New Member - First Post

Powerful stuff guys thanks very much. Kids asleep going to try and watch film with wife and tick off day three of being bet free. Thanks for helping me on my journey to being a happier person goodnight

Good morning. Day 4 has started and yet again (I don't want to sound needy just honesty) I am struggling with the concept of going out my house to work in freezing cold weather all day and my total wages will be less than 2% of my losses last week. I keep trying to remind myself that they weren't losses fortunately they were winnings and that at least I broke even and didn't deposit more to lose but my rational thinking doesn't last long goes back to irrational impatient and selfish and thus leaving me contemplating not going to work. .....but hold on a ray of sunshine. ...I have just thought if I stay at home I am excluded from everywhere anyway so I would be bored....so I am going to get changed and try and make sure Day 4 has some productive work daytime and maybe meal and to try out board games with my wife tonight. Have a good Sunday guys I am a compulsive gambler but day 4 and looking to move forward

Keep it going rafa. The important thing is to stay busy - do something productive. Have an urge to gamble, go for a walk, do some drawing, learn to play an instrument, watch some TV. Gambling makes you so unproductive. I used to spend hours studying form, then I'd spend my whole day watching matches I have no interest in other than betting purposes. 9/10 you end up losing money that day and you start to question your sanity. It may seem hard at the minute but theres more to life than gambling.

Hey Brad....agreed and have just come home having wotked seven hours and i feeling good

Morning guys day 5. I have made myself a breakfast smoothie a recipe I saw online......I NEVER normally have breakfast as normally wagering on sports that I have no idea about on remote places just to get my fix. I am starting to try and develop some of the principles of advice and wisdom from Gamcare forum members. I think it would be arrogant and complacent to go a single day without posting on here. I am an addicted gambler and I know an urge is just around the corner but for now I am feeling positive about Day 5.

Day five almost over . Came home from work wife was tired and already in bed with one of out kids. So much sport on and struggling tonight. Going to eat loads of food feed my belly and try and get a good night's sleep. Hate this addiction

Not sure if this helps - Forget the 8k man. 8k is a huge loss (I lost 2.5k and am battered), but I don't think it's being miserable over, hoping that if you put a few grand here and there you will get to 20k. Not going to happen. Even if it does, you will surely only remember the Win side and keep betting - losing way more than 8k by the time you hit 40. Do what I am doing, enjoy the 'clean feeling' and treat it as a lucky escape. Sounds like some people have lost absolutely everything. Do the decent honourable thing a man in his 30's should do and work hard and save honestly. I do that, I am just mad that I ate some of it online gamling over Xmas 🙁

Day Six. Woken up far more negative than yesterday. Went down and BBC sport showing two channels live tennis . Making me hate the sport because for some reason I thinking if I cannot gamble on the sport it has no fun. How did my thinking ever become so so screwed up. As a young boy I loved every sport for athletic reasons not money/gambling. Sorry seems I have regressed in thoughts after a positive day 5. Going to sports club shortly for work. .......my motivation is less than 10% to work

Day 7. I am feeling so strange. Doing bizarre things like flash backs to this time last week, why did i not do this or do that? Is it normal for me to feel more deluded on the exact week anniversary of the lost £8,000? I am pretending that it is a week ago and i still had the profits and coud still check th form, place wagers, keep my mind entertained all day with sports betting. Definitely my worst start to the day out of all 7. Not getting easier...struggling!!!!

hi Rafa , in tbeo rt u have only lost £700, try to think of it like that and draw a line under it. It’s gone.this is my fifth day off gambling and it is bloody hard but I didn’t treatise how much it affected my mood and home life, I feel happier but still have strong urges to gamble. The winning buzz is better than sthe s*x but the loosing feeling is worse than s******g ur pants. Try to associate the loosing feeling anytime u have a strong urge. Apologies for the typos, this forum isn’t really mobile friendly .

Lol about the typos I am trying but truly struggling I want to make this life change and I wish to one day write day 777 off gambling. Just giving today my best shot.

3.48pm.....this time last week was exact time i lost my money.....by 15.56pm was £8,000 less!!!! Hate that i did that

Try and give yourself a break and don't think about it too much ... I blew mine between 8 and 9 on a Saturday night (£48k!), and it hurts at the same time every week ... I always make sure I have a few drinks earlier on a Saturday, but a bit trickier on a Wed afternoon! What I try and think is that the specifics don't actually matter .. I could have won then, but would only have lost in the end, and it took a big loss to shake me into getting out of this addiction ... in some ways less damaging than losing the same amount gradually over the next few years ... at least it's done and we can crack on with our gamble free lives. I do know exactly how you feel though ... you can't solve it though by trying to win it back ... you can make up for it though by not doing it again. Hang in there. Rich

Thanks Rich. Great wisdom. Ending a tough day 7 with a high five to all of you. Goodnight

hi mate i have to agree with all previous posters on here i have lost nearly 60k in past 4 years after intially being 20k up. i used to up until recently make 100+ bets a day on anything usually on certainies for small profits and then lose it when the shock happens then as always increase the stake and the risk to try and win it back then lose a lot.you will never win at gambling here is why.
you win a bet for ВЈ100 great you say you make another bet you win another ВЈ100 you feel great again much better than working you start to think what i can spend that on a new car maybe keep winning like this it wont take long but ВЈ100 winnings not giving you a buzz now so a bit more risk so you try to win ВЈ200 yes another win easy money on a roll here.upto ВЈ400 already.Go for ВЈ300 now oh hell a loss back to where i started P****d off now need to get back to ВЈ400 oh hell i have lost £400. In ensecnce when you win you get a buzz and want to win more so keep gambling at higher and higher stakes until you eventually lose when you lose you are P****d and will bet big to try and recoup your losses.i have lost 80k in last 4 years all my savings and a zombie exsistence dont try and get it back else you will be here next week telling us about the 20k you just lost.