My story

Hi everyone, I just wanted to share my story in the hopes it will lift the burden off my shoulders and help others.

It started out when I was 15 and I lost my dad to a heart attack, I was living abroad at the time and had to move back to England and start again with my mum. I started at college the year later after returning and after 2 years at college I got diagnosed with a brain stem tumor which knocked me back again. Ever since then I never really fully recovered I don't think and I completely changed. It is benign and luckily I'm fine and do regular checkups.

I started gambling small mainly on fruit machines in the pub and then the occasional bets on horse racing and football. I could control the gambling pretty easily at the start and just played for fun mainly with no real big wins or anything. I continued throughout the years to make the odd bets on football and horse racing, until one day I started to play online slots. This is where the problem really began. I started depositing more and more money and hit some big wins that made it worse. The last year is where it got really bad with the offshore casino sites where you can buy bonuses. You can easily deposit a lot of money and lose it in a few minutes. I think my reason for gambling was the escape from reality and into a little bubble where you feel free for a brief time. I registered with gamstop and have gamban on all devices which is a real game changer. 

Currently I am 5 weeks GF and I don't think I will ever return. I had to put my dog down 2 weeks ago from cancer at the age of 7 and that was my eureka moment where it opened my eyes to what I was doing and who I am. Life is too short to be wasting it gambling and I am filling the void with memories and learning instead.

I hope if I inspire just one person then that is a result. Thanks for reading and I wish everyone the best on their journeys 🙏