Hello,
I've found myself creating an account on here this evening, after spiralling even more out of control today. I hope you don't mind but I would like to list my timeline as to how I've got to the point I'm at. Will keep it short, and any advice you can give me, particularly over coming to terms with losses would be hugely appreciated...
- 3 years ago, lost about £200 on very low stake slots on one particular site.
- was gutted about the loss, but closed the account and worked to make the money back doing online offers (not gambling related, one of these sites that you can take a trial of something for x number days then get paid for it etc.)
- thought no more of it. October 2016 money was tight, and i again went online to type in the age old search of 'how to make money online'...stumbled across matched betting and taught myself the basics.
- made about £4k from it...but in doing so I had opened at least 40 different accounts with all sorts of bookies/casinos. i would say i was addicted to the matched betting element, but was literally doing it to the penny, avoiding any 'gambling' so to speak.
- then this changed in May last year and i took a fancy to a slot I'd used for an offer and started playing it, beyond the matched betting.
- was constantly chasing losses but luck on my side, I would always end up getting it back eventually and more. in hindsight, had I not got any of it back, things might have been different.
- flash forward to today and i'll be honest i don't even know how much i've lost. it's always the same slot, and i find myself going on to every account that has it, trying to get my hit. i used gamstop and blocked all my accounts. my partner was aware and i promised i would stop. i still couldn't cope with how much i had lost- probably about £3k. whilst i had made this matched betting, i was using it to sustain my monthly outgoings, so i had to transfer out of my house deposit savings to cover it. so to start recouping some of what i'd lost, my partner and i agreed i could matched bet in his name on the condition i didn't gamble. the actual matched betting lasted all of a day, and i've now spent about another £3k in all of the accounts i reopened in his name. he doesn't know the extent of it.
- i downloaded allen carrs stop gambling the easyway book and read it before christmas. i managed not to gamble since before new year. today i decided stupidly to try my hand at matched betting again, and you guessed it, sucked straight back in.
- so now i want to self exclude my partners name - he doesn't use any of the accounts. but the illogical part of my mind is saying this cuts off ever being able to make back any money matched betting. except i've just shown to myself i can't be trusted to do it sensibly. i had nearly made back my losses from today about 10 minutes ago, when the addiction got the better of me and i ramped the stakes up to £15 spins and blew the lot again - so in many ways it clearly isn't about making back the losses i'm aware.
I'm actually now frightened as to how far this will go and writing it all down here only emphasises to me what a mess it is. I haven't eaten today, literally just been sat in front of the laptop, I can feel the adrenline going through me. I've been ill several times over the last few months because of the guilt, disappointment etc. It's incredible to see how many people are inflicted by this awful addiction. sorry i said it would be short, and it's not! apologies also for the lack of punctuation and capitals, just wanted to get it all down. would love to hear from anyone who found themselves in this situation as a result of matched betting too, as this seems to be what i'm most torn between - gambling vs matched betting.
look forward to speaking x
Matched betting is a gateway.It allows the industry to showcase their more lucrative (for them, not you) offerings which is why they tolerate it.
Unaddressed this will spiral and you're right to be frightened of where it could go. A quick read through the diaries here will show you if you need any more convincing.
You know you need to close down and SE these accounts or you wouldn't be here. If the bookies twig they're not 100% legitimate they won't pay out anyway. Any excuse. Involve your partner. Tell him there's a problem. Get him to close them down and register for GamStop so you don't have to be involved. Let him handle the money. Read through these forums and act on the advice you see. Get some counselling, go to GA. You've recognised there's a problem early and you have a golden opportunity to stop before too much damage is done. Use it.
Thanks for the reply Lethe. You're right it is a gateway and to be honest, addiction seems to be very hush hush within the matched betting community. I feel such a fool - I will walk an extra 15 minutes down the road to save 10p on a pint of milk, and yet hiking my stakes up to £15 a time seems to come so easily to me. I've been reading for the last couple of hours, it's enlightening.
Thank you for sharing this with us.
I too couldn't stop myself with this one slot game, never even played another one. If I had a decent win on a 20p or 40pm spin, I'd think I should have done a £1/£2/£5 spins to win even more, and well end up losing so much money...
Hang in there!
Have you processed your partner's ban on GamStop? Also, will you tell him the truth?
there really is no difference between gambling & matched betting both are designed to pump you full of adrenaline
too much adrenaline = lack of rational thought = degenerate gambling
it really is as simple as that ……there are very very few people who are able to manage rational gambling the whole process is designed to make you lose control
when people win there is no better feeling on earth , when people lose control and more they can afford it is an horrendous addiction that ruins lives
ultimately the casino doesn’t care whether you win or lose ……its making its profit on every bet thatmade either way
the decision lies with (us) the users do we want to risk all we have on a game of chance
ive popped up in online casinos in the past and turned £6.50 into £300 in all of 20 mins ……
alternatively ive gone in with £300 and left with £9 in 20 mins
it’s a harsh world and nobody else really cares wether you blow all your money gambling or not
the responsibility is with us as fully grown adults to either put an end to the risky & uncertain lifestyle or continue with it
good luck
nipped wrote: there really is no difference between gambling & matched betting both are designed to pump you full of adrenaline
too much adrenaline = lack of rational thought = degenerate gambling
it really is as simple as that ……there are very very few people who are able to manage rational gambling the whole process is designed to make you lose control
when people win there is no better feeling on earth , when people lose control and more they can afford it is an horrendous addiction that ruins lives
ultimately the casino doesn’t care whether you win or lose ……its making its profit on every bet thatmade either way
the decision lies with (us) the users do we want to risk all we have on a game of chance
ive popped up in online casinos in the past and turned £6.50 into £300 in all of 20 mins ……
alternatively ive gone in with £300 and left with £9 in 20 mins
it’s a harsh world and nobody else really cares wether you blow all your money gambling or not
the responsibility is with us as fully grown adults to either put an end to the risky & uncertain lifestyle or continue with it
good luck
Fantastic, brutally honest and candid post. Read and read again.
Thank you so much for your responses and wise words.
This week has been a bit up and down. Still playing tug of war with myself to sign second accounts up to gamstop vs the notion that I can still matched bet 'sensibly' and make some money back. Proved to myself last night after Monday and Tuesday being gamble free that I can't manage sensible. A basic offer where I made ВЈ5 turned into a £100 loss...so I tried sign partners accounts up to gamstop but they can't verify him. Trying to persuade him to phone them now but he feels silly getting involved. I did start a very intricate painting by numbers canvas which is a new hobby on Tuesday. This is a great time passer after dinner but I'm finding my urges are worse as soon as I get in the door from work. Sunday's also bad so trying to get gamstop in place before the weekend.
Having read a few hundred diaries on here, I can recall at least three others who started via matched betting.
There have also been a few who started gambling via completing sign up offers to earn in-app currency in random (non-gambling related) phone games, or to earn a few quid via cashback sites.
It doesn’t matter how innocuous it was when it all started. It all leads to the same disease. Matched betting is no longer an option for us, due to the disproportionate risks involved. How much time do you have to spend per day, doing nothing but looking through sites and odds, to find a few arbs/offers and make maybe £20? Every time you do it, you risk a full blown relapse of hundreds to thousands. It’s really not worth the risk to your sanity.
For me it took months for the gambling fog to clear post Gamstop. When still actively betting, I didn’t want to stop either, being able to make money from it makes stopping so much harder. There are a lot of professional poker players who have ruined their lives due to being unable to stay away from putting their winnings into casino. It took such a huge toll on my headspace, constantly planning bets in my head even when in the midst of a conversation at work. And keeping the gambling demon alive daily made me escalate to the point I was seriously considering plonking down a single £20k football bet. It just wasn’t worth it.
I do art (watercolours) and watch a ton of Netflix instead now.
Please do try your best to get Gamstop in place asap. If he doesn’t want to do it on the phone, you can do it via the live chat on the gamstop site instead, and just email in a form and some documents.
Brucey-b, your points are so accurate.
I too have been doing cashback offers, then found myself frantically searching as soon as I created the account for the same slot.
Matched betting is painstaking to be honest, you hit the nail on the head there...what's ВЈ20 an evening when it leads to -£100 every time and worse. And for me I'm well aware I get no hit out of the sports bets, so it's straight to the casino within seconds.
Thinking back before it turned into a problem, I was racing home from work to make my ВЈ5 profit etc, plotting and planning whilst working. I'm realising whilst reading posts this evening I was already in the trap then, wasn't losing money but was getting a hit out of it that soon wasn't enough which lead me to some 20p spins, escalating eventually to £15.
I so want to be able to change my mindset now around how I feel about giving up the 'opportunity' to make money back.
As I'm sure most have, when I first went a few hundred down and read about people who had lost hundreds of thousands and wished they had stopped way back, I now wish my losses were just a few hundred again. I know if I don't stop I'll will be hitting 5 figures and more.
Im accepting a little more tonight that the losses need to be written off now and be grateful for what I still have.
My first gamble free Friday evening in a long time. Usually a bad night for me, thinking that if I win back a chunk of money I can have a relaxing happy weekend (who am I fooling, as any wins have gone by Saturday eve). Watched new itv drama tonight on catchup, didnt realise the plotline was so gambling focussed and felt humiliated watching it. But have still managed to stay clear of the slots. Maybe this weekend could genuinely be relaxed and happy without the gambling. About to do some painting next...onwards and upwards.
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