Good evening to all.
Hoping for some help and support which I can see from the posts on this that this is the place to be.
26 years old stupid amounts of money wasted on flashing lights and the hope of hitting something.
I feel an awful amount of guilt as the people I have affected the most because of this didn't know it was happening so for them to find out was the worst part. Gambling to me was some days a really good time and the only time I would ever be on my own doing something I wanted to do. Sitting usually in a bookie talking to the man or lady behind the jump whilst piling excessive amounts of money trying to see how many jackpots in a day I could hit...
Now sitting in my home with overdue credit cards etc it wasn't fun... it was irresponsible.
I am completely embarassed having to admit my money problems to people I love.. is this a normal feeling?
What tips do people have to guide me through this experience...
Thank you all
Hi Barney , My names' Alan and I'm a Compulsive Gambler , Welcome to the forum :)).
I'm assuming your describing the Fobt machines in the bookies which I might add were my downfall , I'd lost many thousands of pounds on them over a few years of playing .
Being embarrassed is quite normal and why wouldn't it be , your standing in front of those you claim to love telling them basicly that , youv'e an addiction thats way out of control , youve lied to them in order to cover your tracks and losses and your in debt to the tune of many thousands of pounds .
It's also very empowering as gambling thrives on secrecy and by you letting your nearest and dearest know about your problem , gambling has nowhere to hide , all the time you keep it a secret between the two of you there's no one else to justify it to ?.
You know the debt youve ammased can be repaid over time or if your going to struggle with it then maybe give gamcare a ring and they can give you people like stepchange's phone number or point you in the right direction , sometimes worrying about the debt we have can send us back gambling again in order to try and win some money back but the reality is your just going to keep on chasing it and end up losing more and more really .
Those machines in the bookies can never be beaten my friend , I've tried all sorts of systems , patterns and betting stratorgies but always lost what ever I did , it's utter madness when you think that your quite happy to sit there and shove huge amounts of cash in them , spin a hundred quid every few seconds and for what ? , to possibly win a max £500 if your luck enough to have the max stake on one number ! , £500 is not life changing money , in today's world it's not much at all really but that's what we'll risk everything for , the trouble is it's nit about the money for us anymore it's just the buzz which cost us more and more to get and we simply will never win because we can never stop !!.
Self exclusions are agood first point to deal with they don't take long or as half life suggested call the national self exclusion helpine, also limiting your access to funds , if you dont have money or a place to bet then you wont gamble but that being said you still need to want to stop and dig the old bucketload of willpower out as well .
Lots of advice on this site my friend and if you need any then just ask and maybe also consider starting a diary on the recoveries page , people tend to speak to you more over there and there'slots of support which is always usefull .
I came here just under 14 months ago and havent gambled since , so it can work but you have to want it to :))
Take care my friend and I'll talk with you again sometime .
Best wishes Alan
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