<< Dad, please don't gamble

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1. Do your friends gamble a lot?

2. Do you gamble at school?

3. Have you ever stayed away from school or work to gamble?

4. Do you feel now that gambling is more important than school or work?

5. Do you often spend your free time involved in gambling activities such as poker, sports-betting, dice, etc.?

6. Do you find gambling to be the most exciting activity you do?

7. When you are gambling, do you lose track of time and forget about everything else?

8. Do you often daydream about gambling?

9. Do you feel your friends are envious of you when you win and that you get extra attention because of gambling?

10. When you do win, do you want to return as soon as possible because you believe you are on a "winning" streak?

11. When you lose, do you feel you must play as soon as possible to win back your losses?

12. Do you often gamble with money you originally intended to use for other things like lunch, bus money, clothing, CDs, etc.?

13. Do you ever "borrow" money from someone without asking, in order to gamble?

14. Have you ever sold a favorite possession or something very special to you to get money to gamble or to pay a gambling debt?

15. Do you try to prevent your family and friends from knowing how often and how much you gamble?

16. Do you ever lie about your gambling (e.g. telling people that you did not gamble, or that you had won when in fact you had lost)?

17. Do you get into arguments with your family or friends because of gambling?

18. Do you lose sleep or feel guilty because you have lost money gambling?

19. Have you ever thought of suicide as a way of solving your problems?

20. Does one or both of your parents do a lot of gambling?

Self scoring guide:

YES 3 – 4 times: Time to wonder if your gambling is getting out of hand.

YES 5 – 7 times: You are losing control over your gambling.

YES more than 7: Seek help immediately for what is clearly a problem.

Reprinted with permission.