Am I addicted?

[mrh86]

Sorry to hear about your situation, but it sounds like your mom is a (editted). You should try to explain the decision-making processes and skills that you've picked up from your reading, and if that doesn't work, just ignore her everytime she brings up the subject. If she gets pissed at you for ignoring her, get pissed right back at her.

[chief444]

Stop playing until you get to college? What is that like 3-months? If you can't handle that then she probably has a point.

[Jeffage]

I speak from great experience on this. Parents generally won't understand...mine are just coming around now after about 5 years and accept thay I play poker frequently and for big money (though they don't know exactly how big). The thing is, they are annoying...but they care about you. The fact is that most people who gamble alot run into serious problems; those ignorant about poker will not differentiate it from other gambling. My parents believe I win now, but it took lots of proof. My advice is to not talk about poker alot in front of them: even though it's natural to talk about something you love, talking mostly about poker will make them think you're obsessed. Just mention it in passing if asked. If you make money for the year, pay taxes on it...then show your parent you've done so and that you are treating it like a business, but it's not your whole life and you have your priorities in order. and btw, them not buying you a laptop isn't a big deal. The sooner you separate yourself FINANCIALLY from your family, the less they really can say to you about what you do in your spare time. Don't let them have that hold on you if you can avoid it.

Also: I am VERY thankful I didn't get heavily into poker until I was FINISHING college. Remember to go get laid, study and have the college experience. Play poker, but not obsessively. You'll have plenty of time to do that later (I speak from experience).

GL,
Jeff

[dawade]

How rusty would I be though if I stopped playing for three months?

[Messy Harry]

[ QUOTE ]
tell her she should stop being jealous of the fact that as a young adult you are making a better finanicial future for yourself while she created nothing but a cold empty loveless shell of a human being with no ability to have an ounce of trust or compassion in her own son due to her awful life choices in money, marriage and employment. And, because of the fact her life has been devoid of any positive luck doesn't mean that just because you fell out of her vagina doesn't mean you will be follow that curse

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You took the words right out of my mouth [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

[UATrewqaz]

I have worked for a casino (tecnically for a golf course owned by a casino but they still were legally required to give us the whole speil on gambling addiction).

The top signs of gambling addiction are as follows.

1. Gambling as a means to escape from other problems in your life (work, relationships, etc)

2. Gambling with money you can't afford to lose (rent/mortgage money, car payment, tuition money, etc.)

3. When you lose you desperately feel the need to "win your money back" aka chasing losses.

[peterchi]

[ QUOTE ]
How rusty would I be though if I stopped playing for three months?

[/ QUOTE ]

It really won't matter that much. Taking some time off can actually be helpful. And there are other ways to keep your game in shape - re-read your books, keep browsing this forum, etc.

And I agree whole-heartedly with many other posts here that it's important to make sure to have your full college experience. 2-3 hours out of a day of a typical undergrad can be a pretty big strain on your college life. I found online poker in grad school, where being anti-social doesn't matter as much. Don't get me wrong - it's not cool when I'd rather sit at home and play than go hang out with friends. But it's even less cool to do that as an undergrad.

Best of luck to you

[BigBaitsim (milo)]

I am a clinical psychologist and play a lot of poker. I plan to teach my children the game when they get older, but recreationally. Should they ever play on the internet or live, I will watch them like a hawk. I will pay off casino staff to tell me how they are doing at the tables and I will spy on their online play. Fact is, most poker players are losers, and most losers think they are winners. The primary job of parents is to protect their children. Your mother is doing her job.

There is a lot of info on Pathological Gambling available on the internet, and Dr. Al has a series of articles coming out on a related topic. Read and understand the warning signs.

Finally, understand that all the explanations you give about odds and stats will be correct, but will sound like the typical rationalizations of an addict. They even sound like that to me when I say them, and I know them to be true.

-Dr. Milo

[dawade]

Mother didn't even press the issue today, she just told me that she knows I am becoming addicted because I read poker materials (books, Player magazine), and even though I may not play I'm still acessing the material (including web sites I guess she means) every day.

Surely browsing 2+2 for 30+mins a day isn't a bad thing!

[Equal]

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can you live without poker? If not then you're addicted... simple as that.

[/ QUOTE ]

absurd. if someone has a job and works at mcdonalds and goes to work everyday, is he addicted to working at mcdonalds?

poker is a form of income to a lot of us here, just cause we want to work and make money doesn't mean we are "addicted" to poker.

if i never had to play another hand of poker in my life, that would be great. but unfortunatly thats not going to happen because i love making money.

[/ QUOTE ]

Took the words out of my mouth. Let me say that if poker wasn't for money I would never play another hand. It's a good game, and complex, but if I could only play for play money I wouldn't. There are way better games out there.

Except maybe NL tournaments, I might play those. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]