Gambling Is A Bad Habit Hard To Break
Gambling starts as just a bad habit, something that you do when youve got some spare time but it quickly worms its way into your routine and becomes and all encompassing and hard to break addiction that rules your life. Like alcohol abuse, gambling is often a root cause for domestic violence and child abuse. Gambling starts as just a bad habit, something that you do when you've got some spare time but it quickly worms its way into your routine and becomes and all encompassing and hard to break addiction that rules your life. 'Old habits die hard' is a popular adage that holds weight. Everyone has their vices, but some habits are extremely common. And there are explanations behind why these habits are so hard to break. Even more irritating is the fact that breaking old habits and forming new ones are equally difficult processes. However, if we can understand what causes us to create or maintain a habit, perhaps it would be easier to understand why they are so difficult to change.
“All bad habits start slowly and gradually and before you know you have the habit, the habit has you.”
-Zig Ziglar
We all have some bad habits that we wish to get rid of once and for all.
Whether it’s mindless surfing on the internet late at night, smoking or overeating junk food—our lives would be so much better without them.
Bad habits are time consuming, destructive and prevent us from achieving our goals.
But, in reality it can also be a real struggle to finally break free from their firm grip on our lives.
Before I share three strategies from proven science for breaking your bad habit, let’s briefly uncover exactly why change can be so hard.
Why is it so hard to break a bad habit.
In my previous articles, I wrote about the science of how habits work and the best way to create new habits.
As a quick recap, our habits are driven by a 3-part loop in sequence…
- Trigger (the stimulus that starts the habit)
- Routine (the doing of the habit and behaviour itself)
- Reward (the benefit associated with the behaviour)
For example, let’s say you have the bad habit of eating chocolate cookies after your working hours. Your habit loop could look something like this…
- Trigger (stress from a long day of work)
- Routine (eat a chocolate cookie)
- Reward (temporary stress relief to feel better)
Each time you repeat this behavior pattern it becomes more ingrained in your brain until it eventually becomes automatic—a habit.
The reason why it can be so hard to break a bad habit, is because there are parts of your brain that associate your cravings with the bad habits. [1]
Don’t give up yet, there’s still hope.
Here are the three scientifically proven strategies to break your bad habits and change your life for the better.
How to break a bad habit.
1. Use the words “I don’t” instead of “I can’t.”
Using the words “I don’t” instead of “I can’t” could actually help you to make better choices.
In a research study published in the Journal of Consumer Research, 120 students were first split into two different groups. [2]
To test their ability to resist a chosen temptation, one group was told to repeat the phrases “I can’t”, whilst the other to use the word “I don’t.”
For example, if presented with chocolate, one group would say “I can’t eat chocolate,” whilst the other group would say “I don’t eat chocolate.”
Each group was then prompted to answer some quick questions unrelated to the study. But, when they walked out the room, they were presented with two complimentary treats—a chocolate candy bar and a healthy granola bar.
Surprisingly, the researchers found that the students who used the phrases“I can’t” chose to eat the chocolate candy bar 61% of the time.
Conversely, the students who used the word “I don’t” only chose to eat this 36% of the time.
Another similar study was also conducted on a different group of 30 participants split into three groups.
This time the same experiment would test the impact on the phrases on their health goals.
After 10 days of research, they found that only 1 out of 10 in the “I can’t” group were able stick to their goals.
In contrast, 8 out of 10 in the “I don’t” group were successful in meeting their goals.
Next time you catch yourself saying “I can’t [bad habit],” reframe this word and say “I don’t [bad habit]” instead.
This way you’ll give yourself a psychological edge to make a better choice.
2. Practice being aware of your triggers
According to addiction expert, Judson Brewer, regular mindfulness practice could help you break a bad habit.
Better awareness of the triggers that cause bad habits has been shown to interrupt the existing feedback loop that keeps a bad habit in place.
For example, a four-week study reported by Brewer and his research team in the Drug and Alcohol Dependence Journal, showed the positive impact of mindfulness training on breaking the bad habit of smoking. [3]
In this study, Brewer reported a 36% smoking quit rate compared to 15% through regular therapy.
Brewer suggests that mindfulness practice helps to weaken the link between the craving and the bad behaviour.
Practice:
Gambling Is A Bad Habit Hard To Break Back
Next time you’re hit with an urge to do the bad habit, take a step back and be aware of the sensations of the trigger in your body.
Then, record your answers to the the following questions:
- Where were you when the craving showed up?
- At what point during the day does this happen?
- What is your emotional state?
- Who are you with?
- What happened before you felt this way?
Keep a short journal of your progress and take quick notes of the events that take place on the days you act on the bad habit versus the days you don’t.
This kind of awareness practice will help you to begin to take control of your actions and make better decisions over the long term.
3. Use an “If-then” plan to replace the bad habit with a good one.
Having a goal to break a bad habit is not enough.
If you want to permanently stick to a good habit, an intentional plan of action is required.
One way to do this is to use an “if-then” plan of action.
An “if-then” strategy requires you to be as specific as possible on where and when you will take a given action.
In 1999, Peter Gollwitzer, Psychology professor at New York University, first introduced this idea to the public.
His extensive research on “implementation intentions” showed that people who use the “if-then” strategy could double the odds of achieving their goals. [4]
Here’s how to create your “if-then” plan.
Step 1: Identify the scenario that usually triggers your bad habit. For example, your friend offers you a pizza.
Step 2: Specify a different response to the trigger. Ideally, this should be a good habit that would replace and prevent you from falling into the temptation. For example, you ask for a piece of fruit instead of the pizza.
Step 3: Combine steps 1 and 2 into an “if-then” format i.e. “ If on Saturday evening my friend offers me a pizza, then I will answer: I prefer a piece of fruit instead.”
Using an “if-then” plan makes it easier to react to your cravings and replace them with a good one because of the prepared automatic response.
This may seem too simple at first, but, overtime you’ll notice how effective it can be in helping you to break a bad habit.
The Path To Freedom
The secret to permanently breaking any bad habit is to love something greater than the habit.
— Bryant McGill
Honestly, you’re probably not going to break your bad habits overnight. But, you could use these three strategies to give you that extra boost of self confidence and self control required to change.
The process of finally breaking free from your bad habits is a little bit like learning how to ride a bicycle.
There will be some days where you’ll climb on the bicycle and ride around easily.
There will also be days where you struggle to get on the bike and keep falling over and over again.
No matter how long it takes to fail and get back up again, your patience and perseverance will soon pay off.
And then, you’ll finally be free.
If you’d like to get science-backed strategies that make it easier to stop procrastinating, stick to good habits, and get things done, get access to The Procrastination Masterclass.
Footnotes
1.The idea of the habit loop and the science of how habits work was inspired by the work of Charles Duhigg in his book, “Power of Habit.”
2.Patrick, Vanessa M. and Henrik Hagtvedt (2012), “I Don’t” versus “I Can’t”: When Empowered Refusal Motivates Goal-Directed Behavior,” Journal of Consumer Research, 39 (2), 371-81
3.Brewer et al (2011), “Mindfulness Training for smoking cessation: results from a randomized controlled trial.” [Source]
4. Gollwitzer (1999), Implementation Intentions: Strong Effects of Simple Plans. [Source]
Related posts:
How to Quit Gambling Addiction
Compulsive gambling, also known as gambling addiction or gambling disorder, is the uncontrollable urge to gamble even when negative consequences have taken a toll in your life. It means that you’re willing to gamble whether you’re up or down, affluent or penniless, carefree or downhearted, and you’ll continue to gamble regardless of the repercussions—even when you know that the odds are in defiance of you. Still, you can’t manage to lose.
Gambling can restore the brain’s reward system just like drugs or alcohol can do which leads to a certain kind of addiction. If you’re experiencing compulsive gambling, you may continuously run after bets that lead to losing, conceal your way of behaving, empty your savings, stockpile debts, or even resort to thieving or fraudulence just to support your addiction. In short, compulsive gambling is a serious condition that can ruin someone’s life. (1)
Gambling Is A Bad Habit Hard To Break Up
Did you know gambling costs UK more than £100 million a year? You can read more about it here!
Signs and Symptoms of Compulsive Gambling
Signs and symptoms of compulsive gambling include the following: (2)
- Being obsessed with gambling to the point that you relentlessly plan on how to get more money
- Demands to gamble with growing amounts of money to remain thrilled
- Failure to quit or cut back from it
- Feeling uneasy or grumpy when you try not to gamble
- Using it to break free from problems
- Chasing losses
- Deceiving family members or others to cover up the extent of your addiction
- Compromising or losing valued relationships and career because of gambling
- Turning to theft or fraud to gain some winnings
- Begging others to bail you out of monetary trouble because you gambled money away
In contrast to casual gamblers who are disciplined to stop when losing or was able to set a loss limit, people with compulsive gambling issues are driven to continue playing just to recover their money — a pattern that becomes progressively disastrous over time. (3)
Read further on the dangerous effects of gambling addiction here.
Ways on How to Quit Gambling
Gambling addiction is abominable and terribly damaging. It is important to seek some help as soon as possible because it isn’t easy to quit. Here are few strategies that you can use to put your compulsive gambling to stop and take back your life. (4)
1. Take a Break
Schedule your day in a very structured way. When you wake up in the morning, make a decision that you will not gamble and plan your day ahead. Keep your schedule busy with important things so you will not have a lot of free time to think of gambling. Prohibit yourself from entering or getting near a casino, downloading online gaming applications, or paying visits to gaming websites.
2. Find Other Hobbies
Find some other activities to replace your gambling habits. Explore other interesting hobbies like exercising, hanging out with friends, or do some cooking. Do whatever it takes to keep yourself busy. You could pick up a new, exciting hobby, like biking, climbing or running.
3. Remember How Bad It Feels to Lose
Remember the feeling when you lose a lot of money because of gambling. Sanction yourself to feel that disheartenment when you are having thoughts about gambling again.
4. Educate Yourself About Gambling Addiction
Educate yourself mainly about your specific type of gambling addiction. Find out what type of gambler you are. Find out what triggers your gambling addiction so you will know how are you going to act against it.
5. Seek Help
Seek help. Contemplate about reading a gambling addiction forum. Even if you do not join, reading other people’s stories and struggles may help you realize that you are not alone. It is uplifting that you realize that you are not the only person with this problem. Many share your plight and are also looking for answers and support from other gamblers.
6. Find a Support Group
Attend a gambler support group. Having support from other gamblers who also want to quit will be an important piece of your recovery. Just sharing about your gambling with other people who understand what you’re going through can be really helpful as it will lighten up your burden.
7. Hand Over Control of Your Money
Ask a close family member to take care of your money. If you do not have money on hand, you will be less apt to impulsively gamble. It will be hard, but it is an important step in your recovery. Also, do not allow yourself to access your ATM or your credit cards. Just keep a small amount of cash with you, so you cannot spend your money in losing.
8. Have Your Pros and Cons
Make a list about how your problem has affected your life in a negative way. Write as much as you can. Also, write about how your life will change for the better when you stop playing.
9. Make a Financial Plan
Talk to a debt counselor about your monetary debts. Ask for advice about how to relieve financial pressure and solve financial problems caused by your past loses. The financial stress that you have from gambling addiction debts can drive you back to gambling if not addressed. Financial problems are the biggest consequence of gambling. Be sure to use a non-profit debt assistance agency, and not one that is for-profit.
10. Get a Good Counselor
See a counselor that specializes in gambling addictions and talk to this person about your problem. If your gambling addiction is terrible, you will need as much assistance as you can get to help you stop gambling.
11. Get Help for Underlying Mood Disorders
Many people with a gambling problem also suffer from depression, anxiety, stress, or other substance abuse issues. These can both trigger compulsive gambling as well as make it worse.
12. Get in the Right Environment
Surround yourself with people that you trust who want to see you recover and avoid any kind of environment where you might be tempted to gamble. Remove applications similar to it from your phone and tell the casinos that you have a compulsive gambling issue and that you want them to block you from entering their vicinity because you’re trying to resolve your issues.
Now that you have made a serious commitment to solving your addiction problem, congratulations! Looking ahead your future without gambling should look brighter and more hopeful.