Hi there, my name is Jim, I am 25 and completely in denial about my idiotic gambling habbits.
I have gambled using online poker since I was very young and never really seen a problem with it. About 5 years ago I discovered the touch screens in the bookies and have lost about double what my current yearly salery amounts to in that time. I will admit to having gambled well beyond my means but somehow I always manage to justify "one more time" to my self and it has now got too much for me.
I banned my self (about a month ago) from the 3 poker sites I have used for years and haven't even considered trying to gamble online since doing so. However the bookies still haunts me. Any time I walk by I find my self contemplating ways to have a go without my long suffering girlfriend finding out. I love her dearly and would never dream of doing anything to harm her but for some reason I am quite happy to walk in the bookies and spank 200 - 600 without thinking about the fact it is affecting both mine and my girlfriends future.
I live in a small town and plan on banning myself from the one bookies tommorow, fingers crossed I go through with it as the last time I attempted this I lost about 1,000 within 3 days of walking in the door.... to ban myself!
I really don't know how to go about this and figure posting here is a good start. I look forward to any reponses people may have.
Thank you for reading,
Jim.
Hi Jim,
Thanks for your post, and welcome to the forum. I'm glad that you're reaching out, and hope you find the forum a supportive place.
It really sounds like you've taken a beating from all the gambling you've done, and that stopping at this point would improve your life tremendously. I do hope you're able to be successful in banning yourself from the bookies, and please let us know how you get on. Is it possible for you to take someone you trust with you when you go, to lessen the risk that you'll end up gambling in there? What about being more open with your girlfriend? No, she won't be happy about your gambling, but she could be a very good ally for you in quitting, and could give you some needed support. She's much more likely to stand by you if you ask for her help, rather than her finding out about things some other way and feeling like you're leading a double life.
In addition to banning yourself, have you thought about getting counselling for this? That helps a lot of gamblers to address the underlying reasons for why they gamble, and can help you with ways to manage your urges better. That's something we could point you in the direction of if you want to get in touch with us on either our Freephone number or the Netline.
Hope this helps, and please let us know if we can do anything else for you.
Hang in there,
Travis
Hi Jim
Your story rings strong bells with myself and my own battles with these machines.
Firsty, i really hope you went ahead with the self exclusion. Trust me when i say this - when you take that step and walk out after self excluding you feel like a whole weight has been taken off your shoulders!
You'll prob be tempted to visit other bookies nearby but from the sounds of things you live in an area quite remote which is a really good thing!!
We both know that playing these machines isnt about trying to make money, winning is actually a bad thing, all it means is that you'll just be back the very next day. Im not saying its easy staying away but im sat here now knowing i cant just have a walk down to my bookies 5 mins away and lose all my money - it really does take the pressure off!!
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