From the first bet you placed to the last , can you describe the escalation? I thought that seeing people's outline of escalation could be helpful. " *I started with $20 max and I had to be coaxed to go into the casino. I almost cried at losing $20 in 25cent spins. I was at the casino for perhaps an hour. *I went another time with this friend and won $80! This win was the begining of exploring the entire casino a little at a time. But still, at that moment I was not entrawled. I will say that some safegaurd was lifted in my brain from that first win. * I decided that I did not like gambling after going 3 times nor did I want to return but I did when I was very hurt /bored and lonely and it was that night that I spent my first $500 betting still 20 or 25 cents a spin. * After that night I stayed away for a long time but friends/coworkers and people in town were always talking about the casino so eventually that exploration continued ... I went with my friend. We explored. We mainly did not come home with anything and then I started to play more than I told him I was/ we would separate in the casino. I played around $50 each time. * I started to go alone because I needed to be alone in order spend money that I'd be embarrassed to admit to the friend but still less than $100. * Soon 75 cent spins occassionally. * It took a few years to occasionally make $1.00 spins. At that point I was in the hole already. * When I found out about the atm, I started to spend $100 or more or less. * Stop and start... knew I needed to quit. Never went with friends and did not want to be seen or interupted. * The hours I spend there escalated from one hour to nearly an entire day. I would be on call for work and be at the casino needing to leave a machine to go to work... god, imagine that. *fast forward... after years of this behavior and feeding a large amount of my savings into slots I found recovery help and became a binge gambler. The relapse cycle. Over time the losses were huge! I'd start off with small bets (sometimes) and then it's was $1 $1.50 and sometimes $2 spins along with atm withdrawal extinction or (since I started working more) entire 2 wks to 1 month paychecks being burned through on those occassional trips. * Years of recovery resources and occasional binge gambling ... the binge gambling became more frequent... $2 spins and finally $5 spins! *As if the atm were bad enough now there were cash advances! * $5 spins and cash advances... small jackpots with taxes to be paid and the jackpot gone in same day... enough was enough and is enough. *If I were to continue for more years or even months I could and can see greater escalation such as highstakes machines and that one last night that takes it all or gives me back my losses . See, total escalation ! I do not want to do that! I will not. I'm making it so that I will not have an opportunity to ever take that last choice. tara2 grateful to be here and grateful to have any money at all to my name , a job , an older running vehicle, my health and some self respect .
Heya.
Started off at 20p and shamefully ended with £28 per spin. Back then my weekly shop.
Now £0 per spin, not spinned since and never would again. I think money loses value to gamblers.....always chasing the next big win. The bigger and better spin! Won £2k once and it wasn’t enough so used that as “tokens”, £28 tokens a time to be precise and lost the lot. Valuable lessons learnt but all good now.
Never underestimate the addiction......crazy, progressive and life changing!
All the best!
Abet
Progressive indeed. Thanks for sharing Abet. Looking forward to others shares on how this cg addiction is progressive because these details I believe can help us all to see tons of examples of how bets, time playing, losses, and suffering progresses thus givng more reason and fuel to focus on recovery. tara2
Hi Tara I'm a newbie and have been a slot player for over 30 years , the progression is a very good point to make as even though the bets got bigger and I now in debt 10.000 roughly its my health that I am now destroying ,every time I lose huge amounts I buy cigarettes and smoke non stop almost like I'm punishing myself and mentally the stress and worry gives me headaches and I isolate from friends and family I'm 57 and I feel like I'm slowly killing myself , my body can't take it anymore somehow I will clear the debt but once my health ruined that can never be recovered so that's why I have decided to stop now before its to late pink
I'm with you PINK, where I just can't and couldn't take it any longer. Couldn't and can't go on in life as a compulsive gambler. It's a slow ride to doom, illness, losses of all kinds. Escalation seems to happen for all compulsive gamblers and your post fits right in here... I thank you for sharing and I commend you for stopping and for beginning to shift to other choices. Yes, we can do this. tara2
Hi
I’ve gambled 20 odd year but the night I first binge gambled and did my b******s in I started playing £1/£2 NL.poker buying in at £200 a time at dinner time by 2am I was sitting down at £100/£200 with £40000 at the table. Epic escalation and no idea I had it in me to do that. All I needed was the money and opportunity and boom.
Since then the few times I’ve binge relapsed it’s been on roulette and similar progression although for smaller but still unaffordable amounts (start with £20 end up doing a months wage in).
It’s sad that this is even possible but it is so we have to be so careful and on our guard and take one day at a time.
I’m 99 days gamble free and thankful for every hard fought one of em.
Congrats on 99 days gf Godoicul! Thx for sharing about the way the escalation showed up for you while gambling. It is scary indeed ... to take a look at how the brain gives up it's rational functioning and just lights up to the addiction. tara2
I am a gambler with an addiction I can leave it for weeks but when I have a drink and money I gamble everything. Please help me
Hi Mother54 , it may be a good idea to post in new members forum or start a recovery diary as not many people will see you on this thread , I see you joined in 2015 has something triggered you to start again ? , I'm new myself so not sure how to advise you as not much detail in your post , so if you can give gamecare a call they will advise you hope you are ok .........Pink
It is a well known that gambling tends to escalate if we continue without help and effort and commitment. Have you seen your gambling escalate each time you slipped or relapsed? I certainly did. Perhaps it started off slowly but ultimately the escalation set in full force until once again there is another bottom. Given 5, 10, 15 years or more of gambling or stopping and starting up again, did anyone ever see control or moderation top or win out over the escalation of the addiction... higher higher more more ? Please post here so that others can see they are not alone and also so others who do not yet know that this addiction escalates can see examples. peace, tara2
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