20 Years old, £7500 debt, Need Help

Hi HP and Welcome.

I've read your post right through and what you say at the end is perfectly true. Gambling will hold you back and never mind the could completely ruin your future. If you continue IT DEFINITELY WILL RUIN IT.

You know where your at and it's not a good place so you've had the great sense to come to the forum for advice. You may want to take up the 2015 Challenge on here and or keep a forum diary. I've found the Challenge really good for me and I'm on day 36 of being gamble free (very much one day at a time though). The urges and gambling pangs have now lessened a great deal for me and they can for you too.

My immediate reaction is to advise you to contact gamcare for advice/counselling. It maybe that attending your local GA meetings would be beneficial.

You might want to put your finances in the hands of a trusted family member.

Order a new debit card and destroy the one you have. Give the new card straight to the family member and do not have sight of the long (pan) number and three digits on the back.

That way even if temptation overtakes you, gambling will not be possible.

You are still young and you can look forward to a long and happy gambling free life.

These are just some of my thoughts and others may post theirs.

Stay Strong.

Thanks for your advice, congratulations on being 36 days gamble free!

Unfortunately the GA meetings are about 2 hours away from me so hard to get to. I also looked at the skype sessions but I dont want my parents finding out that I'm gambling again.

I have tried letting my parents take control of my money before and it worked and I started to get better but after a couple of weeks I was back to the same old. I dont want to tell my mum as I feel she's finally starting to trust me again and it will break her heart if she finds out I've been dishonest about everthing (I still have to continue telling lies from over a few months ago just so she doesn't find out whats been going on). I feel as though I should have the willpower to just do it and I hate that I cant stop myself.

I will look in to the 2015 challenge now.

Thanks

Thanks HP.

As I say, other people may post advice for you as well. I'll just mention that I look at the various posts on this forum on a daily basis. I've found that it helps keep my mind focused. I've managed to do it without GA as well as I'm in a similar position to you in that I cannot divulge what's been happening to other family members. I do know of others posting on here that have quit without GA and or counselling. I think why the 2015 Challenge helps is because you see people going months and months without gambling. They have no intention of gambling ever again and it sort of rubs off on me and gives me the incentive to keep going.

Just one other idea. I'm a lot older than you but I've started to do a lot of physical exercise again and get so knackered that it seems to take away gambling pangs.

Cheers.

Everyone on here will tell you that it's great how young you are and if you stop you have your whole life ahead of you. Well they are right, if you don't face up to the damage gambling is causing you then 7500 will look small. This has the potential to ruin your whole life. So try stopping now and go out and enjoy the rest of your life. It will be tough at first but it does get easier and the sarafices you have to make smaller. I hope you stop and enjoy the rest of your life.

Hi HP,

22 year old gambler with a similar amount of debt and time consumed by this horrible disease! The likliness of your story to mine is uncanny! I too, have debts because of gambling and have used short term loan companies to finance it.

One thing that did ring alarm bells with me reading your story was that you gamble your pay cheques almost immediately. This was something that I did a few times, too. I have combated this by getting my wages directly paid into my Mum's account. This was a little embarrassing to arrange but it means that all my essential bills like rent and my Debt Managment Plan (also look into one of these if you still have outstanding debts and don't already have one) are paid for and not compromised by my addiction.

That's the only piece of advice I have for you at the moment as I would quite like to kick the constant thoughs of gambling and the gambling of money that I somehow do manage to get my hands on.

I hope that we and everyone else seeking help can kick this thing!

Hi HP...I see you joined in 2013, I've only just joined after starting gambling from a very young age, I'm now 47, and realised, you'll never win, only by eradicating every available opportunity to feed the habit, will you succeed in winning. Like you, I wasted my income from working Saturday at the age of 16, to my monthly income....it's not a competion to tell each other how much we've lost, or how much debt we've accumilated, for we ALL know, any money lost is painfull and dissolves our self worth as well as our bank balance...SO consider it a competition to tell people how long you've been free of this disease! Day 5 for me...keep it up, we all want you to succeed!!! YOU CAN DO THIS, it's not easy, no one will ever promise you that, so promise yourself, you're not going to let yourself or any of us concerned, understanding and caring fellow friends on this site....we're all in this together...Be strong, be successful!