1st day of honesty

Hi Paul,

Just logged on and spotted your post. Well done on taking the first step by coming on here and admitting you have a problem.

I was in the same position as you only 4 months ago. I was thousands in debt, couldn't keep up with the payments and my wife knew nothing about it. Not sure if you have an other half to confide in, if you do I would recommend coming clean. It was the best thing I ever did.

I was lucky in the fact that after the initial shock my wife has been so supportive. She now looks after the finances and I have blocks in place. Self exclusion, blocking software on all my devices, and most importantly she has taken charge of all of the finances. If you don't have a partner is there someone else who can help in this regard? Also, take advantage of the free counselling offered by Gamcare and get yourself down to GA, you'll be amazed at how good it is, so many people in the same position and you will hopefully find it a great support.

You don't say much about your financial difficulty, mine was all on credit cards. If it is, get in touch with whoever you owe money to and explain your situation. I had large debts on 7 different credit cards and told every single one of my gambling problem and every one was supportive and arranged smaller payments and stopped the interest. I have now entered a debt management plan so make one payment every month and will never pay another penny of interest. Whatever you do, don't bury your head in the sand mate, people want to help.

I was at rock bottom 5 months ago, didn't know where to turn and was very close to ending it all. But there is a light at the end of the tunnel. it's never too late!

Good luck and let us know how you're doing.

PA

Hi Paul

Welcome to the forum and and making the first steps to admit you have a gambling problem and your life has become unmanageable. I don't need to say anything more than proudarab already has because in a nut shell he has covered everything that you need to know. I would definitely ring the gamcare helpline and seek advice from them as they are very helpful, it's very hard in the early days to stop gambling but life is so much better when we are not gambling as I know as I'm approaching 100days GF. They say you have to hit your rock bottom for the recovery process to work and I know you have said this so hopefully you can get directed onto the right paths and put things in place so you have a gamble free good life. Hope you get sorted and will watch for future updates.

All the Best

Darren

Hi Paul Spargo

Welcome to the forum. Yes its that first moment of honesty which is so important. Its a lightbulb of clarity coming on. I liken it to a born again moment because I felt like a new person ready to tackle the real issues.

When the gambling stops everything has a way of falling into place believe me. The main thing is that the gambling stops completely then you can look at life and your finances in a new way.

Your mental health and quality of life take priority. I say to anyone with financial issues that you can not let them worry you to illness.

In full recovery you will become calmer. Thats what you did with your money and its not coming back . It is not a get it back later scheme so you learn to enjoy whats really important in your life.

There is plenty of help for you and you can only pay off what you can afford at any given moment

Please read the forum right through and phone gamcare. You will get all the correct advice here like self excluding and telling people close. You must not try and do this alone....its almost impossible to do it that way.

Being gamble free is a wonderful feeling of self respect and dignity. I know you can join us in full recovery

Best wishes from everyone on the forum

Hello Paul Spargo and welcome to the forum

There are steps you can take to ban yourself from using betting shops and online sites please see information here on self -exclusion for information and guidance for this Paul. http://www.gamcare.org.uk/get-advice/what-can-you-do/self-exclusion

There is also help you can get with debt advice from some agencies such as the national debt line and stepchange

http://www.gamcare.org.uk/get-advice/what-can-you-do/finance-and-debt-management

We also have a helpline where you can speak with an adviser who will listen to your concerns and they can give you information on other support available such as free counselling or group support with Gamblers Anonymous.

The helpline freephone number is 0808 8020 133 and the lines are open 8am -midnight everyday and there is also a netline where you can speak with advisers http://www.gamcare.org.uk/support-and-counselling/frontline-services/netline

Keep posting we are here to support you

Take care

Forum admin