Hello everyone.
I wanted to take part in this forum to give myself an outlet during my recovery, so feel free to jump in, keen to help support people as well as I figure that could help me too. After all, nobody knows what it really feels like to have our mindset.
I am 27 home owner in London with a good job, steady g/f, but a vile gambling problem. Roulette is my vice. I have lost thousands and thousands on over the past 7 years. I am currently in 20k of debt with overdrafts, credit cards and a personal loan. Today (8th of Oct) I am stopping after loosing 6k yesterday online. Nobody knows about my problem I hide it well. Gambling has made me miserable and broke, I never have any money despite taking home around 4k each month. The haze I get in or zone when I'm gambling is frightening, I'm sure you all have been there chasing loses, not eating, drinking or even popping to the toilet whilst you spin that wheel over and over again, then when it's all gone that overwhelming sense of regret and self pity. I have so much empathy for everyone here. It's a very damaging mindset to be in - not ever having money for the normal things in life new clothes, restaurants etc but always finding thousands of s for gambling. I am going to try and write an entry each day on my progression and I'll put some of the techniques that I am using in this thread, I've put together a 12 and 15 month plan to pay off my debts and get my life back together. Start a new
role at wok at the end of the month so will keep you all updated. Counting each hour that I don't gamble, does anyone have any specific techniques? Or ways people our managing their money? I have excluded myself from every online casino under the sun. One thing I struggle with is finding it difficult to accept I've lost all that money.. that's where my problem has been before I try and win it back to feel normal again, and then the cycle begins.. anyway I will be back tomorrow, Day 1 starts now and I think I might throw up if I look at a roulette wheel again, long may that continue..
Hi Caxton,
Thanks for your post and welcome to the forum. Well done for already taking the step to exclude yourself from online casinos; have you given any thought to downloading blocking software, as well? Programs like Gamblock or Betfilter prevent any gambling sites from opening on your computer, and a lot of gamblers find them to be great protection. Just something you might want to consider, especially if there's any worry you might look up new sites if you ever feel tempted.
Well done, also, on your debt payment plan. That gives you a goal to work towards that you'll be able to see tangible results with, and I'm sure we'd all like to hear about your progress over the next year.
If we can support you on any of this, please do give us a call on either the Helpline (0808 8020 133) or the Netline and we'd be happy to chat with you. We can also provide counselling at no cost to you that might help you get to the underlying reasons why you gamble like this, and help you work on ways to manage your urges more effectively. Feel free to get in touch and ask more about that, if you'd like.
All the best for your continued recovery, and I hope you find the forum to be a supportive place.
Travis
Caxton, I joined the forum yesterday evening. Reading through your post I realise that you're a younger version of me, earning decent money but turning into a red-eyed monster once we hit the FOBTs, or online, and keeping it all a secret. The big difference is that I'm 52. You're young, you earn money, you can pay off your debts, your 15 month recovery plan sounds good to me, go for it or you will waste some of the best days of your life stuck in bookies or online and feeling S***e afterwards. Go for it, keep us posted, today is my first day of non-gambling and I feel much better for it, but tomorrow is another day, full of urges. Let's keep it up xx Nick
We are available 24 hours a day, every day of the year. You can also contact us for free on 0808 80 20 133. If you would like to find out more about the service before you start, including information on confidentiality, please click below. Call recordings and chat transcripts are saved for 28 days for quality assurance.
