Responsible Gambling Guide in India
People gamble for money and entertainment. The thrill that gambling brings makes it all the more entertaining. However, with emotions gets in the way while playing, it is easy to lose track, and the last thing you realize, you are spending more than what supposed to. In this article, we are going to focus on responsible gambling.
We firmly believed that too much of anything could do more harm than good. Therefore, India Casino Info Team created this guide to ensure that you will observe responsible gambling at all times.
What is responsible gambling?
Responsible gambling is all about taking caution when gambling, be it online or in traditional brick-and-mortar casinos. It is all about not letting your emotion affects your playing style. A responsible gambler ensures that the following are observed at all times:
- Stick to the budget set aside for gambling.
- Play only during free time or abide by the allotted playing time.
- Play for entertainment and not risking big money with the hope of winning big.
- Don’t let emotion get in the way.
- Seeing gambling as a hobby, something that is a source of fun and entertainment.
Spotting a responsible online casino in India
One important thing to keep in mind when playing at online casinos is that not all of them are equal. Play only in casinos that have a good, responsible gambling profile. Look at the gambling license. Of all gambling licenses, the Malta Gaming Authority has the strictest requirements. Check if the casino site has a dedicated page for responsible gambling.
Why casinos have a different focus on a safe play?
The level of responsible gambling varies from one casino to another, and it has something to do with two main things – gambling license and business decision. Of all gambling licenses, Malta Gaming Authority is the strictest, followed by Curacao, Antigua and Barbuda, and Gibraltar.
Problem Gambling
If your gambling habit negatively affects even just one aspect of life, it becomes problematic. Your urge to gamble gets out of hand – to the point that it affects your finances, your quality time with another task, and your ability to perform day-to-day activities. Uncontrolled gambling behavior often results in losing more than what you can afford. It’s a concern that needs immediate attention because its effect are almost the same as substance addiction.
Gambling addiction – a disease that needs attention
Gambling addiction targets the brain. It creates a pleasurable sensation that leads to dopamine release, a neurotransmitter that makes you feel good. The brain is programmed in a way that will make you feel happy every time you gamble until you didn’t realize what’s the difference between responsible and problem gambling.
Problem gambling manifests through the following:
- Preoccupied with gambling to the point that you are no longer productive with work and other things.
- The need to gamble more to achieve a certain level of thrill.
- You can no longer control the urge to gamble. At the back of your mind, you want to stop but can’t seem to do so.
- You start to exhibit withdrawal symptoms. You are not well when you are not playing. You find yourself anxious, lonely, and in distress.
- You use gambling to escape, especially if you are not feeling okay, such as anxious or in a bad mood.
- You use gambling as a way of rewarding yourself, especially when you achieve a particular milestone in life.
- You gamble to chase losses.
- You tend to hide your gambling habit from family and friends to the point that you create stories to cover up your gambling habit.
- You are willing to commit crimes to have funds for your gambling habit.
Self-assessment Check
Gambling isn’t black and white. It depends on how responsible of a gambler you are. The self-assessment check is created to help assess your gambling spectrum. There are questions you need to rate yourself from 0 to 10. Below are sample self-assessment check questions:
- Do you gamble longer than you intend to?
- Do other people notice you spend too much time gambling?
- Do you sometimes lose track of time when gambling?
- Do you devote your time to gambling when in fact, you need to do something else?
- Do you spend more money on gambling than you have planned initially?
- Do you play to win back the money you lost from gambling?
- Do you spend money on gambling when it supposed to be spent on something else?
- Do you lend money to gamble?
- Are you secretive about your gambling habit?
- Do people close to you notice that you spend too much time gambling?
- Do you feel bad after realizing that you spent too much money on gambling?
- Are you short of money because of gambling?
- Do you feel restless and anxious if you are not gambling?
What to do if you have a gambling problem?
- Join help groups like Gamblers Anonymous.
- Ask professional help.
- Take advantage of therapy programs.
- Admit yourself to rehab facilities.
Recover from gambling addiction using these tools
Although they primarily operate as a business entity, Casino operators wouldn’t want to lose everything they own. Hence, the very reason why they have tools and features that make the gambling environment safe and secure for players. The following tools you can take advantage of to control your gambling habit:
- Deposit limit – You can set a limit to how much you can deposit in a particular game.
- Loss limit – You can set a limit to how much money you can lose.
- Session limit – It lets you set a limit to your game time.
- Wager limit – It lets you decide to set a limit to the amount of money you can play for.
- Player history – It shows you the record of the spin, hand, and bet placed.
- Time alert – You will be reminded of playtime, money played, and whether you won or lost.
- Self-exclusion – You can request to ban your account for a particular period of time.
- Self-assessment – You can take a short quiz to assess if your gambling habit gets out of hand.
When is it time to self-exclude?
If your gambling habit gets out of hand, the best thing to do is close your account. Contact the customer support team and ask them to exclude your account permanently. It will permanently close your account and all other contact methods, so you won’t be tempted to gamble again.
Below are the tools you can use to keep you from opening a new casino account:
- Gamban – It prevents your devices from downloading all gambling-related sites.
- Betfilter – It blocks all sites related to gambling and at the same time blocks gambling-related ads.
- CyberSitter and Netnanny – These tools will let you block contents you don’t want to be exposed to, such as drugs, violence, adult-related content, and gambling.
When should you ask for help?
If your gambling habit gets out of hand, it’s time to ask for help. The following organizations will help handle your gambling issues:
- Gamblers Anonymous – It is a group of people who help each other combat and recover from gambling addiction. It is synonymous to Alcoholics Anonymous.
- Alpha Healing Center – It is a treatment center in Gujarat. It provides a holistic treatment approach for gamblers.
- Gambling Therapy – It is an online portal where people with a gambling problem can contact trained professionals. What makes this site better than others is that the services are free and available in different languages such as English, Punjabi, and Hindi.
- GamCare – It is an organization located in the United Kingdom but can be accessed by Indian players and available in English and Punjabi.
Final Thought
Gambling, although primarily made for entertainment, has some degree of risk. It could lead to addiction, which is why it is important to always check in with yourself to determine if your gambling habit gets out of hand. Self-awareness is the key to an enjoyable and entertaining gambling experience.