Hi All,
Just wanted to say hello and tell you my story.
I'm 47 and been gambling as long as I can remember. Starting with seaside slots, arcades, horses, football and now online slots.
I've always been quite careful with stakes (well losses) but have noticed in the last year or 2 I'm gambling more frequently. Stakes are higher and I'm gambling on anything. Anything I watch on SKY I now tend to bet on. Even stuff I would not usually watch.
Last year I had some free spins on one of my online betting accounts. Before long I was hooked. I hadn't played fruit machines in pubs for about 20 years but suddenly the excitement and subsequent pain/anger with the losses came back. Then, the chasing to get it back kicked in.
I can manage to control my bets with horse racing but the online slots just spirals. I'm probably about £1300 down on them this year. Small, I guess in comparision to some of you guys sadly, but it's affecting my life. I find I'm staying up later, have limited interest in anything else and am just wasting lots of time and money. I'm also becoming angry, wound up and frustrated which is so unlike me.
I do suffer from mild depression from time to time and stupidly feel that this buzz is helping me when clearly on reflection it's not.
I've self excluded now from 2 online sites and feel I must quit the horse racing and footy gambling too. I need to make a clean break but it's so hard after so many years day in day of out of putting a few quid (now £20 plus) daily on whatever to win. It used to be a bit of fun but now I feel it's a growing addiction which is starting to ruin my life.
I would appreciate your thoughts. Thanks Rich
Welcome to the forum. I'm sure someone with more experience than myself will give you some advice but I'd just like to say that I do agree with you with it disrupting your life.
Although I've not really lost a great deal, I was finding myself betting on things I'd know nothing about (all online sports betting) and would be betting into the early hours and constantly checking the progress if my bets.
Like everyone else, I'd win some and feel good about myself. However, this was only temporary; the money would soon be lost and then some more trying to chase my losses. This would then make me agitated and distant. I'd constantly be on my phone. I decided to put a stop to it after staying up until 3-4 AM on work days for silly bets that would only make me around £20.
For me personally, it wasn't really about the money but the bets winning that controlled me it was ruining my life.
I haven't gambled for around 5 weeks now and my life has improved dramatically; I focus on my family much more and I'm much happier. If I do feel that I want a bet, I just remember how I felt when it lost and the subsequent chasing afterwards.
I also find it good to read other people's posts on this forum as I'm in a good position with no debt but other people have big problems and I do feel for them.
Sorry for the long post!
Thank you for your comments. Like you I feel agitated, am constantly checking my phone and am getting less and less sleep. I'm a single dad and time with my son is precious, yet I seem to be gambling more and more when he's around. This forum has been a big eye opener for me and I feel so sorry after reading some of the posts tonight.
Gambling takes not just money it takes time, many times i would not go to sleep at all stay up all night or drop off with the laptop open on my lap. And the urges can be strong too meaning when it has you, you will want too gamble whenever either on your phone or on the laptop sound down twisted so only you can see the the screen or with another page open to flip open if someone walks by. So to sum up it takes 1. Money 2. Time. 3. Health 4. Well-Being 5. Socialising and changes you into how it wants you to be to feed your gambling mind, stop doing it and it all starts coming back into your own control. Good Luck Richie.
Thanks Smash. I've finally began to realise that it's not just money but the 4 other things you mentioned. I also feel I'm becoming a bit of a loner who would prefer to gamble on my laptop than meet a friend or go for a walk or to the gym. I feel it's changing me for the worse and I'm not the outgoing and happy guy I used to be
Just a quick update. 6 days in and no gambling. Feel I'm sleeping better and have more time for myself. Saturday is a big test with all the football and racing. I think I've had a bet every Sat for the last 30 years so it's not going to be easy, but I really just want to watch sport without the need to bet on it at practically every opportunity
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