Online gambling is now an incredibly popular activity that millions of people enjoy. There are numerous reasons why the online gambling industry rises more and more by every day. Even though gambling comes with different benefits, it also contains some disadvantages. There are two main disadvantages of online gambling – it can affect you financially and it can eat up your whole time without you realizing it. Both of these cases arise when a person does not know how to put a limit and when to stop gambling.
If you are gambling for a few hours when you have free time, you should not worry, there are no causes for concerns. However, if you are noticing that the time you spend on online gambling platforms is continuously increasing and that it takes your whole day, it is time to set time limits. It is not healthy to let gambling be your priority and not have time to do anything else.
Therefore, we prepared a guide that will easily help you set limits while you are gambling. Remember, gambling should be a fun and entertaining activity, not an addiction that will lead your lifestyle.
How You Can Gamble Responsibly
We understand that online gambling is popular more than ever so it is hard to resist it. However, as more people start to be addicted to it, even gambling operators are becoming aware that is time to share the responsibility and put measures that will help people to prevent or stop gambling addiction problems.
There are different useful methods that players can use to set limits for themselves and gamble responsibly. Aside from setting deposit limits, there are some other methods that are even supported by gambling operators. Those are:
- Reality Checks
- Time-Outs
- Self-Exclusion
All of them come with different rules, so some of them are more extreme than others. Therefore, it is up to a player to choose which one will suit him the most.
Method called – Reality Checks
The reality Checks method is very simple to track and, best of all, it has a very effective outcome. It functionates by the principle of realizing how much you gamble and stoping when you become aware that it is more than you thought and wanted. Interestingly, even on the official site of Gambling Commission, you can find a statement that suggests Reality Checks need to “provide customers with facilities to assist them to keep track of the time they spend gambling”. You can find more about this at https://topcasinoer.net/casino-med-rigtige-penge/.
This method suggests that the total time you spent on the gambling site needs to be displayed in hours and minutes. The device with restricted displays should have a clear indication of how long the user has been playing. Also, a player should be offered to set a session or game-play duration reminder. This reminder type encourages the free will of the individual, so it is not so extreme. However, it also gives a player a clear picture of how long he has been playing and the alert that he should stop.
Method called – Time-Outs
The Time-Out method is a little stricter than the previously mentioned one. If the player decides on this method, he should know that he still can decide how long he wants a Time-out to be. This method is available on most popular online gambling platforms and the results show that is very effective. If a player needs a break, he can set his own limits using some of the timescale limits. Those are:
- 24 hours
- One week
- One month
- Any reasonable amount of time longer than one month, up to a maximum of six weeks
Method Called – Self-Exclusion
Finally, we prepared this method for the ones that have a real gambling problem and are losing too much money or time. This is the most extreme method and it applies to the players who will stop with this activity for a period of six months or even more.
All popular gambling operators are providing this option because they care about their users and they do not want to make them gambler addicts. More precisely, a gambling operator closes a player’s account when he or she requests it. Also, the operator takes all measures that will prevent the same person from reactivating the account.
Users can activate Self-Exclusion in two ways. They can either contact the gambling operator directly or they can use the GameStop scheme launched by the Remote Gambling Association. When a player uses GameStop, his accounts will freeze for the period of six months to five years. Also, the government will prevent you from making the account on some other site in that period. Therefore, if you activate this option, there is no turning back.
Machine limits
Many casinos allow their users to gamble on machines that come with the special limit option. Therefore, when you set a limit for yourself, you will not be able to spend more time on that machine which will give you the awareness that it is time to stop.
Membership cards
One more thing that casinos are providing is membership cards for players that come with special limit settings. However, since every casino house has a different membership policy and regulations, you should check the ones your casino has.
How do you know which limiting method is right for you?
The first step in making the decision of which limiting method is right for you is understanding your gambling habits. If you are considering gambling as entertainment during some sports events, there is no need to set yourself limits. However, if you are gambling more often, you should check the list of warning signs that we prepared. The list below will help you determine whether you are having a gambling problem or whether there is a risk to become that.
- You are spending more time/money than you have
- You are constantly trying to recover losses
- You started to lie about your gambling, how much you are spending on it
- You lost interest in other activities and gambling is your only life priority
As we said at the beginning, online gambling is created to entertain people and it can be a very enjoyable activity if you are approaching it responsibly. Therefore, if you are afraid that your gambling can lead to addiction problems, you should only gamble on the platforms of the operators that encourage responsible gambling. If you are interested, you can check reliable and responsible gaming platforms on hottopcasino.com In that way, you will take the whole thing under control and you should not have to worry about the risk of a gambling problem.
