Hey all, figured I would ask this after sitting in my room last night having a think about my life and how it got to the point it is now. I’m 30 next week and I started down the path of gambling in my early 20’s starting on scratchcards then eventually getting hooked on the roulette wheel, blackjack and poker. So I started to think about my life and personality before gambling if it’s not to modest to say I was a nice guy, always there when a friend had a problem, selfless and very empathetic when gambling entered the picture I became selfish, cold, manipulative and conniving. I have to hope that when I’ve fully recovered from this addiction I can go back to being that person, I liked that person and could look at him in the mirror. Anyways I thought about my past, my childhood, teenage years and then my twenties up until now and I realised that I’ve always had an addictive personality, I always have to push a passion to the extreme. I’m the type of person that will find a new song and will put it on replay until I get bored with it (sometimes a couple of days or weeks). In my teenage years I discovered a game called World of Warcraft and it became an unhealthy obsession for me, I still went to school but I wasn’t putting in the work, my grades dropped and I left with mediocre GCSE’s then through my college years I discovered Marijuana and I started smoking it on the weekends at first until it became a daily habit...I’d have one when I woke up, one just before college, during lunch and at the end of the day and then continue when I got home until I crashed. In fact, strangely enough, the only that I did a lot of and didn’t get hooked on was drinking, I’m definitely a social drinker and I’m thankful that it’s one of the few things I can say I’ve never been addicted too or ever had the “urge” to do it to excess like with gambling.
So my question is do all compulsive gamblers have addictive personalities? Do you?
Hi Green,
Hello again. I've read a few of your posts now and I'm happy what I'm reading.
It's a good and common question you ask. In GA we speak about this a lot. Personally there is some truth in it, but personally I disagree. I've been hooked on a couple of games since Tomb Raider came out on PS1 many years ago, but slowly over time I matured found other things to do and life went on. However I've always struggled to put gambling down. Slots in the amusements as a kid, betting in the bookies as a teenager, then the ability to gamble on-line (which really was my downfall). I hated losing but always continued. Chasing losses became a normality. I think the "buzz" (like an adrenaline) that gambling and chasing brought to me was the FIX that I craved for. I sometimes used to physically shiver when I had a large bet running, so much so I had to put extra clothing on! Do I miss that fix, probably "yes", but do I miss my days of gambling and I can honestly say "no". I will always be a compulsive gambler but as long as I can add "recovering" in front of those two words I'm more than happy and with that makes me a better father and person.
All the best and keep up the good work. Keep posting.
Green2711 wrote:
Hey all, figured I would ask this after sitting in my room last night having a think about my life and how it got to the point it is now. I’m 30 next week and I started down the path of gambling in my early 20’s starting on scratchcards then eventually getting hooked on the roulette wheel, blackjack and poker. So I started to think about my life and personality before gambling if it’s not to modest to say I was a nice guy, always there when a friend had a problem, selfless and very empathetic when gambling entered the picture I became selfish, cold, manipulative and conniving. I have to hope that when I’ve fully recovered from this addiction I can go back to being that person, I liked that person and could look at him in the mirror. Anyways I thought about my past, my childhood, teenage years and then my twenties up until now and I realised that I’ve always had an addictive personality, I always have to push a passion to the extreme. I’m the type of person that will find a new song and will put it on replay until I get bored with it (sometimes a couple of days or weeks). In my teenage years I discovered a game called World of Warcraft and it became an unhealthy obsession for me, I still went to school but I wasn’t putting in the work, my grades dropped and I left with mediocre GCSE’s then through my college years I discovered Marijuana and I started smoking it on the weekends at first until it became a daily habit...I’d have one when I woke up, one just before college, during lunch and at the end of the day and then continue when I got home until I crashed. In fact, strangely enough, the only that I did a lot of and didn’t get hooked on was drinking, I’m definitely a social drinker and I’m thankful that it’s one of the few things I can say I’ve never been addicted too or ever had the “urge” to do it to excess like with gambling.
So my question is do all compulsive gamblers have addictive personalities? Do you?
Pretty much the same as you. I am 30 and almost 31 and still gambling, 7 months behind on 5 different creditors. I was always a nice guy, people tell me yet I have changed over the years because of this gripping addiction. I have played video games from a very young and till now I still do but I don't enjoy them like I used to due to gambling. Final Fantasy VII was one of the first games I got really into when I was around 7 and it got me into the series as a whole and most other RPG's, I even play WoW and Final Fantasy XIV still although I struggle to fund it due to gambling also. Ive also sold my consoles a few times and rebuying them again, another daily struggle of a compulsive gambler. Its hard to say if compulsive gamblers have addictive personalities. I'd definitely say gambling has made video gaming and general life for me less enjoyable.
Hi, I'm a compulsive gambler and I definitely have an addictive personality. I'm 53 now. I was addicted to sonic hedgehog when I was younger. Had to keep playing it. I was a good golfer and would practice shots over and over for hours on end. Didn't realise at the time but I was addicted to it. My gambling addiction was online roulette. I played the same numbers over and over again. I would go into a trance spinning continually never knowing when to stop. I also became a different person when gambling . No one could stop me and I became aggressive if anyone tried to talk sense into me. I've put gamban on my phone and my partner has hid my tablet and laptop. Wish I had done this earlier as it has definitely stopped me gambling. I wouldn't dream of going into a bookies. My latest addiction is playing scrabble online to keep my mind active but it's free and doesn't involve gambling so all is good.
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