Gambling is innocently taught at a young age.
Activities such as playing bingo, participating in drawings at school, taking part in some family poker or obtaining scratch-off lottery tickets for a gift are a few of the innocent activities our youth are taking part in. Children deem these to be completely acceptable as well because the people they respect are engaged in this behavior.
The Internet and computer revolution is adding to the problem. There are 2,500-plus online gambling sites, and many don’t require a proof of age during their sign-up process. There is an ever-growing presence of gambling on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. The games are usually accessed via free applications, and social casino games are among the most popular.
As you can see, adolescent gambling is becoming more and more of a problem in this country, but there are warning signs you can look out for. It’s better to get the problem fixed now before you child is uncontrollably and illegally betting on sports in AC when they are older.
Signs of adolescent gambling may include:
- Money or possessions missing from the house
- Unexplained wealth, need for money or charges on your credit card bills
- Grades get worse in school
- Watching sports in excess and getting inexplicably upset over games
- Calling 900 numbers for sports point spreads and scores
- Frequent depression, anxiety and mood swings
- Interest in outside activities has subsided
- Late night calls
- Sudden change in sleeping or eating habits
- Sudden change of friends
- Frequent borrowing of money
There tends to be a strong correlation between people who have certain conditions and a bigger risk in developing a gambling problem. Some of these traits include:
- Low self esteem
- Depression
- Doing poorly in school
- Death or arrest of a loved one
- Having a family member with gambling or substance abuse problem
Adolescent gambling isn’t an issue that should be taken lightly. Whatever your issue is, whether it’s adolescent gambling or adult illegal gambling for sports in Monmouth, NJ, the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey (CCGNJ) is here to help. If you’d like more information, call our 24/7 hotline, 1-800-GAMBLER, or visit us online at https://800gambler.org.