Gambling addiction and problem gambling

In 2013, the American Psychiatric Association reclassified gambling disorder as a behavioural addiction in the DSM-5. The World Health Organization followed in the ICD-11, naming three diagnostic features: impaired control over gambling, gambling taking priority over other life activities, and continued gambling despite negative consequences.

In day-to-day language, problem gambling refers to gambling that disrupts life. Gambling addiction refers to the full clinical picture set out in the DSM-5 and ICD-11.

We don’t use ‘addict’ or ‘compulsive gambler’ on this site. Research shows that stigmatising labels create shame and a fear of being judged, which makes people less likely to seek help.

Most people who gamble never develop a problem. Research suggests around 5 per cent develop gambling-related problems of some kind. According to the UK government’s gambling-related harms evidence review, 0.5 per cent of the population in England meets the threshold for problem gambling, with a further 3.8 per cent classified as gambling at elevated risk. In percentage terms, they may seem small, but that adds up to a lot of people.

Globally, gambling is a large and growing industry. Industry analysts forecast worldwide gambling revenue will reach 700 billion US dollars by 2028, much of that growth driven by smartphone access in lower and middle-income countries.

• Spending more and more time thinking about gambling, planning the next session, or replaying the last one.
• Chasing losses by gambling more to try to win back what was lost.
• Increasing the amount staked to feel the same level of excitement, a pattern clinicians call tolerance.
• Trying to cut back or stop, without success.
• Hiding the gambling, or lying about how much time or money it involves.

• Borrowing money without a clear reason, or asking for loans from several people.
• Selling possessions to fund gambling.
• Missing bills, withdrawing savings, or quietly running down accounts.

• Mood that rises and falls with gambling outcomes.
• Irritability or restlessness when trying to stop.
• Withdrawing from people, or becoming evasive about how time is spent.

From the outside, the most reliable signals are obvious money issues, and uncharacteristic behaviour. You may notice a shared bank account has less money than it should, or find a story about what someone did last weekend hard to believe. These aren’t proof, but they’re reasonable grounds to start a careful conversation.

Several treatments have good evidence behind them for gambling addiction. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) carries the strongest evidence base. It works by identifying the patterns that keep gambling going, like visiting the casino when you’re stressed, or the belief a win is just around the corner.

12 Step Facilitation is part of every treatment programme at our residential clinics. Gamblers Anonymous follows the same fellowship model as Alcoholics Anonymous, and affiliation with a fellowship after treatment is one of the more reliable predictors of long-term recovery.

Group therapy and family therapy both play important roles. Group work allows people to recognise their own experience in others, which is often the moment shame begins to ease. Family therapy supports rebuilding trust on both sides.

Medication has a role for some people. A clinical review in Current Treatment Options in Psychiatry suggests naltrexone where gambling co-exists with a substance use disorder, and SSRIs with mood or anxiety problems. Any decision on medication is made by a clinician who knows your case.

A 2025 study in Frontiers in Psychology of more than 200 people through a specialist gambling clinic found significant improvements in coping, depression, anxiety and gambling-related consequences after structured multidisciplinary treatment. It takes time, but there’s solid evidence that it produces meaningful change.

If gambling has started to feel out of step with the life you want, the most useful thing to do is keep your first steps small enough to actually take.

• Tell someone, whether it’s your partner, friend, sibling, or GP. Saying it out loud takes some of the weight out of it.
• Register with GAMSTOP. This free, confidential national self-exclusion service blocks you from all UK-licensed online gambling sites for six months, one year, or five years.
• Use the Multi-Operator Self-Exclusion Scheme (MOSES) if you gamble in physical venues. It works across betting shops, casinos, bingo halls and arcades in Britain.
• Install a blocking app such as Gamban on your phone. Without easy access, urges are harder to act on.
• Speak to your GP, or call us. An assessment commits you to nothing other than the conversation.

Recovery from gambling addiction is best understood as an ongoing process. Behavioural addictions are particularly demanding in this respect because the triggers never fully disappear. Money and phones are part of daily life, and gambling advertising appears everywhere. Sustainable recovery is less about avoiding the world and more about building a different relationship with it.

Aftercare is built into every Castle Health programme as standard. Longer-term engagement leads to better outcomes than residential treatment alone. That means step-down therapy and continued contact with our team after discharge.

Gambling addiction is just as serious as substance addiction, and we provide the same level of care. Treatment is residential in most cases, led by a multidisciplinary clinical team specialising in addiction. Where there are co-occurring conditions, we treat them at the same time. Castle Health provides gambling addiction rehab at Castle Craig in Scotland and Smarmore Castle in Ireland, with outpatient and online support across the UK and Europe. Admission can be arranged within 48 hours, and a residential stay usually lasts four to twelve weeks. Continuing care is part of every programme.

To read about how we treat gambling addiction in detail, see our gambling addiction treatment page. To speak to our team in confidence, call us. To learn more about who we are, find out more about Castle Health.

Men are currently around three to four times more likely than women to meet criteria for problem gambling, though rates among women have been rising as online gambling has grown. Patterns of gambling also differ between the two.

Yes. Gambling addiction is defined by the pattern of behaviour, not by the size of the losses. People can meet diagnostic criteria for gambling disorder without having reached financial crisis.

Online gambling is designed to keep you betting through 24-hour availability and push notifications. Gaming machines in physical bookies and casinos have the same designs, and carry similar risks.

For some people, yes. No medication is currently licensed specifically for gambling addiction in the UK, but naltrexone and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors can be useful in particular clinical situations, especially where co-occurring conditions are present.

They share underlying mechanisms. The same variable-reward patterns and dopamine pathways are involved in crypto trading addiction, gaming disorder, and other compulsive online behaviours. What sets gambling addiction apart clinically is its formal recognition in the DSM-5 and ICD-11 and the more developed evidence base for treatment.