Signs of an early addict/problem gambler?

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alwaysred
(@alwaysred)
Posts: 1
Topic starter
 

Hello all,

About 6 months ago on a rainy Sunday afternoon I decided to make an account on a popular UK casino website and play with my brother for some fun after it was advertised to me online. 

I signed up for the website; didn't take any bonuses, yes I really did read the bonus T&Cs, I made a deposit. I hit up the slot section loaded my stake into a slot machine... first spin was a win. I couldn't believe that I actually won - I always thought online slots were a scam designed to take all your money. I decided to keep on gambling with that money and ended up winning two jackpots on that very same machine withdrawing a substantial amount. 

That was 6 months ago. Today and hundreds of thousands of spins later, I find myself thinking about this one specific slot machine all the time, the music, the sound effects, the lights and the bonuses... I literally have dreams about it. When I've played for a long time, I close my eyes and can see the reels spinning and the bonus mode lighting up.

Sometimes I stay up for weekends gambling across multiple websites, I usually have 4 or 5 different casino websites open, with the same machine spinning them all. I always feel depressed on Sunday night, even if I've won loads of money, i feel dirty... and invasive thoughts of the machine constantly. 

I've also completely changed my values in regards to the worth of money,  last Wednesday for example I won a decent figure from a modest deposit and put it all back to the same machine within about 2 hours... this has happened countless times. This weekend I lost systematically (10 deposits to a new website). I'm still thinking about going back and trying to recover it. Sometimes when I lose the winnings like this, I go into roulette and do a figure stake on red/black, close my eyes and beg god (non-religious).

I don't know if anyone else can relate but I'm also getting bombarded with targeted marketing campaigns across social media. Every advert on facebook/twitter/instagram is gambling/slots related. It makes me think about gambling, sometimes I sign up and gamble... sometimes it triggers me to go to my desktop and do some gambling on my go-to websites. 

To conclude, I'm in my mid-twenties, I work full-time from home and have a very good income. I'm worried that I'm potentially at risk of developing a addition and losing everything that I've worked so hard to build. I'm up by quite a lot atm but I know that the casino could take that all back from me. 

I feel like the slot machines are designed to lure problem gamblers in, every win gets smaller and smaller- nothing was bigger than my first every spin. Sometimes I feel that I am trying to recapture this moment. 

Any slot gamblers with advice? Does anyone else here have non-financial problems with gambling? Is it normal to win so much from online casinos? 

I'm afraid that this is going to develop into something uncontrollable. 

 

 

 

This topic was modified 5 years ago by Forum admin
 
Posted : 2nd September 2019 7:08 pm
Joydivider
(@joydivider)
Posts: 2156
 

Hi alwaysred and welcome to the forum

Your post is full of confusion that develops with an addiction. In my view you are clearly an addict and active gambler. 

The addiction is causing you to seek advice as if you can merrily carry on and win under total control

The reality is that you need to write down what your losses are after all those spins. I can confidently say they are draining your money fast as its no income scheme.

Those slots are and will continue to totally destroy you. You seem hooked on describing upsides...what are those again?

The reason you are here is the truth. You have been paying for the lifestyle of the machine owners. The odds are totally against you and you need to read about and understand those odds.

With a random number generator the odds are thousands or millions to one depending on how that slot is designed. The small prizes are not giving you any sort of hit as they are there to promote a false sense of activity.

Does something come out? Rarely! Im not denying that. I am saying it will never be when your lucky clover mind expects it and gambling kills people!

They were called one armed bandits for a reason...why do you think the new style of machines are the road to heaven? Your addicted mind is thinking of the opiates or the endorphins of playing

We were all mainly addicted to the hit of playing. You are  talking about your own comfort zone to hide the pain...Good Income family friends....Gambling will take all that away from you fast...It doesnt care one jot!. The algorithm of the machine is programmed to pay for the yacht insurance of its designers and owners.

They have sold you a dream and you bought into it. Now you are hooked because they do a very good job at selling you the drug.

No its not normal to win much...its very rare or they would be out of business...Its misery money of all the other punters who were suckered in...every tenner screaming the pain of someone starving or turning to crime.

Youve started but you need a good hard think. Abstention and telling people close is the only way.

Best wishes from everyone on the forum

This post was modified 5 years ago by Joydivider
 
Posted : 3rd September 2019 10:57 am
Tracey63
(@tracey63)
Posts: 40
 

Hi please believe me when I say these slots will destroy every aspect of your life. Not just money far far more. They will take away your self respect, destroy relationships and leave you broken. The companies do not care and will continue to allow you to deposit after deposit to chase an impossible win. Your post shows that you already know it is becoming a problem to you. Your a young person with your whole life ahead of you please don't let gambling destroy this. Put those blocks in place NOW, and get as much support as you can. This addiction has no boundaries but you can stop it. 

 
Posted : 3rd September 2019 1:05 pm
(@anonymous2)
Posts: 147
 

The only way to stop the slots addiction is not to feed it. It's not called the crack C*****e of gambling for nothing. To begin with you won't want to stop, and then when you do, it turns out you can't.

But if you can stop while you are still so far ahead (money-wise) then you'll soon regain your original clarity plus you'll have the added bonus of keeping those winnings.

Otherwise you can carry on and watch the wins all disappear bit by bit until they've all gone and you get so muddled in your thinking that you start using all your income up instead, then after your income it will be the loans and debt you acquire to feed the slots.

The machines have done their work, they have reeled you in. Now all they have to do is wait.

No win will ever feel like that first big one, so there's little point in trying to recapture that feeling.

If you still have the amount you mentioned in group chat the other day, there's a lot of good stuff you can do for yourself with that amount, especially at your age with all your life ahead of you. Premium Bonds, or a car, or a few holidays, or a house deposit, maybe even a private pension scheme. Your future self will thank you for quitting slots.

If this advice doesn't help, then research the odds on slots, and read as much as you can, including all the posts on here and the reviews of the online sites on Trustpilot. Just to get an idea of the bigger picture.

I really do wish you well. I won a jackpot in the first fortnight and it took 9 years to get to the point where I could see sense afterwards. I reckon I gave it back times 10 simply because I thought it meant something and that I could do it again.

 

 

 

 
Posted : 4th September 2019 12:36 pm

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