So I’ve been working in a bookmakers for about 2 and a half years now and before I started I used to only bet £1 every Saturday on the football and that was it, one week I won like £500 and upped my stake to £2. I then started working in a bookmakers and saw my bets going to £5 which was big for me at the time. I move from that bookmakers as it was too quiet to a different bookmakers as they were busier. I was there for other a year and a half with no problems then one week I started to print free bets out on my till and use them for myself just because I was skint from gambling all my money away in 3 days of getting paid this is how bad I had got. Eventually I was caught after 6 weeks and got the sack. 2 months ago I managed to get a job at a new bookmakers and was offered deputy manager position which is when I self excluded from all online gambling, it felt good. But today I had a relapse I lost my last bit of money on a fobt in a coral, and my brain got the better of me, I found myself writing bets out and betting in my own shop, I felt really bad when doing it, but I had to keep trying to get the money back every loss to make my till balanced. This didn’t happen I pretended there was less money in a machine hoping that tomorrow I don’t hear anything. But I was close to tears I never wanted this to happen at my new job. I love working there but my problem is eating away at me daily. I would never steal from my job but they may consider that wrong. I don’t want to lose my job. Do I come clean to a college to get help and try save my job? Or do I see what happens with the current situation first and hope nothing is said then get help?
Whatever happens you need help, that is for sure. This is typical compulsive gambler behaviour, we make crazy irrational decisions as we just cannot help ourselves regardless of the consequences. Even if you lose you job over this (and lets be honest palceing bets without paying for them is bascially stealing) you should go get some help, I would start at your nearest GA meeting, open up about this problem.
If you do hold on to your job you really need to consider a new career, imagine asking an alcoholic to run a pub, it would be a recipie for disaster as is the case in your situation. Get help and support and tackle this addiction.
I'd say whatever you choose to do you can't be working in a bookies anymore.
You are clearly an addict, a compuslive gambler and this is the worst environment you could be in. What you did is stealing money (whatever any of us think about the gambling operators) and you can get in more trouble than worrying about your job.
You need to get help, give Gamcare a call and speak to someone. You need to get blocks in place but you really need to sort out if that is really a job position you should be holding with your struggles with gambling.
I know I need help that’s why I’m unsure if to speak up about what I’ve done to a college and see if they can help me get help and potential save what little chance I have of keeping this job
Hi BeenRoundThebookies,
Please feel free to call us on the Helpline and speak to an adviser one-to-one on 0808 8020 133. It sounds like you are about to potentially make some important decisions and it may be helpful to talk through your options and what other support is available with someone.
Best Wishes
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