The word is used with affection and pride, particularly in crypto and options forums, where degen plays means high-leverage, short-dated, low-information bets taken for the thrill as much as the money.
The irony is doing real work. Calling yourself a degen pre-empts criticism, turns losses into content, and makes the behaviour a personality rather than a decision. That framing is exactly what makes it hard to notice when it stops being a joke; the markers in gambling-disorder-signs apply the same whether or not the losses are funny.
Related: ape-in, yolo, gambling-disorder-signs, loss-porn