When it stops being fun
How to spot gambling addiction
Spotting it in somebody else usually starts with money that does not add up and a phone that has become private. Those two together are the common opening.
You will rarely get a confession. You can still act, and the helplines take calls from people who are worried about somebody else.
What tends to be visible
Unexplained shortfalls, borrowing, small repeated transfers, a credit card being used for cash. Withdrawn or irritable when they cannot play, particularly around big sporting events.
Time is often more visible than money: hours late at night, phone taken everywhere, distraction during conversations.
How to raise it
Pick a calm moment, not the aftermath of a loss. Talk about what you have noticed rather than what you have concluded. Ask, do not accuse.
Expect denial the first time and do not treat that as the end of it. Do not pay off gambling debts; it is the single most well-documented way to prolong the problem, however much it feels like helping.
Get support for yourself as well
ConnexOntario at 1-866-531-2600 takes calls from family members and will point you at local services. Gam-Anon groups exist for exactly this position.
The provincial lines, the blocking tools and the self-exclusion routes are all listed on take a break, which carries no operator links.
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ConnexOntario answers at 1-866-531-2600. Every province has an equivalent line and they are listed, with the blocking tools and the self-exclusion routes, on take a break. Nothing on that page earns this site anything.