The Pitfalls of Gambling Addiction: Choice and Support
We all know how this story begins and how it ends. Gambling and addiction go like cheese and crackers. But why are we still talking about it after so long? Awareness campaigns have risen, people’s income has dropped, how is it that we find our actions to be in a never-ending cycle. It’s not a generational thing, gambling has been here since forever, but the fact that it is now so easily obtainable makes it a real issue for players that are on the precipice of reliability and the dependency on gambling and the 24/7 online casinos that can be accessed through our mobiles phone with great ease.
Gambling: The How and Why
Online casinos are big business, bigger than ever. In places like Canada, there has been a huge rise in numbers that have logged online to experience the thrills and entertainment that comes with the territory.
Sites like Casimoose, have seen record numbers pass through their service in search for the top Canadian casinos online. Editor-in-Chief Charlotte Fitzgerald tells us about the staggering impact the industry has had.
“The Canadian casino market boomed online back in 2016, this was because of law changes and loopholes forming. In Canada, gambling is prohibited unless the province is willing to license businesses and control the laws. Online, no business in Canada can form their own online casino. So, what happened is, foreign casinos came to the Canadian market, accepting the CA dollar and being able to payout in the same way. Our service is to provide licensed sites and exclusive bonuses from these platforms, and we saw record numbers between 2017 and 2018. It’s clear there was a demand and the supply really done well out of all this as Canada is now one of the biggest gambling markets in the world.”
How in Control Are You?
With the expansion of the market, with more games and more opportunities to win, how much are you in control of your willingness to gamble, do you have the self-management skills that are so desperately needed to maintain and enjoy the experience or will become a habit that leads to further problems?
Having an awareness of the facts is key to any player. Many new to the world of gambling will see an array of online casinos and opt for the one with the biggest welcome bonus. Not much thought is given to the process of gambling, many will take on games without knowing how to play them, this leads to wasted money, often on games with bad odds.
Knowledge is what helps players to survive in casinos and that knowledge begins right here.
Knowledge is Key to Personal Success
There is plenty to know about gambling that often evades player’s mindsets. An example of this would be that blackjack is technically the fairest game there is in the casino business. Not many players will know of this, but it is a stone-cold fact.
From this, we can safely deduce that players opting to play blackjack are far more successful than those opting to play American roulette, for example.
There are plenty of measures to be aware of and even knowing how casino games are constructed for online service will help you to understand what really controls wins and losses.
Slots, for example, use an algorithm that is the same online as it is for offline slot terminals. The algorithm works on a percentage basis of the money that is put into the machine. The more money going in, the more frequent the payouts will become. Therefore, it is better to play the newer games and those that are more appealing than opting for games gathering virtual dust and thinking that just because it’s old, no-one else will play it, therefore, it betters your chances of winning. Sorry, but they aren’t built like that, especially if you want to win yourself a sizeable profit.
Responsible Gambling Measures
To further help players gambling online, casinos must now make it clear that they offer supportive account tools to help curb problem gambling habits. Players can now opt to add self-exclusion and management services to their account that can help them to reduce the time they spend inside the casino and how much they can deposit their money to spend inside.
The responsible gambling measures are controlled by the player and managed by the casino. You can set deposit limits to amounts per day, week, or month. You can also set time limits to flag up warnings that will log you out once you have surpassed your allotted time.
You set the levels and you can remove them, however, in removing the responsible gambling tools, you must allow the casino up to 72 hours to fulfill your request.
In addition to this, casinos are now compelled to promote gambling addiction organizations and charities, just like the Canada Safety Council, one of many support groups open to players across Canada seeking counsel and support.
Know that if you take on the task of gambling online, that your success will count on luck and the knowledge of picking to play the right games at the right times. This part is the easy part, the obstacle of playing and not having to become dependent on it when you’re both winning and struggling financially is where the difficulty lies.
Keep it simple:
- Play in licensed casinos.
- Use casino management tools to reduce cost and time.
- Play games that have fair house edges and odds.
- Don’t put big winnings back into the same game that’s just paid out.
- Seek help when help is glaringly required, don’t remain silent.