Initial Responses

1. Social Issues
Ben Huyton

2. Initial Ideas /Responses
• Gambling
• Racism
• Drugs
• Alcohol

3. Gambling
• There may be as many as 593,000 problem gamblers in Great Britain. The
anticipation and thrill of gambling creates a natural high that can become
addictive.
• Causes – Many factors can contribute to a gambling addiction, including
desperation for money, the desire to experience thrills and highs, the social status
of being a successful gambler and the entertaining atmosphere of the mainstream
gambling scene. Severe addictions can take place when someone feels desperate
financially and wants to make back what they have lost.
• In terms of the signs of gambling addiction, feeling the need to be secretive about
gambling can definitely be a factor as well as gambling when you clearly can not
afford to. Other signs could be when your friends and family express concern
about your behavior and when you are in general having trouble containing
gambling habits.

4. Gambling
• Excessive gambling often causes a multitude of emotional symptoms, including
anxiety, depression, and even suicidal thoughts and tendencies. In extreme
situations, these thoughts may lead a gambler to actually making an attempt to
end their life. Losing everything to gambling is devastating and leaves many
people feeling completely hopeless.
• Because gambling can cause depression, anxiety and self harming tendencies,
several physical signs are to be watched for. Depression and anxiety sometimes
lead to sleep deprivation, which may result in pale skin, weight gain or weight loss,
acne and dark circles under the eyes.
• Gambling is associated with many additional effects, in both the short and long
term. Gambling addiction frequently results in other addictions that serve as
coping mechanisms for people who are stressed out by the activity. Many
gamblers turn to drugs, alcohol and other activities to alleviate the anxiety
brought on by the gambling lifestyle. Even if a gambler never experiences financial
ruin as a result of the lifestyle, they may struggle with drug and alcohol addiction
for the rest of life after self-medicating to deal with the stress. Also, relationships
are often permanently damaged as a result of gambling.

5. Drugs
• Addiction is a chronic disease characterized by drug seeking and use that is
compulsive, or difficult to control, despite harmful consequences. The initial
decision to take drugs is voluntary for most people, but repeated drug use can
lead to brain changes that challenge an addicted person's self control and
interfere with their ability to resist intense urges to take drugs.
• Most drugs affect the brain's reward circuit by flooding it with the chemical
messenger dopamine. This reward system controls the body's ability to feel
pleasure and motivates a person to repeat behaviors needed to thrive, such as
eating and spending time with loved ones. This overstimulation of the reward
circuit causes the intensely pleasurable high that can lead people to take a drug
again and again. Long term causes of drugs to the brain include difficulties with
learning, judgment, decision-making, stress, memory and behavior.

6. Drugs
• No one factor can predict if a person will become addicted to drugs. A
combination of factors influences risk for addiction. The more risk factors a person
has, the greater the chance that taking drugs can lead to addiction. The genes that
people are born with account for about half of a person's risk for addiction.
Gender, ethnicity, and the presence of other mental disorders may also influence
risk for drug use and addiction.
• A person's environment includes many different influences, from family and
friends to economic status and general quality of life. Factors such as peer
pressure, physical and sexual abuse, early exposure to drugs, stress and parental
guidance can greatly affect a person's likelihood of drug use and addiction.
• Genetic and environmental factors interact with critical developmental stages in a
person’s life to affect addiction risk. Although taking drugs at any age can lead to
addiction, the earlier that drug use begins, the more likely it will progress to
addiction. This is particularly problematic for teens. Because areas in their brains
that control decision-making, judgment, and self control are still developing, teens
may be especially prone to risky behaviors, including trying drugs.

7. Alcohol
• The cause of alcoholism is still unknown. Alcohol dependency develops when you
drink so much that chemical changes in the brain occur. These changes increase
the pleasurable feelings you get when you drink alcohol, which makes you want to
drink more often, even if it causes harm. Eventually, just like other drugs of abuse,
the pleasurable feelings associated with alcohol use go away and person with
alcohol dependency will engage in drinking to prevent withdrawal symptoms,
which can be quite unpleasant and even dangerous.
• Known risk factors for alcoholism include having more than 15 drinks per week if
you’re male, more than 12 drinks per week if you’re female. You may also be at a
greater risk for alcohol if you are a young adult experiencing peer pressure, have
low self esteem and experience a high level of stress.
• People with alcoholism may also experience the following physical symptoms
which include alcohol cravings, withdrawal symptoms when not drinking, including
shaking, nausea, and vomiting.