Nick Kemp - Treating Compulsive Gambling Addictions

I see lots of clients with gambling addictions and compulsions. There can of course be a host of reasons as to why a person feels compelled to engage in this kind of behaviour, but as with many other addictions, the individual usually finds themselves stuck in an emotional loop where they keep thinking, feeling and behaving in exactly the same manner. I have written articles on this and have been interviewed for radio.

Many gamblers discover that they are locked into fixed patterns of behaviour where they are constantly thinking about what could happen, in other words they are always thinking about the future and as such are never at ease in the present. Often such types will be very mentally active and find it difficult to relax. Of course this is all learned behaviour and change is entirely possible with the right approach, which in my experience steers away from "analysing the problem" and instead focuses on how to think, feel and respond differently to create better choices for a enhanced sense of well being. The gambling addiction usually causes financial and relationship problems and often wives and/or husbands will contact me on each other's behalf to seek advice. Many of my clients have tried group therapy, counselling and psychotherapy without success and are literally at their wit's end when they ring or e-mail me.

NLP, Hypnotherapy and Provocative Therapy are all approaches I use in my Leeds therapy practice and I usually see clients with gambling addictions most weeks and have had a great deal of success with this kind of problem.