Hi everyone
I'm really glad I have found this website and this forum. I started matched betting and casino offers 2 and a half years ago and have done pretty well from them...but every now and again when I was bored I would blow some of my profits on online slots, justifying it to myself that it was not my wages, but money I had made from matched betting. Anyway, I have been doing this more frequently and it has got to the stage where I feel a real physical sense of anxiety, shallow breathing etc when I am doing online casino...bit hard to explain...but I hate it. I hate that I was constantly hunting for new offers and not happy with the money I had made. I would play late at night then start first thing in the morning on my phone in bed....do offers at work on my phone etc. I hate the way it was all I could think of. I have been a member of two subscription sites which tracked my profit with fancy graphs etc...it all looked great, but it was so easy to slip into gambling away from the offers. My children were aware that I made extra money on the side through matched betting and that I did online casino offers, but they have learned about gambling at school and how could I possibly explain the difference between what I was doing and what they had learned? I don't want them growing up thinking gambling is normal.
The last straw was a couple of nights ago when I had an email from a bingo site and so decided to deposit and play and get free spins. I lost my deposit, didn't get the free spins, and then continued playing until I had lost a lot of money that could have gone to a holiday or something. Today I have self-excluded from nearly all the sites I have signed up to and signed up to Gamstop for the rest. I need to tell my partner so he can close the accounts in his name that I use on his behalf.
Dear (@clarean)
Welcome to the Forum and for sharing your story. I would like to commend you for taking the steps to self exclude and want to reassure you that there is lots of support available.
You are more than welcome to contact us and speak with an adviser on 0808 8020 133 via our helpline of if you prefer out Live Chat which are both available 24 hours. We are happy to discuss further your options with you and or signpost you to the necessary services or agencies.
Please do continue to share your story and I wish you all the best with your recovery.
Best wishes
Forum Admin
Thank you. I spoke to someone on live chat yesterday which was very helpful as it was the first time I had spoken to anyone about it. I have come clean to my partner today who was very understanding thankfully, but didn't see it as a big deal...he is not easily shocked....even when I told him the amounts. I am still going to have some counselling though as I think I have anxieties about debt and money due to past bankruptcy.
Hi there . I have been through horrific addiction for over ten years .. lost significant inheritance money and likely could have bought one if not two houses outright by now without gambling coming into my life You have done the right thing and counselling will help. My gambling became a frenzy after I lost both my parents and I now understand and accept why I gambled and still have gambling urges. It is a process and stopping will be the best thing you will ever do. Many of us have been there tho. You are not alone in this addiction. All the best
Matched betting is a way for bookies to showcase the offerings that make them money. They'll suck up the fairly minimal losses in the hope of suckering the big spenders.
Don't let your partner be too understanding or not see it as a big deal. You're in the fortunate position of recognising the problem before it becomes all consumingingly destructive. Get your blocks in place and at a minimum make your finances transparent to him.
You haven't run the family finances into the ground...yet.
thank you for your replies...I think the reason why my partner has been so relaxed is because he has got used to the extra money as he lost his job over lockdown. He has family experience of the deadly consequences of drugs/alcohol abuse and just does not see my addiction as in the same league. I know full well that if I had a life crisis I would be more susceptible to gambling. I have had those feelings of fear of missing out all day today...but have kept myself occupied. I did park run this morning for the first time in ages and when I finished and got back to the car I could not stop crying...but I suppose that is all part of the process of finally admitting I have had a problem and the release of it. yesterday my middle child had a massive anxiety wobble and my mum had a suspected mini stroke, that combined with me finally deciding to deal with the gambling has meant today has been an emotional day.
It will get easier .. so many of us have been there . Gambling is like any other addiction and nothing to be ashamed of . It is a cry for help or way of numbing feelings, often blocking out life stresses. Onwards and upwards
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