Last Updated:

January 30th, 2026

Behavioural addiction

You don’t need drugs or alcohol to develop an addiction. Gambling, sex, pornography, gaming, shopping, and even social media can all take hold of your life and refuse to let go. Around one in eight adults in Britain struggles with some form of behavioural addiction, and yet these problems often go unnoticed (and, crucially, untreated), leading to potentially life-ruining consequences.

Behavioural Addiction Suffering woman

What is behavioural addiction?

Behavioural addiction is also called process addiction, and it means you cannot stop doing something even when the consequences are piling up around you. Behavioural addictions are remarkably similar to substance addictions, as the activity produces a rush or temporary emotional relief, your brain demands that feeling again and again, and you become trapped in a compulsive pattern of behaviour, suffering, and still being unable to quit.

Understanding behavioural addiction statistics

Behavioural addictions affect millions in Britain. Estimates suggest 1.4 million adult problem gamblers, 2.5 million people with sex addiction, and around 10% of UK students who say they are addicted to pornography. Problem gambling among young people doubled in a single year between 2023 and 2024 to 340,000. The NHS gaming clinic saw over 745 patients in its first four years, with demand far exceeding capacity.

Compulsive behaviours linked to addiction

Behavioural addictions take different forms, but some of the most common and harmful include:

Gambling addiction

Also known as “compulsive gambling”, this is the most researched behavioural addiction and the only one formally classified in many diagnostic manuals. Online betting has removed every barrier to access, putting people’s finances, relationships, and mental health in serious danger.

Gambling addiction

Sex addiction

This is also called “compulsive sexual behaviour disorder” by the WHO, which recognises it as a genuine mental health condition. It involves the constant need to engage in sex despite serious consequences.
Sex addiction

Pornography addiction

This has grown rapidly alongside internet access, with the average first exposure to pornography now coming at age 14. Heavy use can distort sexual expectations and damage real-world relationships.
Pornography addiction

 

Social media addiction

This covers compulsive online behaviour beyond pornography or gambling. It has become a particularly serious problem with smartphones and social media platforms that are engineered to keep you engaged.
Social media addiction

Gaming addiction

Around 3% of gamers worldwide meet the criteria for the condition recognised as “gaming disorder” by the World Health Organisation in 2019. Young males are most affected, though addiction to gaming spans all ages and genders.
Gaming addiction

Shopping addiction

“Compulsive buying disorder” affects an estimated 5% of the population, with buyers getting a rush from purchasing that briefly numbs difficult emotions, often followed by extreme guilt. As with gambling, the internet has made compulsive buying dangerously easy.
Shopping addiction

What are the signs of behavioural addiction?

Warning signs vary depending on the specific behaviour, but common patterns include:

  • Constantly thinking about the behaviour, planning when you’ll do it next
  • Using the behaviour to manage stress, anxiety, boredom, or painful emotions
  • Feeling restless or irritable when you can’t engage in the behaviour
  • Continuing despite promises to yourself or others that you would stop
  • Lying about how much time or money you spend on the behaviour
  • Losing interest in things you used to care about
  • Needing more of the behaviour to get the same effect
  • Sleep problems or mood swings when you try to stop
  • Neglecting all your important responsibilities
  • Relationship conflicts caused by the behaviour
  • Financial strain from gambling, shopping, or related spending
  • Health problems from neglecting basic self-care

What causes behavioural addiction?

Behavioural addictions work through the same brain systems as alcohol and drug addiction. When you engage in a rewarding activity, your brain releases dopamine. Do this often enough, especially when you’re stressed or upset, and your brain starts treating the behaviour as essential. Over time, you need more of it to feel anything, and the rest of life starts to feel flat.

While that is the basic science, several factors increase your risk of behavioural addiction:

  • Mental health conditions like depression, which often co-occurs in cases of depression and sex addiction
  • Genetic predisposition or a family history of any addiction
  • Unresolved trauma or upsetting childhood experiences
  • Chronic stress without any healthy way of coping
  • Constant access through smartphones and the internet
  • Early exposure before the brain’s impulse control has fully developed

ADHD, which commonly co-occurs in cases of ADHD and porn addiction, ADHD and sex addiction, and ADHD & gambling addiction

Behavioural Addiction Gambling

What are the dangers and side effects of behavioural addiction?

The consequences of behavioural addiction spread across every area of your life, and in many cases, can be just as dangerous as drug or alcohol addiction:

  • Suicidal thoughts or behaviours
  • Development of other addictions
  • Severe anxiety and panic attacks
  • More and more severe depression
  • Children at risk of instability, neglect, abuse, and other family issues
  • Legal consequences from related behaviours
  • Serious financial problems like debt and bankruptcy
  • Relationship breakdown 
  • Job loss or career damage
  • Social isolation, as the behavioural addiction takes over
  • Health problems from neglected self-care and lack of sleep
  • Lack of sleep from late-night behaviour
  • Mood swings 
  • Guilt after each episode

What does treatment for behavioural addiction involve?

Professional treatment is available for various behavioural addictions to address both the behaviour and the underlying issues driving it. To be successful, this will usually include:

Behavioural addiction rehab

Rehab provides intensive treatment away from the environment where your addiction thrives. Unlike substance addiction, you won’t need medical detox, so treatment begins immediately with therapy.

The first stage involves understanding your addiction, such as what triggers it and what emotions you’re trying to escape. You will then work on everything from emotional control to lifestyle skills. Different rehab programmes offer different types of therapy, but you should look for programmes with a mix of evidence-based and holistic approaches, relapse prevention planning, and robust aftercare planning and support.

Both NHS and private rehab are available for behavioural addiction, though as of the end of 2025, the NHS only provides treatment for gambling and gaming, with very limited services for other behaviours.

Post-rehab care and support

Recovery from addiction requires ongoing attention, because the behaviours involved are widespread, legal, and often impossible to avoid altogether. Support groups like DA meetings, SLAA meetings, Gambling Anon, and Grey Sheets provide regular contact with others in recovery. Many people also continue private therapy to address underlying mental health issues that were fuelling their addiction and mental health struggles.

Finding help for behavioural addiction

Behavioural addiction responds very well to professional treatment, and people who felt completely helpless have regained control and put their lives back together. Recovery.org can answer your questions about treatment and help you find the right programme. Contact us today to get started on your recovery journey.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the main warning signs of behavioural addiction?
Key warning signs of behaviour addiction include constant preoccupation with the behaviour, using it to escape difficult feelings, needing more to get the same effects, feeling agitated when you can’t do it, losing control over frequency or duration, continuing despite harm to relationships, work, or finances, hiding or lying about the behaviour, and repeated failed attempts to cut back or stop.
Does genetic predisposition cause behavioural addiction?
Research suggests addiction vulnerability is 40-60% heritable, meaning genes influence but don’t guarantee whether someone develops an addiction. Environmental factors like stress, trauma, mental health, and access to addictive behaviours all interact with genetic tendencies. Having family members with addiction means being more vigilant, not that addiction is inevitable.
Does behavioural rehab involve detox?
No, behavioural addictions don’t produce the dangerous physical withdrawal that requires medical supervision. Some people do experience psychological symptoms like irritability, anxiety, or sleep disturbance when they stop, but these don’t need medical management. Treatment focuses on therapy from the start to identify your triggers, address the issues driving the behaviour, build healthier coping strategies, create a support network, and make lifestyle changes.

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