Compulsive Gamblers - Essay Example

Specific Purpose: To inform the Audience about compulsive Gamblers. Central Idea: Compulsive Gamblers are a major problem for many states. I am going to inform the audience about why this became a social issue. Introduction What has fallen over me? Why can’t I stop it? What do I have to do? Solely, I was closed in wonder. I had committed financial frauds and placed all in the chase of my long-lost gambling loss. I had tried a number of times to stop the behavior but in vain and still remained restless.

Moreover, I had disclosed the extent of my behavior neither to my family nor friends even having committed financial frauds on them thus losing the sense of social and financial responsibility. This was until when I decided to see a doctor. “You are diagnosed with pathological gambling well known as compulsive gambling.” The doctor said. I got shocked beyond words. And that was the beginning of my recovery process. Transition: Let’s define gambling. Body So, what is compulsive gambling?

According to the American Psychiatric Association (APA) as of 1980 has referred compulsive gambling is a clinical disorder based on control. King et al, 2010, define it as an uncontrollable urge for gambling. Well for me, I would just call it a curse, an addiction, or else a norm or custom that I was stuck into. Psychologists refer to it as being similar to substance addiction but psychiatrists refer to it as an impulse control disorder rather than a gambling addiction. According to research done by the APA, six out of seven compulsive gamblers are men.

In addition, men were found to be prone to the disorder in their early ages as opposed to females who get prone to it in their later ages. Transition: Let’s look at who is actually a compulsive gambler. Who is a compulsive gambler and what are the symptoms? King et al, 2010 (pg 266) describe a compulsive gambler as one who exhibits the following symptoms and characteristics. A compulsive gambler is always pissed off by the gambling losses and therefore he is always in the run to recover them.

Secondly, a compulsive at times acquire a sense of control but his efforts to stop gambling always fall go vain, and this time of the sense, they are always prone to restlessness and irritability without the exemption of the environment. In addition, I myself used to be emotional such that I got angry quickly, fell into depression and stress often, and had poor problem-solving schemes. Like any compulsive gambler, I used to commit financial crimes in order to fund my gambling behavior. The financial crimes were like stealing where I could steal any financial item any ion cash or in-kind where I would later transform it into a gambling item.

I would embezzle funds of which I was entrusted on being either at home or at work. I used to forge financial instruments and perhaps even committed fraudulent transactions to obtain funds. According to an APA’s research, sixty-five percent of compulsive gamblers commit such financial crimes. Being an example, I tried a number of times to substitute gambling for other beneficial activities but the little I got often landed in gambling. Eventually, I came to realize that I had lost faith and trust in God as I was earlier a staunch believer and fell to believe in fate, luck, and chance.

Transition: Let’s explore the effects of compulsive gambling. What are the effects of compulsive gambling? According to Lancelot, 2007 (pg 24-26, 73-74 & 202-203) gamblers often neglect their family and other relationships related responsibilities. Consequently, time becomes a constraint concurrently leading to conflicts at work and at home. In addition, such gamblers become drug addicts and finally contemplate suicide due to financial-related stress. Transition: Let’s look at the facts and statistics of compulsive gambling.

According to an APA research done in the United States, two million adults are compulsive gamblers. In addition, only two states in the USA have no legalized form of gambling. This is mostly among the young people i.e. 42 percent of 14-year-olds, 49 percent of 15-year-olds, 63 percent of 16-year-olds, and 76 percent of 18-year-olds. In comparison to the USA, UK has a greater percentage in internet gambling as opposed to other forms having seventy-five percent of the gamblers being compulsive gamblers.

Additionally, internet gambling has proved to be the most compulsive gamblers site among the developed countries. In relation to family issues, the average rate of divorce for gamblers is nearly double that of nongamblers. On suicide matters, the suicide rate for pathological gamblers is twenty times higher than for non-gamblers. As I conclude, let me leave with some food for thought. Due to the legalization of casinos, lotteries, and online gambling sites, can we say that the government is to carry a share of the pathological gambling blame?