Good day everyone.
So my gambling addiction starts back at 2018. Since then, there has been few £ thousands lost, lots of pain and misery but also some improvement.
At the beginning of 2020 (before covid hits), I realised that gambling was not fun anymore for me. I had lost already roughly £8K and stopped the heavy gambling, with the help of this forum and also the use of GAMSTOP self exclusion scheme.
Since 2020, I have kept this habit only using my girlfriends sports betting account, and as she knew how much I could deposit, I would play a tenner every now and then. Didn't cost me for a while, but I kept the bad habit.
Lately this account had some issues so I decided to gamble with an account of my own. Unfortunately I found a site where it by-passes GAMSTOP restrictions (don't try them, it's a fraud) and started blackjack live casino again. Was up last week at around £500 so it kept me hyped. I had an amazing weekend meeting friends and going out with my girlfriend and eventually tonight I played again and I had a losing streak and gambled away £1,720. Note that I am working and studying full-time and to save these money I need a year.
Roughly £9,200 lost since 2018. Starting from now day 0 to try to be gamble-free and I am sure I will recover emotionally and financially.
Just realised the lesson that once a compulsive gambler, always a compulsive gambler. Staying away from heavy gambling was so good, but you never know when you can relapse again.
So no forms of gambling for me ever again. Stay strong everybody. All the power is in ourselves, everything is achievable.
I understand what you are saying. The problem we gamblers have is that once started it is so hard to stop. As I am in recovery mode at this stage I find it comforting to just simply not start then you don't have to face the horrible challenge of stopping when you know it something that is just about impossible for a compulsive gambler to do. Best wishes to you.
@gerard-g Hi Gerard G, thanks for your reply.
I can tell you with 100% confidence, that the days where I was gamble free was the best days, I was feeling really good and focusing on important things in life.
The solution comes from ourselves only and it is in our minds to think in a gamble-free way. However, even if an ex-compulsive gambler is free, they can always fall again any moment. So we need to always stay away from any forms of gambling and stay free truly.
I am now on day 1 and looking to never go back again. Stay strong and all the best to everyone on their fights.
@bebeto1914 Hello. Can you say what you have done to now put gambling down?
Any changes to your life or any restrictions you have put in place or have you been honest to anyone who can help support you?
Chris.
@chris-uk Chris thanks for your message.
There are a couple of necessary steps for this.
1) Talk to people. Share your problem and realise that you have an addiction that can destroy your life. Be careful with whom you share this information with, though.
2) Self exclude from everything and use GAMSTOP and other tools like Gamban. Do not leave the chance to yourself to gamble.
3) Remember that you cannot gamble again, not even for fun (I forgot that yesterday).
4) The most important step. It is the fact that you need to understand what is going on your mind when you gamble. The way I understood it, is that everytime you place a bet, play slots, spin the wheel in roulette, wait for the card to open in blackjack etc, your brain releases some substances that give you the hype. These substances are HIGHLY addictive. That is why gambling is so hard to be stopped, that is why you carry on regardless of the outcome. It is worth watching this video - it made me understand everything when I watched it. removed link
EDIT: the video is called:
"Inside the brain of a gambling addict - BBC News" check it out in YouTube
5) You need to understand that gambling in overall does not make you feel good, it actually makes you feel horrible and isolated.
Keep strong!
@bebeto1914 You seem to misunderstand.
I don’t want to hear generic advice, I’d like to know what you have done to help yourself?
You’ve started again today at day 0/1. What have you done to help you stay off a bet?
Chris
@chris-uk I see what you mean. Well practically I self-excluded.
Went to work. Talked with a friend and explained that I felt like a loser.
Wrote in this forum. That happened all in the last 24 hours.
That was all. In my opinion however, if you don't understand the generic stuff that I wrote earlier, you won't be able to stay off a bet sooner or later, cause you won't understand the reasons of why you keep being addicted. That is why I wrote it.
@bebeto1914 That’s a good start for you.
I probably believe something a little different than you do, inasmuch as I don’t think it’s important to know why I gambled or about any chemical release. I attend gamblers anonymous weekly, I share my story, I talk about my feelings and I make changes to my character and my behaviour.
I would always recommend anyone giving GA a try for a few weeks to see if it can help you too.
Good luck on your journey and if you have any questions please ask.
Chris.
@chris-uk I think GA is a really effective solution, haven't tried it but it definitely sounds good.
Thanks for your advice. Keep strong and safe.
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