Problem Gambling and the Brain

Problem Gambling and The Brain

Many people ask:

How can somebody struggle to control their gambling the same way they would struggle to control using substances like drugs and alcohol?  It’s not like they’re doing real drugs…

In fact, there is a chemical component to gambling that plays a major role in driving problem gambling behavior and addiction.

In this lesson, we’re going to unpack what happens in the brain of someone experiencing gambling harm, and the role of Dopamine.

The Role of Dopamine

Dopamine is a chemical (neurotransmitter) in our brains that plays a vital role in our internal reward system.  A neurotransmitter is a chemical that acts like a messenger, bringing signals to different parts of our brains.

When we experience something pleasurable, like eating delicious food, spending time with loved ones, or winning a game, our brain releases dopamine.  This dopamine signals our brain's Reward Center, "Hey, this is good! Let's do it again!" 

That's why we feel good when dopamine is released.  It motivates us to repeat enjoyable activities, which is essential for our survival and well-being.

When we first gamble, the Reward Center (ventral striatum) of the brain is activated by dopamine (and other neurotransmitters), causing us to feel a sensation of pleasure, excitement, and euphoria.  As we continue to gamble, the activation of the Reward Center diminishes, and the activation shifts to the Habit Center (dorsal striatum).

While this is happening, another shift is occurring in the brain’s Control Center (medial prefrontal cortex), in which our ability to inhibit or stop a behavior is being diminished.

A helpful analogy can be to think of your brain like a car.  In our analogy, the Reward Center and Habit Center are the accelerators.  The Control Center is the brakes.  As we continue to gamble, we step down on the accelerator while our brakes start to fail…

This shift in brain chemistry can cause our gambling to become more habitual and automatic over time.  We can begin to feel the need to gamble with an increasing amount of time and money to achieve the same feelings of pleasure we initially received.  Our ability to control ourselves while gambling can get weaker and weaker.

This can lead to the escalation of gambling activity, where we find ourselves gambling more often, with more money, beginning to “chase”.  When we lose, we chase to get our money back so we can keep gambling.  When we win, we chase to get that feeling of pleasure that somehow feels just out of our reach.  It can become an endless cycle.

The Effect of Unbalanced Dopamine

But it can actually get even worse than just chasing.  That same Reward Center of our brain that is activated by gambling, is activated by everything else that we find good and pleasurable in life.  If our gambling throws it out of balance, we can start to feel numb.

Food doesn’t taste as good to us.  Our hobbies don’t seem as exciting.  Our friends and family and romantic relationships seem less interesting…It can start to feel like nothing else in the world matters outside of gambling.  We may even start to turn to other high-risk activities such as alcohol, drug use, or other behavior just to feel something.

Our goal isn’t to scare you with all of this.  Plenty of things in life, when done excessively, can have negative outcomes.  However, it is important to understand that when you gamble, you are in fact affecting the chemical makeup of your brain.  Over time, that change can lead to long-term consequences.

Now that you know what’s happening behind the scenes, you can be more vigilant in watching out for problems.  If you have experienced harm, remember that our brain is always changing, we call this neuroplasticity.

We have a lot of tools to help you learn how to effectively build new habits in your own life, and restore balance in your brain if gambling has thrown it out of whack.

Let's Reflect

Consider the role of neurotransmitters like dopamine in addiction. Do you think this understanding changes your perspective on problem gambling?

Consider the potential long-term effects of problem gambling on brain function and mental health. How does this influence your approach to managing your gambling behavior?

Closing Thought

Problem gambling's relationship with dopamine underscores the complex interplay between brain chemistry and addictive behavior.  The release of dopamine during gambling can reinforce the desire to continue despite negative consequences, contributing to compulsive gambling behaviors. 

Understanding how dopamine influences the brain's reward system sheds light on the challenges many people face in overcoming problem gambling and can help you be more aware of your own gambling behavior.