Skill and addiction are not opposites

A winning poker player can still have gambling disorder. The diagnosis is about control and consequences, not about your results. If you cannot stop when you decide to, if you are playing longer and higher than you planned, if the game is costing you relationships, sleep or a job, it is a problem, whatever your win rate says.

Signs the game has taken over

• Moving up in stakes to feel the same excitement
• Playing through the night, then calling in sick
• "Tilt" that leads to chasing, then to other forms of gambling to recover losses (sports, casino, online)
• Borrowing from other players, staking deals you cannot afford, or credit-card cash advances for a bankroll
• Telling yourself you are a professional while your finances say otherwise

Why "bankroll management" is not recovery

Bankroll rules are a tool for people who are in control. If you are not, rules become something to break. Treatment addresses the thinking underneath: the belief that you are due, the need for action, and often the depression or anxiety the game is managing.

How we will treat it

Poker clients at Outpost will work with certified gambling counselors on the same core program as other gambling disorders, with attention to the social side of poker (the room, the regulars, the identity) that makes leaving harder. Residential and outpatient options are planned.

Frequently asked questions