Teen Gambling Addiction
Where really is the problem? Gambling is dearly promoted by the government. It is a revenue generator of substance. But for the gambling business the American economy would lose out on billions of dollars. Gambling is absolutely legal and it is lucrative. But then again, gambling is legal for citizens above the age of 18. So what happens to those who are not yet 18? Are they prohibited from gambling? Of course they are prohibited from gambling at the casinos. But does that really stop them from gambling? Students are betting at high-schools randomly, many are cheating and gambling illegally. But once into gambling, teens get stuck. They get drawn in by the lure, they may initially win a bit, then they start losing, once they lose they start stealing from their parents to pay off the losses, once they pay off the losses they gamble again to recover what they stole from the family, once they gamble again then they incur losses again and the cycle keeps on continuing until the point that a negative, escapist attitude sets in him and he feels like self destruction and suicide is the only way out.
Parents play a very important role in this regard. Most parents even if they are aware of their sons’ gambling habits, conceal it in public to protect their personal reputation. But it is very important to be open about this problem for two reasons – it makes their son more likely to speak up what they are going through which makes the process of counseling them a lot more easier; and also if the gambling habits of the teen is discussed in public then he would try harder to quit gambling in order to regain the respect of his peers as also his peers would know it if he has to be discouraged about something and would act accordingly.
