Gambling Addiction Recovery

How Can I Recover From Gambling Addiction?

Recovery from gambling addiction typically includes abstinence from gambling behavior, overall improvement in mental health, and a commitment to treatment and aftercare like support groups or ongoing therapy.

While recovery from gambling addiction is possible, many people misunderstand what “recovery” means and confuse it with a “cure.”

There is still no cure for the disease of gambling addiction. Instead, recovery is more similar to the term “remission.” Maintaining recovery takes consistent vigilance and strategies to avoid situations that endanger your recovery.

With the proper treatment, support, and commitment to abstaining from gambling, gambling addicts can live fulfilling, happy lives.

5 Essential Steps For Gambling Addiction Recovery

Recovery from gambling addiction can sometimes be challenging but tends to follow a predictable pattern.

By learning about these steps, gambling addicts and their loved ones can visualize the path to recovery and understand each stage of the recovery journey.

Step 1: Acknowledge the Problem

Acknowledging that there is a problem is often the most challenging step for gambling addicts to reach, especially if they’ve been deep in gambling addiction for years or decades.

It’s also common for problem gamblers to deny their addiction and resist any suggestion to get help.

There’s no perfect solution for overcoming this hurdle, as the addict must be honest with themselves and be ready to receive help. However, that doesn’t mean giving up; loved ones should still continue pointing out negative consequences and offering help when possible.

Step 2: Enter a Gambling Addiction Treatment Program

Professional help for gambling addiction can come in many forms, depending on the severity of the gambling addiction, the individual’s background, and any co-occurring mental or substance use disorders.

Although people often wait until hitting “rock bottom,” delaying professional help may only worsen gambling addiction’s emotional, physical, and financial toll.

Notably, not all gambling addicts require rehab. Most will succeed through attending a support group or talking to a counselor specializing in gambling addiction treatment.

The most effective options for treating gambling addiction include:

• Rehab: Gambling addiction treatment typically won’t require traditional inpatient rehab but may be necessary in cases where the addict is at risk of harming themselves or others.
• Outpatient programs: Most people can get help in outpatient programs like PHPs and IOPs, where you spend the day or evening at a treatment facility in therapy, counseling, and getting guidance.
• Counseling/Therapy: Counseling or psychotherapy is the most common treatment for gambling addiction, specifically cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).
• Support Groups: Support groups (led by a professional) can help gambling addicts during and after treatment by providing peer support and safe spaces to discuss the challenges of recovery.
• Medications: Compulsive gambling is often tied to other underlying issues, like depression, ADHD, or substance abuse. Mood stabilizers, anti-anxiety drugs, and others can help treat these primary disorders so you can focus on gambling recovery.
• Family therapy: Sometimes, gambling affects your loved ones, from your pathological gambling behavior to the amounts of money spent that hurt them financially. Family counseling helps you heal.
• Treatment for co-occurring disorders: Gambling addiction is often linked to substance use disorder and other mental health professionals. In many cases, people can get help for SUD, mental health issues, and gambling disorders at the same time for optimal recovery.

Step 3: Get Outside Support

Even with professional help, outside support is essential to gambling addiction recovery. Outside support can come from friends, family, coworkers, or mentors, whether listening without judgment or giving the addict a ride to treatment.

Outside support can help the gambling addict stay motivated in treatment and hold them accountable for recovery.

A few ways to build your own support network include:

• Joining a Gamblers Anonymous group
• Sharing your struggles with people you trust to find an accountability partner
• Joining a mental health or addiction support group
• Participating in a recreational sport or club

Step 4: Follow Through With Gambling Addiction Treatment

Regardless of the treatment plan, following through with gambling addiction treatment is essential for recovery.

Addicts may feel tempted to stop attending treatment as soon as they start feeling better, unaware that they are still in a vulnerable place in their recovery.

By seeing treatment through to the end, gambling addicts will get the full benefits of their therapy and learn relapse prevention skills to increase the chances of long-term recovery from problem gambling.

Step 5: Have an Aftercare Plan

Returning to your old life, toxic friends, and risky situations fresh out of treatment will put you at serious risk of quick relapse.

Aftercare plans address this risk by helping gambling addicts continue and build upon what they’ve learned in treatment.

Common types of gambling addiction aftercare include:

• Individual counseling
• Relapse prevention skill-building
• 12-step programs
• Support groups
• Find new hobbies
• Set goals for your life
• Focus on physical and mental health
• Removing toxic friends and avoiding triggering places like casinos

Types of Gambling Addiction Recovery Tools

Luckily, there are many evidence-based recovery tools available for treating gambling addiction. Each tool for recovery has its own uses and benefits depending on the unique needs of the problem gambler.

Even if one option doesn’t work for you, another recovery option might be life-changing.

Gambling Addiction Support Groups and Self-Help Groups

Support groups and self-help groups for gambling addiction can help strengthen the skills learned in treatment and provide a space for addicts to open up about emotions and challenges.

Some self-help groups using the 12-step method can be like their own treatment program.

For addicts who lack outside support during treatment, support groups can provide the emotional support necessary to recover from gambling addiction successfully.

Gambling Addiction Therapy and Counseling for Recovery

Therapy and counseling are integral parts of gambling addiction recovery.

Behavioral therapies like cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) are especially effective, as they help patients directly address the behaviors that lead to problem gambling.

CBT works by helping addicts spot thought patterns that lead to addictive behaviors, thus learning to change those thoughts to more productive ones.

Gambling addiction therapy can also help patients work on other issues that contribute to problem gambling or co-occurring mental health issues like bipolar disorder or impulse control disorders.

Gambling Addiction Hotlines

BRIEF description of what this option entails + benefits (focus more on the benefits toward overall recovery so we aren’t repeating stuff from other pages)

Gambling addiction hotlines provide in-the-moment support to people who are ready to begin recovery, are at risk of relapse, or have questions about gambling addiction. These hotlines are usually free, confidential, and can point you to trusted resources.

The National Problem Gambling Helpline at 1-800-GAMBLER provides the most popular gambling addiction hotline. They also have a free, confidential helpline chat available 24/7 in all 50 states.

Gambling Addiction Self-Help Books and Resources

Self-help books and instruction workbooks are great supplements for treatment and are often recommended by support groups and self-help groups.

Research has shown that gambling addicts who read self-help material tend to have a higher rate of continued recovery.

Self-help books can help by offering new perspectives on gambling addiction and new gambling addiction research and methods, keeping addicts engaged and committed to continued recovery.

Gambling Addiction Rehab for Recovery

While rehab is not typically needed for treating gambling addiction, it can be helpful in some cases.

For example, compulsive gamblers with dual diagnoses of substance use disorder or mental illnesses (i.e., bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder, or impulse control disorders) may benefit from a rehab program.

Gambling addiction rehab can vary between inpatient and outpatient options, depending on the needs of the addict.

Inpatient rehab, while rare for treating gambling addiction, removes the patient from everyday life, allowing them to focus on recovery without any temptations.

Outpatient rehab for gambling addiction doesn’t require a residential stay but still provides intensive treatment through individual and group therapy.

Gambling Addiction Apps

Gambling addiction recovery apps help you stay the course of recovery by blocking access to gambling sites, educating you, and giving you tools to help you cope.

While each app works differently, various apps exist to meet your specific recovery needs.

The most effective and well-known gambling addiction apps include: 

• The Gamban App: This blocks access to all gambling sites when downloaded
• Online Gambling Addiction App: This guides users through permanently blocking themselves from gambling websites
• Cost2Play: This allows users to tally up what they would spend on gambling so they can see the financial toll it takes
• Mobile Monitor Your Gambling & Urges: This app allows you to document your gambling experience to aid your recovery. You can record where and when you gamble, what you felt, what triggered it, and more.
• Gamblers Anonymous RedBook App: This app works well for GA members and helps them move through the 12 steps.

Starting Your Journey to Gambling Addiction Recovery

If you or a family member are ready to stop gambling and enjoy recovery benefits, treatment options are available to help you start your journey.

You can start by talking to your healthcare provider, therapist, or addiction specialist about what treatment plan best suits your needs.

The National Council on Problem Gambling’s Helpline is another excellent resource for gambling addiction recovery—it’s free, confidential, and available 24/7 in all 50 states. You can reach the helpline by calling 1-800-GAMBLER or through their helpline chat.

If you’re ready to enter professional treatment, you can find a gambling addiction treatment center near you by using SAMHSA’s online treatment locator or calling 1-866-724-0260 (HELP).

To connect with a licensed and accredited therapist who specializes in gambling addiction, consider BetterHelp.

Written by

Jessica Miller

Editorial Director

Jessica Miller is the Editorial Director of Addiction Help. Jessica graduated from the University of South Florida (USF) with an English degree and combines her writing expertise and passion for helping others to deliver reliable information to those impacted by addiction. Informed by her personal journey to recovery and support of loved ones in sobriety, Jessica's empathetic and authentic approach resonates deeply with the Addiction Help community.

Reviewed by

• Fact-Checked
• Editor

Kent S. Hoffman, D.O.

Co-Founder & Chief Medical Officer

Kent S. Hoffman, D.O. has been an expert in addiction medicine for more than 15 years. In addition to managing a successful family medical practice, Dr. Hoffman is board certified in addiction medicine by the American Osteopathic Academy of Addiction Medicine (AOAAM). Dr. Hoffman has successfully treated hundreds of patients battling addiction. Dr. Hoffman is the Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer of AddictionHelp.com and ensures the website’s medical content and messaging quality.