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[Lili]

ARE DEPRESSION AND PROBLEM GAMBLING RELATED?
By Mary Lou Costanzo, LCSW, NCGC

To answer the above question correctly we probably need to break it down a little: Do people gamble too much because they are depressed, or does gambling too much cause depression? But we also need to ask other questions, the most important of which are: "What is depression anyway?" and "How is depression different from just feeling sad or down?"

Let's start with the last question first. Depression, as I discuss here, is different from feeling sad or down in several important ways. One way is duration. Other differences between sadness and depression relate to everyday activities, like eating and sleeping. Everyone has hours, days, sometimes even weeks of feeling low or "not right." Something bad happens, and the mood shifts to this state. But it goes away. It does not last long, and it does not result in a change in the person's overall functioning. With passing sadness, work or school still gets handled, sleep remains undisturbed, and eating is stable.

If this state continues, though, or if it worsens over time, it can evolve into a state of clinical depression. Years ago, when I was first starting out as a clinical social worker, someone suggested a pneumonic to help remember the signs and symptoms of depression: SIG E. CAPS. Pretend this is a name and go from there:

S = Has sleep been disturbed—trouble getting to sleep/staying asleep or waking very early (the most common sleep disturbance of depression)?
I = Has there been a change in initiative or has the person lost interest in usual activities? G = Has there been excessive guilt over actions or events?
E = Has the person lost all or most energy?
C = Has concentration been difficult?
A = Has there been an appetite change, either increased or decreased?
P = Has the person had more physical complaints than usual, such as headaches? S = Has the person thought about or acted on suicide ideas?

Now that we have criteria to differentiate between a "normal" feeling of sadness and clinical depression, we can move on to the original question. Is depression related to problem gambling? The answer is that it is, both as cause and effect.

A person suffering with undiagnosed depression will do almost anything to feel better. Depression is often left untreated by the sufferer, who may be afraid of psychiatry and/or medication. Unfortunately, this lack of professional treatment can result in self-medication. When compared with the anti-depressants available on the market, self-medication is not nearly as effective and is sometimes addicting. So self-medicating with gambling may help you feel better, but once you stop, the symptoms return. This scenario illustrates depression as a cause of problem gambling.


Likewise, any behavior that is addictive and/or self-destructive can result in symptoms of depression. It is clear from research into depression in the past 20 years that the brain changes are the same whether someone has a "predisposition" (i.e. inherited inclination) to depression, or whether something happens in a person's life that causes upset. The chemicals are not in balance, and symptoms occur. So, if gambling too much gets you into financial, legal, or other trouble, causing emotional upset, you can become clinically depressed. In such a case, depression is the effect of problem gambling.


Either way, there is treatment. The new categories of medications are safe, non-addicting and incredibly effective and have literally been a lifesaver for many. They are not to be feared! And psychotherapy, in combination with medication, has been shown to be the most effective treatment for symptoms of clinical depression.

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[Lili]

This is worth a read if you've got the time-- interesting bit of research here! Following is a brief synopsis from the Executive Summary.

"Recent legislative changes in the state of Victoria have resulted in a rapid expansion of electronic gaming activity in venues which, from all reports, are highly accessible to the community. The venues are also noted as holding some features which make them particularly accessible to women. There has also been prominent, often sensationalised, media attention to
the negative impacts on families of the phenomenon of women’s problem gambling. This material frequently depicts a stereotypical profile of women
who experience problems with gambling.

A review of the relevant literature reveals that there is very limited research into the reasons why women gamble. In particular, it is only recently that some pioneering Australian research has been conducted in
Victoria, focusing on the gambling behaviour of women. The existing research suggests that issues relating to gender and cultural background may be pertinent to the meanings associated with gambling in general, and, in particular, with the motivation underlying a decision to ‘go’ gambling."

http://www.problemgambling.vic.go...cuments/dhs_pg_playingfortime.pdf

[Lili]

_________________
All Strength in Surrender

[Lili]

19 September 2006
By ANNA CHALMERS

Women using gambling helpline services in New Zealand outnumber men and top worldwide figures, according to a survey.


New Zealand showed the largest female skew of gamblers – 58 percent of Kiwi users – in the survey of 22 international gambling helplines.New Zealand Gambling Helpline chief executive Krista Ferguson said the agency's high rate of women clients was likely because of poker machines.

Women appeared more attracted to pokies, which were not as prevalent in other countries, and less masculine than traditional forms of gambling such as sports betting, she said.

"(The machines) offer the ability to numb yourself – get away from the daily stress and go into a trance-like state." Britain and Sweden reported more than 80 percent of helpline users were men. Ms Ferguson said the countries had virtually no poker machines and gambling was largely related to sports.

Research last year found that women had risen to more than half of problem gamblers in New Zealand from about 20 percent a decade ago. Gambling researcher Max Abbott said the group with the worst incidence of pathological gambling were those aged 25 to 35, and increasingly women.

Internal Affairs is seeking a week-long shut down of a Dunedin casino, which allowed a mother-of-two to gamble $6.6 million. She lost a net $400,000 over three years.

Mrs Ferguson said the Health Minister needed to consider the growing rates of women gamblers as part of its review into gambling services, which was receiving submissions till the end of this month.

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_________________
All Strength in Surrender