Gambling unlike many other addictions has an additional problem of there not being a ‘physical limit’. For Alcohol & drugs if you have too much you’ll be sick and/or pass out at best, maybe hospital...with gambling there is no physical limit & unlike alcohol & drugs your mind... https://twitter.com/stevencaulker44/status/1335617045585649666

craving for gambling is never satisfied, there’s always another bet you can have, there’s no mental or physical limit.

I’m lucky to have never had a ‘serious problem’ but have seen many times where punters have punched, kicked, shook the FOBTs, shouting abuse at jockeys/horses

sometimes even the betting shop staff when they lose.

I know I can win 4 or 5 bets but still have ‘one more’ as my luck is in, or if I’ve had 4 or 5 losses (especially if they’ve been placed) I’ll have ‘one more’ to chase my losses. That’s not my rational part of the brain

Even on here we see some pretty disgusting tweets “hope it dies”, “cheating ****s” etc... sometimes it’ll say a lot about the individual but I have little doubt sometimes it’ll be symptomatic of a problem gambler (not exclusively & they are extreme examples)

I think bookies/casinos can help too. Stats for the roulette wheel, last numbers/colours out/low/middle/high numbers are all massively misleading. It’s based purely on probability, the previous number(s) has no influence on the next number

For an industry that pushes the ‘responsible gambling’ message to supply information that blatantly misleads the gambler into making ill-informed decisions is shocking

Virtual racing being placed within sports betting is also a hugely dangerous tactic used by the bookies

I feel a little hypocritical spouting about problem gambling when I regularly talk about racing & gambling but in the same way I might have a few beers with friends, if my friends were drunk, being a nuisance, putting themselves/others in danger I’d intervene & have a word

Racing is a beautiful sport, gambling can be a fun, enjoyable activity there’s no doubt. Let’s try and look out for one another though. If you have concerns about friends ask them if they’re ok, let them know you’re concerned & that there’s nothing to be ashamed of

I hope @Adam_WoodGS doesn’t mind me pointing you in his direction as someone who has suffered (to some extent suffers with) problem gambling & has some fantastic information, thoughts & experience on this