When a Quick Thrill Becomes a Quiet Trap: The Student Cost of Gambling
There is a phenomenon surrounding gambling that is very common: the evolution from a quick thrill to a deep-seated addiction. It may begin as a fun bet due to curiosity, making a quick bet on a gambling app while waiting for class to begin, or a weekend bet to create a little more excitement out of an otherwise mundane football game. It felt innocent and, in the moment, you feel like you are just drowning out your stress and worries at the last minute deadlines or personal issues. For some students, that escape becomes a quiet trap that is very difficult to get out of as the gambling continues to get control over them.
The quick escape
There is often an invisible weight to university and college life, often difficult to escape from. Students have to balance their studies alongside part-time jobs and the expectations that come with social life and building a future. On top of all of that, many students have to deal with financial issues as well with tuition fees, rent, gas, and texts. As a result of all this, gambling is frequently viewed as not a big deal, as nothing more than a quick, easy way to escape for a bit.
For that reason, it totally makes sense that many students are engaging gambling as a coping mechanism. Most gambling sites are easy to use and simple to learn. You can almost immediately download betting apps in seconds. With the appealing ads, individuals are presented with a path to earn money quickly, in a manageable and low-risk way. Once in a while, a user may win a small bet – even if you only win a small bet, it constantly highlights the chance of winning big.
However, that danger is very real and has consequences.
The Process of Becoming Obsessed- Slowly.
No one gets addicted to gambling within a few hours. It happens step by step. A person starts gambling by placing bets here and there, then it becomes more frequent, and then it becomes impulsive. They might even be so addicted to gambling, that they wake up at the start of the day thinking about the previous game, spend hours of class plotting to place a bet, and lose sleep over late bets that leave them in the negative.
The more the gambling behavior is reinforced, the more that gambling starts to replace time that should be used for learning, socializing, and maintaining one’s health. Thoughts become assimilated into numbers and statistics, and begin to revolve around gambling. Especially when large losses are incurred. With every loss there feels like there is more at stake in one’s life, that then becomes motivation to make even higher bets.
These are the times when people become gambler’s in the first place. Mental exhaustion. The thrilling excitement one time present is now long gone and replaced with gambling that creates a negative stress that seeps into one’s everyday life.
The emotional toll; from self–confident to shame.
What is the worst part of gambling? The emotional and mental strain. The process of gambling causes continuous cycles of winning and losing, hope and disappointment; and all result in damage to self-esteem. A student begins to ask themselves:
It isn’t something I want to do.
But I can’t stop.
I keep doing it.
I feel out of control.
The shame is often ending conversation, and it is difficult to ask for help. A person who suffers from problematic gambling would be in that sense isolated and alone in their shame and loss of control of their behavior. It’s not unusual for individuals to be obfuscating their gambling behaviors to friends and partners in an attempt to avoid being judged, which further isolates them from those with whom they would typically reach out.
Confidence, built from achievements, relationships, and personal growth, is often put at risk over the uncertain result of a gamble. Students might think the emotional damage is worth it, but it is often worse than the financial damage, and keeping the stain of gambling to themselves.
Financial Fallout: The Hard Reality
Over time, the emotional impact of problem gambling pales in comparison to the financial repercussions, which make themselves known in the here and now. What starts as a few dollars here and a few dollars there can quickly snowball into the loss of hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars. Students often start borrowing money—first from friends and in small amounts, and then (re)crediting themselves and regretting their choices eons later.
Bills remain unpaid. Rent is overdue. Grocery money is gone.
What used to be thought of as gambling as a fun way to make some extra (real) money turns into the opposite: the reason money is flowing out of the.
The need for gambling and the pressure to “make it work” increase and if the individual losses do not align with the obsessive (and usually unachievable) goals, more money is lost. The cycle becomes more and more tight—it is the conceptual motivator with concrete financial losses which encourage even more gambling.
Academic and Social Consequences
As with additional areas of life, the impact of gambling on academics is detrimental.
Gambling students may stop attending classes, disengage from group activities that they used to be a part of, and in general, stop participating in anything that they used to enjoy. Cellphone and computer screens become the new entertainment. Unfinanced assignments become commonplace, and (as with the gaming) grades continue to plummet. The absence of grades, in this case, fails the emotional gap to be filled with some type of effort, and used the gambling and gaming problem to attain their control for the missing substance.
Social ties continue to decline as well. Changes in behavior—such as withdrawals, mood shifts, new excuses, or random financial problems—are noticed by friends. But because gambling is so secretive, others are unlikely to even understand. Some students choose to withdraw to minimize the risk of being questioned or evaluated and do so in the form of removing themselves from the social network or their most important support systems.
In the most severe cases, relationships are dissolved by the weight of secrets, unmanageable financial obligations, and broken trust.
Why Students Are Vulnerable
The student environment is a perfect storm for risky behaviour. Young adults are experiencing navigating independence for the first time. There are also decisions to be made without the structures that acted as guide throughout one’s adolescence. In addition to all that there is also pressure to perform academically and socially while also having to contend with the financial side of things. All of this is going on as the student is working through anxiety, loneliness or self-doubt.
Online gambling companies capitalise on this weakness. Their platforms are designed to be addictive as they reward rapid engagement with a constant stream of ‘bonuses’ and create the illusion of losing streaks that seem temporary.
Addressing Problem Gambling
The initial step in taking your life back from a gambling problem is recognizing there is a problem. This may be the most significant step because it often involves some emotional commitment to the fact that gambling has impacted your mood and your relationships.
Seeking help is not a sign of weakness; rather it suggests you are thinking about and ready to talk about the situation; talking to a counselor, therapist or a trusted friend helps to offload some of shame and secrecy associated with gambling. Many, if not most, schools offer some form of mental health and/or financial counseling; this can be a helpful starting point for finding support and possibly even help with some aspect of counseling for either mental health or financial health or both; making your own decisions such as deleting gambling apps, blocking gambling websites, and or limiting available cash can also give some sense of control back into a person’s life. Recovery is often going to have its ups and downs but will give support to help someone obtain some level of confidence, some structure to daily life, and develop and practice healthier coping skills.
Ways to Treat Gambling Problems as Students
1. Understand Gambling as an Activity with High-Risk
As a student, it can be easy for you to think that gambling is simply “fun,” but knowing the reality of risk allows you to stay in control. You should know that:
The odds are probably always against you
Small bets can gradually turn into bigger habits
Stress and pressure to have money make gambling even more inviting
Awareness is protection.
2. Keep Gambling Apps and Sites Away from You
Access or accessibility is the largest issue and trigger for students. To protect yourself from gambling, you should:
Delete apps related to gambling
Disable ads or push notifications
Use a blocker for the websites (e.g. ColdTurkey or StayFocusd)
If something is less easy to access, especially when in a stressed mind state, you will be less likely to engage blindly in gambling.
3. Create Other Healthier Ways to Cope with Stress
Many students indicated they turn to gambling as a way of distracting themselves from stress like:
Exams
Assignments
Relationship issues
Finances
On the other hand, build self-care and positive habits that include, among many things:
Engaging in exercise or at least, walking
Being part of a working group or working situation
Having a conversation or seek advice from a good friend
Practice mindfulness or behavioral mindfulness of breathing
Play music and write in a journal Good self-care and coping strategies minimize gambling your “escape button.”
4. Develop a realistic ongoing budget and stick to it
Students with limited funds are more susceptible to “quick money” approaches.
To protect yourself:
Track your expenses every week.
Allocate your funds to bills, grocery expenses, and essentials.
Avoid using your credit cards for non-essentials, and even better, don’t use them at all.
Keep some sort of emergency savings no matter how small.
When you have a plan for your money, you will be less likely to gamble out of desperation.
5. While you need to be mindful of gambling, avoid gambling when you are in an emotional state -stressed, upset, bored, or lonely- it does not enable you to make a clear or positive decision.
If you notice you are in an emotional state:
Take a break
Exercise
Call someone
Do something relaxing
Avoid betting to take your mind away from things or “to feel better.” This is how you start in an addiction.
6. Stay Busy With Activities That are Good For You
Student gambling is often triggered by boredom.
To stay out of tempting situations activities like sports, volunteer work, extracurricular activities, keeping a part time job, and even doing things like arts and crafts will keep your mind busy.
If your life is full of activities, the temptation of gambling will be less.
7. Look For Early Warning Signs
If you are doing any of these things, you should really stop.
If you find yourself keeping thoughts about betting secret, gambling during class, or betting even more after a loss.
Gambling is becoming more serious if you find yourself feeling guilty, spending really important money like what you need for food or rent, or hiding your gambling.
A Thrill is Never Worth What You Lose
A quick thrill is never worth losing all your money and even more important, your peace of mind. Gambling can become a real problem and take away your confidence as well as your thoughts and leave you feeling burnt out. Money is not the only important thing to keep.
But students are not powerless. Understanding, support, and open discussion can prevent gambling barriers and the gambling spiral from becoming steeper. No one has to do everything by themselves, and no one has to be stuck owing to what seemed out of control, but was under control.
The excitement is temporary. Your health is not.
