Gambling addiction can be physically, financially, and emotionally devastating to the life of a person and to the people around him. However, it can be prevented at its earliest stages without facing much dire consequences. A good way of determining at once if a person has this illness is by checking if he displays most of the symptoms of gambling addiction.

First of all, a person may be addicted to gambling if he is excessively preoccupied with the said act. For instance, he may be suffering from this illness if he is worried and preoccupied about previous gambling experiences, preparations and plans for the subsequent venture, or ways to acquire cash to gamble.

Second, this kind of addiction is also visible through the tolerance of an individual to gamble. An addict is driven to gamble using escalating sums of money so that he can attain the desired rush and excitement.

The third symptom involves the effects of withdrawal from the act. An addict becomes restless and bad-tempered when he tries to stop or even cut down on gambling.

Fourth, an addict normally chases his losses. He often returns immediately with the intent to win again after losing a lot of money. This is one standard pattern of behavior displayed by pathological gamblers.

Fifth, an individual who has a dependency on gambling has put an important relationship at risk. Owing to gambling, he has endangered or lost an important relationship or a major opportunity related to his education or career.

Lastly, a person may in fact be addicted to gambling if he has committed unlawful acts such as theft, fraud, forgery, or embezzlement just to have cash to gamble.