New here

Hi,

My husband is an online CG, we blocked his desktop with GamBlock and he simply doesn't have a smartphone, he uses a non Internet phone to avoid temptation. Mobiles are notoriously difficult to block, not impossible if you know what you're doing but if it's not done properly, you can get round it, which doesn't help.

He's taken a lot of other measures to keep the time money location triangle broken - take one away and gambling isn't possible. He is permenantly self excluded from the websites he was using and I have full financial control, no money, no gamble. Most importantly, he goes regularly to GA and for him, the support from the meetings is vital, the barriers aren't infallible but he doesn't want to gamble so he doesn't try to get round them. After some fifteen to twenty years, his last bet (that I know of) was almost nine months ago.

The other key barrier is that I obviously know, not because he told me, he didn't, which made a bad situation a whole lot worse and things aren't easy. But he's pretty much stayed clean, so far, because his family have supported him.

There's a lot of advice on the forum and Chat each evening.

Make changes and you'll see the results. Wish you well.

CW

Hi want to stop now,

Welcome to the Forum!

As CW already mentioned, mobile phones are difficult to block. You may want to look into talking to your bank though. Many banks are able to change accounts for you to what is often called a "basic account". These types of accounts come with bank cards which cannot be used online. So while you don't block access to gambling sites, you block access to money online, which can help, too.

All the best to you

Kind wishes

Gabriele

Hi,

Agree, blocking smart phones is hard, even harder if the phone is the company I work for which requires smart phone features.

I've got it into my head that I don't want to bet again, look how many steps there are to actually placing a bet even without any blockers in place. Just don't let yourself do any of the following:

1. Open a gambling web-site or app.

2. Log-In

3. Make a selection

4. Deposit amount

5. Bet placed

I know if I got to step 1 I would have let my family and myself down. You can put the phone down at anytime. A little voice inside your head may be saying "bet" but create a louder voice called RECOVERY who shouts "stop". Mind games, will-power without these I know my road to recovery would be far more difficult.

Hope I've made my point, if not I suppose this is what I meant......

If we want to stop, we must stop ourselves. It's too easy to gamble nowadays, that's why there are so many CGs.

Sorry if I've waffled on.........

Thanks for all your help, I have spent today excluding myself from all my open account & going to buy a blocker for my android phone on Friday when I get paid, tomorrow I'm going to call the doctors & try to sort out my finances not looking forward to that as quite sure this month I have more coming out than going in this month! What a mess!! X

Hi, again,

I think that it's very positive for you to look at your finances and understand that there's a net outflow of cash because of the gambling. First time round with my husband, I tried to point this out to him and being a CG in denial, he wouldn't see the obvious.

Facing the reality is all good. It is messy at the moment but the best tidy up long term is to stay gf.

Keep going, one day at a time.

BW,

CW