Gambling harm is about more than just losing money. It is any negative consequence, caused or made worse by gambling.
These negative effects could damage the health or wellbeing of an individual, their family or community. Gambling harm isn’t experienced by all individuals in the same manner. For some people, gambling harm is minimal and they might not even notice it. But for others, it can escalate and have a significant impact.
Preventing gambling harm starts by recognising it.
Help is available. Visit our Gambling Help pages to learn about the various supports available.
Personal stories of gambling harm
It can be hard to talk about gambling harm. When you start to talk, you can start to feel better.
Markus Fischer talked about the harm he was experiencing. That was his first step to getting the support he needed to start his recovery.
Mental Illness Education ACT (MIEACT) can help you learn more about gambling harm through lived experience stories.
Learn about the signs of gambling harm, reducing and assessing your risk and more, below.
Signs of gambling harm include:
- Spending more time or money gambling than you wanted
- Having less money than you should
- Having regrets or feeling guilty after gambling
- Losing focus at work or social events
- Trying to win back your losses
- Spending less time with people you care about
- Hiding how much you gamble from friends and family
- Gambling after the fun stops
If you’re gambling but not having a good time, you could be ignoring the first signs of gambling harm. Recognition is the first step towards avoiding gambling harm.
Help is available. Visit our Gambling Help pages to learn about the various supports available.
In addition to knowing the signs of gambling harms, there are actions you can take to reduce your risk when gambling.
1. Set limits
- Make gambling only one of a range of activities and interest
- Decide how long you will spend gambling
- Use a watch or set an alarm on your phone to remind you to stop
- Set a limit on how much money you will spend gambling and stick to your budget
- Think of your gambling budget as purely entertainment money, not as an investment to win
- Never borrow money to gamble
- Take regular breaks as stepping away can clear your head
- Limit alcohol intake whilst gambling to keep control
- If gambling online, turnoff smartphone notifications and prompts
2. Plan ahead
- If you are going out, only take a set amount of money with you and leave cards at home
- Tell trusted others about the time and money limits you’ve set
- If gambling online, always read the terms and conditions before signing up
- Manage your online gambling accounts and transactions
- Opt for a locally licenced Australian bookmaker
- If you are going out, arrange for someone to pick you up
3. Be self-aware
- Be honest with yourself and others about how much you gamble and why you gamble
- Start a gambling diary to help develop self-awareness of when you gamble and how much you lose
- 'Assess your risk' of gambling harm (see next section)
- Be informed about the odds of winning and how gambling affects the brain (see final sections below)
- Find out about the harms posed by various gambling products
If you think it’s time to get some extra help, visit our Gambling Help pages to learn about the various supports available.
If you gamble more than $40 a week, you have a higher risk of harm. Use the gambling calculator to find out how much gambling is costing you.
This self-assessment tool is another way you can find out how at risk you are from problem gambling. Assessing your behaviour now can help you make informed decisions about what to do next.
When you gamble, do you know what your chances of winning really are? Getting to know the odds of winning can really help put your chances into perspective.
The bottom line is, no matter what type of gambling you do, you should always expect to lose. The goal of gambling operators is to make money. The odds are stacked against you and the ‘game’ is always set up so that the ‘house’ wins.
For example, did you know that there is a greater chance of being struck by lightning than winning the jackpot on a poker machine?
For more information on the odds of winning visit Gambling Help Online.
We thank Gambling Help Online for information incorporated into the above section.
When we have a gambling win, the brain releases a feel-good chemical called dopamine.
But when we gamble often, our brain gets used to the dopamine, which makes that winning feeling difficult to achieve. Consequently, we may have to gamble more and more to feel the same level of pleasure.
Some gambling products, like pokies and roulette, make us feel like we’re winning, even when we’re not. This encourages us to keep gambling to try to recapture that winning feeling. Find out more about the features of various gambling products that keep people spending and the harms they pose on our Gambling Products and Harm page.
The brain constantly changes as we learn, creating associations and establishing patterns. This means it is never too late for us to change our brain. Visit our Gambling Help pages to learn about the various supports available.
To find out more about how gambling affects the brain, visit the Victorian Gambler's Help website.
We thank the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation for information incorporated into this section.