long enough the great prize will come to you one fine day? Are you more preoccupied with gambling than your family and friends find reasonable? And have they told you this over and over again?

It is very easy to test yourself to see whether you are addicted to gambling or not. Symptoms of compulsive gambling are the same for all and therefore easily recognisable. Below is a short test with ten questions that will give you the answer to whether or not you are a compulsive gambler.

Gambling addiction research has shown that if you can answer yes to four of the following ten questions, there is a likely to be an issue and therefore good reason to stop gambling and seek gambling addiction counselling.

Test yourself now:

• Are you strongly preoccupied with gambling, for example, are you distant when you are gambling or thinking of it?
• Do you have the need to raise the stakes in order to attain excitement?
• Do you become restless and annoyed when you have to leave the game?
• Do you gamble in order to leave the struggles of daily life?
• Do you return to the place of gambling in order to win back what you have previously lost?
• Do you lie to your family and friends in order to hide your participation in gambling?
• Have you committed crimes like cheque fraud, theft or embezzlement?
• Have you lost or jeopardized friendships, job or education due to gambling?
• Have you left your financial troubles for others, either family or institutions, to deal with – financial troubles you only landed in because of your gambling?
• Have you repeatedly tried to control your passion for gambling, or even tried to stop gambling, but without luck?

Source: The Danish Centre for Gambling Addiction

Help is available and treatment is available for the progressive illness of gambling addiction that works.

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