Analysis Of Bachmann Gambling Addiction

Responsibility is a huge task to do in life, especially when you become an adult. Life is not always about having someone holding your hand and guiding you to the right path. Mistakes are meant to happen in life to learn and gain experience from them. In the article, “The Neurology of Free Will,” Angie Bachmann had a difficult life as a mother. Bachmann did not receive any attention from her family, so she felt very lonely. She was dealing with having to pay for the rent, feeding her children, and having to take care of her parents, almost like a single mother, because her husband was never around. I believe these factors did contradict with Angie Bachmann having an addiction with poker, but it was definitely her responsibility in

For years, Bachmann keeps coming to the casino until she got hooked and became a compulsive gambler. She gambled every money she has up to the point of losing everything. During those time, Bachmann had no idea that someday she would become one of the most important examples of whether people should bear responsibility for their habits. Bachmann’s problem with gambling slowly loses control over how much time and money she spent gambling. Although she thinks she is in control and she was aware of the bad effect it may cause, Bachmann continued gambling without seeking help. Other times she tried to cut down or stop but, many times she failed. She keeps hoping a big win will end her problems. She feared that her loved ones will find them out that drives her deeper into hiding and further into debt. She felt anxious and upset whenever she tried to change. I would also like to point out that Harrah’s Casino is partly to blame here. Their participation in Bachmann’s addiction is something to consider and look upon. They shower her with gifts such as: “free coupons, free buffets… free trip to Lake Tahoe with a suite, and tickets to Eagles concert” (Duhigg, pp. 247, 261) in which according to Bachmann is hard to resist. According to Bachmann’s lawyer, “she should not be held culpable because she had been reacting automatically to temptations that Harrah’s Casino put in front of her. Once the offers started rolling in,

Moreover, there are other organizations and resources that can help gamblers undergo rehabilitations and treatments such as Gamblers Anonymous, Debtors Anonymous, National Council on Problem Gambling, or psychotherapy, or cognitive behavioral therapy. (Healthline.com/health/addiction/gambling) Treatment centers are available for these types of addiction and recommended for anyone who has a problem controlling their urges to gamble. Although Bachmann tried to overcome the demon that has been luring her to gambling, she did not try harder to defeat it. Harrah’s casino is also partly to blame for Angie Bachmann’s debts since they encouraged Angie Bachmann into gambling. Harrah’s knew that Bachmann had filed for bankruptcy, yet they still invited her to play. After her parents’ death, Bachmann became sad and vulnerable and the casino’s staff used that reason to lure her more into gambling. The casino preyed on Bachmann’s vulnerabilities: her depression over her parents’ deaths, her guilt for accepting the casino’s “gifts,” and her gambling addiction that she could not control. On the other hand, individuals and families in the society are considered victims in this

All of us have formed habits in our daily life. Even though some of these habits only exist in our subconscious and we cannot actually make sure whether they are real or only the conjectures. But it is undoubted that all of our behaviors are influenced by our desires on specific objectives. In the book, the power of habit, Charles Duhigg explained the definition of a habit as an effort-saving instinct. “When a habit emerges, the brain stops fully participating in decision making” (20). To support his opinions on habits, he introduced the three-step model of a habit loop, the theory of golden rule of habit, and the role of a craving brain and belief in the process of a habit changing. Through learning

In the book “The Power Habit,” the author is talking about a woman named Angie Bachmann who was a housewife and who used to clean her home when her husband and kids would be gone during the day until one day she decided that she will change her life totally. Bachmann once sitting at home started to think that she should find something to enjoy her day just like her husband and kids. She wanted to have a story to tell her family at night. Bachmann instead of thinking about doing something good and productive, she chose a wrong path that ruined her life totally. Bachmann chose casino over all the other work because she thought that casino might make her feel good. Angie Bachmann is responsible for her gambling debts because she chose to make her own decision and not stop gambling, even though she knew she is putting herself in trouble.

“Gambling addiction, particularly is easy to start; it requires no elaborate or illegal activities, no troublesome ingestion of substances, and it programs the body using its own chemicals” (Brodak 302). Molly Brodak the daughter of Joseph and the author of “Bandit” speaks up about growing up with a father who is addicted to gambling. Molly, her sister, and mother struggle to overcome the challenges that come along with having a man in their life who loses everything for them. Not only does this gambling addiction that Joseph suffers from harm his life financially but also emotionally.

“As we go through the day we pause, when agitated or doubtful, and ask for the right thought or action. We constantly remind ourselves we are no longer running the show, humbly saying to ourselves many times each day ‘Thy will be done.’ We are then in much less danger of excitement, fear, anger, worry, self-pity, or foolish decisions. We become much more efficient. We do not tire so easily, for we are not burning up energy foolishly as we did when we were trying to arrange life to suit ourselves” – Alcohol Anonymous. Alcohol and gambling are two addictions that impair an individual judgment, decision making, learning and memory, and behavior control. Moreover, the focus of this paper will explore the two different types of meetings I attended and then compare and contrast both.

According to F.M. Alexander, "people not decided their future, they decide their habits, and these habits decide their future". A habit is a learned behavior repeated regularly, requiring small or no reasoning. Habits are created, are not obtained by inheritance, habits can transform themselves in needs. In addition, habits are not unique to people, organizations, to be made up of people, have habits also. There are right, and wrong habits; right habits normally are called as virtues, and wrong habits are called as vices. Undoubtedly, virtues must be constantly reinforced; on the other hand, vices must be rebuilt step by step, and convert them into virtues. In “The Power of Habit”, Charles Duhigg manages to reveal with great clarity how the different phases of the cycle of habits are conformed; how wrong habits can be reconstructed, and transformed to allow the growth of both, individuals and organizations. Through the use of various cases, Duhigg manages to explain how to transform wrong habits by focusing on the phase of the habit that need to be rebuilt. The author explains how people can fail to be slaves to the "customs", and as to regain control, either of their lives or their Organizations.

There is no specific treatment option that is more beneficial. However, there are a variety of treatment options available for gambling addiction such as Gambler’s Anonymous, which is a support group and psychotherapy that involves cognitive behavioral therapy. Family therapy or group meetings with professional counselors can assist family members. In addition, there is the National Problem Gambling Helpline Network and Gamblers Anonymous that help love ones with their gambling problems (www.casino.org). The medication that is used to treat compulsive gambling is antidepressants and mood stabilizers (www.mayoclinic).

Charles Duhigg in his book The Power of Habit talks about a woman named Angie Bachmann who is addicted to gambling. Bachmann of Iowa was a stay-at-home mom who found herself bored every day. She had nothing to satisfy her boredom because her husband was busy at work and the kids were at school. To treat herself one afternoon she decided to dress up and drive to a local casino. She gave herself strict rules. Duhigg states, “No more than one hour at the blackjack table per trip, and [Bachmann]only gambled what was in her wallet’’ (247). Bachmann did not want to spend that much money in the beginning of the

With the broad spectrum of addictions being diagnosed, analyzed, and remedied people mostly ignore the other side of what addictions can also cause. Relationships can be created and destroyed because of addictions and recovery is a tremendous struggle. In “Double Down.” The authors and brothers, Fredrick and Stephen Barthelme, told of their addiction to gambling and the illusions of the casinos. They had led normal lives excluding their gambling addictions, both being Professors at the college level. No previous accounts of addiction to drugs or alcohol were had, but following the death of their parents and receiving a massive inheritance they had turned to gambling. They lose mostly all of the inheritance and later get caught trying to “defeat” the illusion of the casinos, via cheating. Another article that relates to addiction is called, “Sleeping

According to the National Council on Problem Gambling, nearly 1.5 million Americans have experienced pathological gambling, which occurs when there is a dependence, harm, or lack of control over gambling habits (Samhsa). Samhsa goes on to explain that pathological gambling can be sparked by gambling as little as once a week. It may even derive by going as little as once a month, or once a week. Unfortunately, this is what transpired to Angie Bachmann, in Charles Duhigg’s Power of Habit. Mother of three and wife to a full-time working husband, Angie was frequently left in an empty home, with nothing to do. Spending her days watching game shows, such as: The Price is Right, Angie would often times find herself lonely and bored (Duhigg 246). Angie decided that if she got through the week without withering of boredom, then she would be rewarded with an excursion to the casino. The trips started off once a week with a few hours and a couple hundred dollars. Her addiction quickly jump started from once a week to three times a week. She was secretly attending the casino, spending a couple thousand, and playing multiple hands at once (Duhigg 247). Angie finally felt as if she had something to be proud of; she wasn’t just an orthodox, stay-at-home mom. The casino did as much as they could to make Angie feel special, almost like a celebrity. For instance, Angie would arrive at the casino in a limo, dine out in the buffet, and live lavishly in the casino suites. In another light, I

Bachmann’s gambling addiction follows a simple cycle known as the habit loop. A habit loop, which explained earlier, is a cycle consisting of a cue, routine, and reward affect. Identifying the habit loop for addicts is a great way of finding ways in altering the addiction to completely get rid of it or to minimize the activity. The initial cue of the addiction was when she felt unappreciated by her kids or had a verbal disagreement with her husband. The routine was playing blackjack at the casinos, while generating conversations with random strangers. Finally the reward hopefully was winning the game or receiving money once cashing in the chips and having a sense of being good at something. Knowing Bachmann’s habit loop, we can infer that her problem can be adjusted in a way to minimize the amounts of money that are poured into the game and spending less time in a casino.

     Gambling addiction is an issue found in numerous areas where gambling is legal. People who are addicted to gambling, also know as problem gamblers, face many health risks including depression, suicidal thoughts, loss of sleep, loss of appetite, migraine and anxiety in addition to marriage breakdown, problems at work and bankruptcy (9). About 2 percent of adults are thought to be problem gamblers (1). In today’s society this costly addiction is not often considered to be a common problem among those who gamble. Only a small amount of states in the U.S. give enough attention toward this rising problem of people that are sometimes even willing to commit crimes just to aid their addiction. In the past our

We tend to think of habits as bad (smoking, cussing, biting your fingernails) but they can also be good (walking the dog, oatmeal for breakfast, a weekly date with your spouse). THE POWER OF HABIT shows how easily habits form. They rely on three simple things–a cue, a routine, and a reward–and don’t take long to stick. Our brains love habits. They allow us to be efficient. They help us do things like drive a car without constant self-monitoring. Once we learn where the brake pedal is and how hard to press the