Hi All,
I find my situation difficult to talk about as I’m embarrassed about my level of gambling and when I have a relapse, I tell myself I’ll never gamble again. Here I am after 10 years of gambling writing my first post.
I hope there is light at the end of the tunnel in being able to live life without the urge to gamble, noticing every gambling add and bookmakers
im afraid of losing my fiancé as she doesn’t know the real level of my gambling and the fact I’m 16k in debt.
my gambling has got more frequent and it could be due to losing a close relative who offered me the upmost support. I’m unsure if this has an impact on the amount I gamble as since then I seem to be doing it more often. It could just be another thing in my life I’m struggling to cope with.
I hear stories about other problem gamblers and worry what will happen if it continues to control my life and what my everyday thinking is.
I hope someone on here can help me understand what I need to do to live a gamble free life.
Thanks
Welcome back.
I have written about this before but will say that you are in such good company of like-minded souls that have all fallen off the wagon at some stage or another. Some more than others. So my question is when we start treating that happening as a learning experience instead of a major defeat? Yes, gambling is not alcoholism or being a drug addict. It does not smell and does only leave a financial mark that can be hard to hide but you can hide it and pretend to be normal and most of the outside world will be none the wiser.
People find it hard to stay off gambling because we distort our memories. It is proven that the more you think about your past experiences the more diluted and changed they will become. So at some stage down the road of recovery, you will have slightly altered your perceptions of what you thought about the gambling experiences you had earlier. In short, you will forget that you were sick or at least how sick you were and that with a combination of enforced conditioning by the gambling industry (ie advertising) can set you off like a new lighted stick of dynamite and,,, were off to the races again. And we go on and on and on.
But if you are aware of this. 2 things can happen. 1 You can keep strategies in place for the next time or 2 you learn to be kinder to yourself to make it bearable. And besides that, your mind starts getting the tick-tack-toe experience of Joshua in the film war games. It is a game that can not be won. It's pointless to waste off time and resources. It is disassociation that you can get just as well by playing a video game or finding time to work out. It is about changing routines and setting goals. Without a captain, the ship will drift and you can forget about your destination if you don't know where to steer the ship. Take charge. Own your decisions and be kinder to yourself because you are here to learn and you will figure it out.
Best
C
Hi Cj,
I can relate to you very much on how embarrassing it is to talk about gambling and people who are not gamblers will say ‘just stop’ . I think the reply from c43h could not have been worded any better. Some fantastic advice.
Take each day at a time and reach out to us on here if you feel like you are struggling.
we are all in the same boat and can beat this evil addiction together.
Craz
Afternoon mate,
hows things going??
Craz
Afternoon Craz
I’m good mate how are you?
Still going strong! How you getting on?
CJ
Good to hear mate glad your well??
Going well mate, 4 days gf now feeling stronger each day.
Taking each day at a time .
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