Online casinos and sportsbooks can be a fun way to unwind, but they also involve real money and real risk. Treating gambling as entertainment, not a way to make income or solve money problems, is the heart of playing safely.
22Bet focuses strongly on responsible gambling and promotes it.
What is Responsible Gambling?
Responsible gambling is a way of playing that keeps you safe, both financially and emotionally.
In practice, it looks like this:
- Only gamble with money that you can afford to lose.
- Setting limits in advance.
- Seeing gambling as entertainment.
- Accepting losses as part of the game.
- Taking regular breaks.
22Bet offers tools to help you with responsible gambling. You can set limits, and if things get too out of control, you also have the option for short to long-term exclusion.
Signs of Problems
Gambling harm rarely appears overnight. It usually builds slowly, and it’s easy to keep telling yourself “it’s fine” for a long time. Some warning signs to watch for:
- Spending more than you planned, or needing to raise your limits to feel excited.
- Chasing losses and increasing bet sizes, or playing longer to “win it back”.
- Hiding gambling from family or friends, or lying about how much you’ve spent.
- Borrowing money or using credit to gamble, or falling behind on bills and other payments.
- Feeling irritable, anxious, or low when you’re not gambling.
- Thinking about gambling all the time, even at work or anywhere else
- Struggling to stop, even when you’ve promised yourself that you will.
If a few of these sound familiar, it doesn’t automatically mean that you have a gambling disorder — but it does mean it’s time to pause, look honestly at your habits, and consider reaching out for help. The earlier you act, the easier it is to turn things around. Safer Gambling Aotearoa and other services provide tools to help you check where you’re at.
Sign UpHow to Get Professional Help?
You don’t have to handle this alone. New Zealand has free, confidential support services, and many of them are available 24/7. Help is there, whether you’re worried about your own gambling or about someone close to you.
Here are some key options:
- Gambling Helpline Aotearoa is a free, anonymous support 24/7. Call 0800 654 655 or free text 8006 from anywhere in NZ. They can listen, give practical tips, and connect you with local services.
- PGF Services (Problem Gambling Foundation) is a free, confidential counselling and support, in person and online, for anyone affected by gambling harm. Call 0800 664 262, text 5819, or visit their website for live chat and local clinics.
- Safer Gambling Aotearoa provides information, self-help tools, and a directory of free gambling support services near you.
- Your GP or health professional can screen for gambling-related issues, refer you to local services, and support you with related stress, anxiety, or depression.