Gambling issues are linked to other underlying disorders such as anxiety, stress, and impulse control or substance abuse difficulties. As well as preventing slips and relapses, easy-to-apply techniques will end the impulse to gamble.
As a means of controlling anxiety, many individuals gamble. People often report being separated from their nervous feelings when they gamble, or projecting their feelings of anxiety onto the excitement they experience as they engage in their choice of gambling activity. Gambling can then work its way into the fabric of their daily lives, and the impulse to gamble can overtake the remainder of their lives.
For many gamblers, therefore, reducing anxiety is a prerequisite for any improvements in gambling behavior to be made. Fortunately, there are many strategies to alleviate anxiety that can make a huge difference.
Learn to relax
A physiological and psychological reaction that is the opposite of anxiety and panic is true relaxation. This is followed by a reduction in the heart rate and a decrease in blood pressure, deeper breathing, and a relaxed, even state of mind. Its effects are cumulative when experienced on a daily basis. By learning to relax, one of the most important ways that people can counteract fear is. It's not possible at the same time to be calm and nervous. This means more than just plopping down in front of a TV or surfing the Internet, while those things can seem relaxing on the surface.
If the level of anxiety is so high that it makes individuals anxious physically and mentally, it can give them relief by taking active measures to relax. Relaxation activities, such as those outlined below, teach individuals to recognise, defuse, and break the fear loop of worries. Even if the exercises don't seem to help at first, it's better for people to stick to everyday practice, and the more people perform these exercises, the more positive impact they will have.
Being able to relax is an ability, and it gets better with practice, like every other skill someone wants to improve. The more individuals practice, the more mindful of the ebb and flow of anxiety they will become. That way, they can target it as soon as they sense its presence. There are hundreds of approaches to "mind and body," such as yoga, tai chi, and meditation. These methods incorporate strategies of deep breathing and relaxation with techniques of body awareness that help people identify when they get too tense. Many of these are continuing activities that individuals can try at a fitness club, a studio, or even at home.
Before people will learn to relax, having a handle on what makes them nervous in the first place is good for them. Greater sensitivity may assist individuals to predict these emotions, which in turn helps them to understand the need to use a technique for relief. It also helps to understand which are the most powerful methods for relaxation. That is why keeping a journal for at least one week can be helpful. It can be used by individuals to write down what makes them nervous and how they respond to the anxiety. People will typically recognise anxiety causes and patterns of reaction after a week of making journal entries.
Then it's time to identify other ways of coping that might relieve rather than fuel anxiety. To get started, here are three excellent relaxation exercises.
Progressive muscle relaxation exercise
For someone to learn body awareness and the difference between tense muscles and relaxed muscles, the aim of this exercise is to learn. People may teach themselves the distinction between a relaxed muscle and a tense one by slowly tensing and relaxing each muscle group in the body. Once individuals master this ability, in situations that make them nervous, they will have improved body awareness. They can learn to cope with tension over time, and with continued practice, by training their muscles to relax while relaxing the mind. It is not possible to be stressed and calm at the same time, after all.
By setting aside 15 uninterrupted minutes in a calm, distraction-free spot, someone can get started. It can help to dim the lights, or to sit in a comfortable position or lie down.
For 15 seconds (about 10 slow counts), the idea is to hold and grip each region of the body, feeling the tension build up. Then release the tension and relax completely, allowing the tension to flow away from the body and out of that area. The person doing this exercise should take a moment for each muscle group to note how different it feels when it's stressed compared to when it's relaxed. Before moving on to the next body area, perform the exercise at least once and as much as three times.
Take a deep breath
Exhaling slowly sends a signal to both the body and brain that makes them relax. Even though they are not actively participating in this form of exercise, doing this type of deep breathing will help people breathe like this.
For this exercise, individuals should strive to set aside 10 uninterrupted minutes, ideally in a quiet, distraction-free location. It can help to dim the lights and to sit in a comfortable position or lie down.
By placing one hand gently on the chest and one hand gently on the abdomen, just above the belly button, they may start. For one slow count, inhale deeply through the nose or through pursed lips. As the belly and ribcage expand, the lower hand may travel out. (The upper hand does not move at all.) Next, for one slow count, exhale through the mouth absolutely. As the belly and ribcage grow smaller during exhalation, the bottom hand should turn inward.
Once individuals master this process, rather than taking the short, choppy breaths that often accompany anxiety and depression, they can understand how it feels to breathe evenly and deeply.
Try an exercise for visualization
Combining imagery with deep breathing or gradual muscle relaxation is another beneficial strategy. To quell fear, visualization can also be used on its own.
To imagine a healthy, peaceful location or circumstance, using all five senses to conjure up as much detail about it as possible, is a classic visualization exercise. This helps pull someone's attention away from negative thoughts and impulses that are tense.
People might, for instance, imagine taking a leisurely walk on the beach. They can actually see the ocean, sun, sand, and birds through practice. The waves crashing against the shore or the seagulls cawing, they learn to hear. On their skin, they can feel the warm sun and the soft sand under their feet. They can smell the salty air and taste it.
Find Alternative Activities
Better than deprivation is diversion. In other words, doing something else, an alternative activity that is constructive and pleasant, is one of the main ways people can alleviate fear and reduce impulses to gamble. This focuses attention away from concern, decreasing the need for the familiar trend of gambling.
Taking up old hobbies or discovering new interests and activities can be involved in finding a replacement activity. Such new interests grow over time into coping strategies that help individuals handle anxiety and gambling more effectively.
Get started by thinking about at least five fun things that have little to do with gambling, drinking, or misuse of drugs. Watching TV, working out, or gardening may be part of this. Finding activities that are genuinely attractive is the secret.
Have patience
They will need to figure out certain facets of their lives, develop new experiences, and learn new abilities as individuals attempt to improve their relationship with gambling. It is common for individuals to make headway and then take a few steps back. It's important to note that it is a bit like going on a long journey to make any meaningful improvement. Time is required.