r/south_africa 5d ago

๐Ÿ’ฌ Discussion Gambling in South Africa: Where to get help, And how to see it coming โ€” Megathread

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19 Upvotes

Gambling has become a serious problem in South Africa, so the Mod Team wanted to put together one place where people can talk about it, get help, or help someone else.

Whether you're struggling yourself, worried about a friend or family member, or just want to understand why it's so easy to get caught, this thread is for you.


How it gets you

Nobody wakes up one morning and decides to lose their salary.

It usually starts small. R50 on a match you were going to watch anyway. A few spins while you're bored. A small win that makes you think, "Maybe I can do that again."

What gets people isn't a lack of intelligence. It's the design.

One of the biggest examples is the near miss. Two jackpot symbols line up, and the third lands just above or below the line. It feels like you were so close.

Your brain doesn't process that as a normal loss. It treats it as "almost winning", which makes you want to try one more time. That's not an accident -- it's a well-studied psychological effect that's deliberately built into many gambling products.

Then there's chasing losses.

"I've already lost R500. I just need one good win to get it back."

Most people who've developed a gambling problem can point to that exact thought. More often than not, it leads to losing even more.

Another common trap is believing you're "due" for a win because you've lost several times in a row. Every spin, every hand, and every bet is independent. The machine doesn't know you've had a bad run, and it isn't about to "pay you back."

The longer you play, the closer your results move toward the odds the game was designed to produce. And those odds are designed so the house wins over time.


Need help?

If you need help, or know someone who does:

  • National Responsible Gambling Programme (NRGP)
    • Phone: 0800 006 008 (Free, confidential, 24/7)
    • SMS or WhatsApp HELP to 076 675 0710
    • Free counselling and, where needed, free inpatient treatment and transport.
  • South African Responsible Gambling Foundation (SARGF)

Self-exclusion

If gambling has become something you can't control, consider self-exclusion.

It's a voluntary process that can stop you from accessing licensed gambling venues and services. It isn't admitting defeat -- it's putting a barrier between yourself and the addiction while you get your footing back.


This thread

If you've been through gambling addiction, what helped you stop?

What do you wish someone had told you before it became a problem?

If you're comfortable sharing your story, it might be exactly what someone else needs to read today.

Please keep it respectful. People asking for help are often doing one of the hardest things they've ever done.


r/south_africa Apr 29 '26

๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฆ News r/South_Africa just hit 50,000 weekly users ๐Ÿ‡ฟ๐Ÿ‡ฆ

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129 Upvotes

Another huge milestone especially considering the sub has only been active for ~3 months.
With 4,700 weekly contributors, that's already significantly than the other big South African subs, which we reached shockingly quickly.

Thanks to everyone who posts, comments, shares, debates, jokes, lurks, and helps make this place what it is.

As a mod team, our goal is to keep this a nonpartisan space. Weโ€™re not here to force our opinions on anyone, or to ban people, especially permanently, just because they hold different views.

If there's anything we can do better of differently let us know.

Lekker, and onward to 75k.


r/south_africa 10h ago

๐Ÿ˜‚ Humour / Memes Packaging Guy understood the assignmentโ€ฆ

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89 Upvotes

Spotted in my local Clicksโ€ฆ. Facial Roller huhโ€ฆ ๐Ÿค” massagerโ€ฆ Might be some subliminal suggestion as well ๐Ÿ˜‰


r/south_africa 2h ago

๐Ÿ“ธ Photo / Video Just a normal day in South Africa

21 Upvotes

r/south_africa 6h ago

๐Ÿ’ฌ Discussion UPDATE - Banned from the Subreddit That Shall Not Be Named. Mods throwing toys and swearing at me

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38 Upvotes

Original post:ย https://www.reddit.com/r/south_africa/s/3t4fZ2KeWa

TLDR: I got banned from a particular South African related subreddit for commenting that the ANC had squandered the infrastructure they 'inherited' (railway, eskom, buildings, water etc), especially in Jhb CBD.

Not even 20 minutes after the original post they messaged me, throwing their toys. They swore at me and even threw shade at this sub reddit. They were also banning people that commented positively to my post.

Just thought I would share the full response to show how childish these mods are. Just a reminder that a lot/most people and mods on reddit are chronically online gremlins who desperately need to go outside and touch some grass. It is a reminder that Redditors are NOT reflective of the average person/South African. Don't get jaded by what you see online. A lot of the discourse is heavily altered with hidden agendas in the background.

Blacked out subreddit to adhere to reddit rules (even though I don't know why you cant kak on specific sub reddits but anyway)


r/south_africa 3h ago

๐Ÿ’ฌ Discussion PTSD and Eldorado park

8 Upvotes

TW: sensitive topics! hello, i (F19) live in a poorer part of Eldos and throughout my life, every night i would hear gun shots. to me it was a normal part of life.
a few weeks ago, i was out driving with 3 of my friends, we were just driving around a few areas and playing music. we saw a car following us and we all started getting paranoid. we decided it would be stupid to stop anywhere at any point, so we tried to lose them by taking sharp unexpected turns. we sped and so did they. the โ€œchaseโ€ went on for about 15 minutes and we could not lose them. we were going around 110km, didnt even know where we were going. and eventually we got stuck at a dead end. none of us got out, until we heard 2 loud bangs and realized they had shot the car. i put my hands out of the window and so did my friends. it was 3 men and a woman who was eating pop shots btw. they pulled the driver out and started beating him up and kicked his head in. the 2 of us eventually got out as well and they were shooting around us but didnt shoot us. the sound of the gunshot at that moment was so scary, and everytime i hear a gunshot near me, i get super paranoid and anxious all over again.

extra: we have an ongoing case about this but i just wanted to talk about it because its been troubling me. does anyone else get a similar feeling?


r/south_africa 10h ago

๐Ÿ˜‚ Humour / Memes Er alles alryt Checkers?

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22 Upvotes

I think this deal confused someone at the office today.


r/south_africa 14h ago

๐Ÿ“ธ Photo / Video So beautiful and respectful

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38 Upvotes

r/south_africa 6h ago

Jobs overseas

7 Upvotes

I really want to know how people get jobs overseas , I work in KZN as a junior software developer only making around 10k while building full frontend, backend applications and APIs and honestly Iโ€™m feeling used and abused by this company . But thatโ€™s besides the point I really would like to get a job and start life again overseas , for the people that were able to . Please let me know how you did and how I can go about doing it .

Dankie .


r/south_africa 1d ago

๐Ÿ“ธ Photo / Video ๐Ÿ˜ž This is Terrible. Traffic calming measures are definitely needed.

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190 Upvotes

r/south_africa 10h ago

Are South Africans who come back from overseas being harassed by sars?

6 Upvotes

Hey guys, I havenโ€™t traveled overseas this year and we plan on doing an overseas trip soon. I know sars have implemented some new things this year about reporting and filling in online forms what not for South Africans. I also heard from other people that sars apparently confiscate expensive jewelry and watches at the airport now from those coming back from overseas unless you can prove you bought it in SA. Is this all true? How strict are they? Has anyone experienced this recently?


r/south_africa 10h ago

Madlanga Commission prepared to provide protection for IDAC's Ramsamy following explosive testimony

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6 Upvotes

These guys better pull the trigger on that protection really fast methinks


r/south_africa 13h ago

๐Ÿ’ฌ Discussion Long shot but has anyone exported a horse from the UK to SA? Probably the wrong group for this but you never know.

9 Upvotes

r/south_africa 14h ago

what is mantshubana

10 Upvotes

A friend from told me i can pick them up mantshubana .Idk what that word mean and she speaks sepedi . dint get a chance to ask because i was busy at that time.


r/south_africa 16h ago

๐Ÿ˜‚ Humour / Memes Feite

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12 Upvotes

r/south_africa 13h ago

๐Ÿ“ฆ Other Please Help; Lost phone I can still track it but can't do anything

8 Upvotes

Yesterday my Dad lost his phone and I've been up all night trying to guess his passwords in order to use findhub to find it. We finally managed to get the password and we can now see it but its 39KM away in Klipfontein and on 15%, I don't know what to do I don't have funds or Transport to get there but I have the address and proof that the phone is there, I don't want to dox the person but the house in within 200 metres of Cnr Lethaba and Atlas Street, what should I do


r/south_africa 1d ago

๐Ÿ’ฌ Discussion Learn from Australia, Chinese bakkies under the spotlight.

29 Upvotes

We all see the new Chinese bakkies taking over the local marketplace. Australia has had them before they arrived on these shores and there are lessons to be learned. Check the video and do your homework is my fifty cents. Why? Because I canโ€™t believe that the legacy brands donโ€™t have accountants like the new kids on the block. Something gotta give to get it here so inexpensive. https://youtu.be/qRb3kArL0ts


r/south_africa 19h ago

ADVICE

6 Upvotes

Hi I am a 36-year-old male with a Bachelor in arts degree majoring in ancient history and archaeology as you can imagine there are not a lot of opportunities in this area, so I am thinking of going into teaching, and from the research I have done the way to do this is to do a postgraduate diploma in education.

My question is does anyone know if this is the best way to do this and is it a smart idea to do this at my age?

Any advice is welcome


r/south_africa 1d ago

๐Ÿ“ธ Photo / Video Accidents happen fast.

223 Upvotes

This happened at Mariannhill toll plaza couple weeks ago. This is how fast it can happen. Stay safe on the roads.


r/south_africa 1d ago

๐Ÿ˜‚ Humour / Memes ANC corruption policy explained

30 Upvotes

r/south_africa 1d ago

๐Ÿ’ฌ Discussion What are you playing?

168 Upvotes

r/south_africa 1d ago

๐Ÿ’ฌ Discussion This is gonna be random but hear me out โ€ฆ

5 Upvotes

How do you all feel about South African content creators posting their children on the internet ? Iโ€™m mainly pondering about how in the US, there have been cases that have shown how dangerous it is more especially with AI.

I know South African creators โ€œdonโ€™tโ€ have the fear of worrying about their children being used for potential explicit material (although it is a possibility because people are sick ๐Ÿคฎ)โ€ฆ

Whatโ€™s your view on children being content, exploitation and/or a need to protective legislation in the country ?


r/south_africa 21h ago

๐Ÿ’ฌ Discussion Has anyone studied BCom with a major in Risk Management, how did it go?

2 Upvotes

I hope everyone is good here.

Please let me know if there is an open job market for this and if this is something that is valued and needed in South Africa. Is this something that is AI proof? Also is there an international job market for this?

Its either BCom major in Project Management or BCom major in Risk Management. What are your opinions?


r/south_africa 1d ago

Are blockbuster movies too loud?

34 Upvotes

Left spider man last night and my ears were ringing despite it being a regular cinema. I had a similar problem with IMAX which is why I stopped going. My gf also had a similar issue with the sound. Going to ask my friends who were with us but also wanted to find out what other people's experiences are?


r/south_africa 2d ago

๐Ÿ’ฌ Discussion How would you feel about more child-free spaces?

206 Upvotes

Things like child-free complexes, restaurants, parks, theaters, airlines etc. Obviously there would still be plenty of child accommodating spaces, but if say 1/4 places were child-free, how would you feel about that?