Hi.
Last night I gambled £1000 and really need to stop.
It's the slots for me. Tbh I love them and get excited when I know I'm going to play them.
But over the years I've lost loads, not really in debt (£1000 c card) but always spend my spare money every month and never manage to save anything. I feel frustrated at the amount I could have saved over the years and the things I could have bought/done. I usually gamble once or twice a week so not all the time. Sometimes I win and put it the bank and feel great, but it always goes back.
I need to remember the feeling I had last night and this morning when I had my biggest single loss (£1000), bottle it somehow and take a 'taste' everytime I want to gamble again.
I need to stop this now for the sake of my young family, I fear it's escalating as my bet per spin has been going up. Any help would be appreciated.
R.
Welcome Rick..
If it's online you're gambaling on
Best advice is for you to self exclude. And get some blocking software installed. There's a post top of the page on blocking software.
It's good that you're not in much debt. But as you know that can change in a heartbeat when you're gambaling.
I'd you're like me I just enjoyed the act of playing slots.
Escaping from the day to day I guess.
Wishing for the dream win that never happens.
Anyway just thought I'd pop in with a welcome
Deano
Thanks Deano,
Yeah, I've been on the websites I use and change my deposit limit to £10 a week, not sure if this will just feed the habit or contain it. Deep down I can't say I want to quit cos I enjoy it but I know I need to stop completely for my futures sake.
R.
Rick read the last 4 lines of your original post. Because leaving the backdoor open isn't really going to help you stop gambaling.
I can't say or discriminate if you don't want to stop completely because the end of the day that's your choice.
Maybe give non gambaling a chance for say 50 day's and see how you feel about it then.
I know it's hard to let go It was hard for me to do it after so long.
But now I realise i was just letting the addiction talk instead of the rational side.
Like you said you're family deserve much more.
All the best
Thanks pal, I'll go cold turkey for a while. I really want to see how much spare money I've got after 1 or 2 solid months of not gambling. Never done that before. Also , do you gamble on anything now? I usually have £15 on the football every weekend, that's never escalated. Just wondering if I am going to stop that too.
R.
I did the same for a while. I only stuck a fiver a week on the football so didn't really see it as a problem and it's something that I didn't give up lightly. But after being round this forum for a while I realised the football needed to stop because for me it was keeping the fire stoked if you know what I mean..
When I came on the forum I was averaging chucking 500 quid away a week on gambaling..
Stopping completely made me realise pretty fast how much I was actually wasting. Especially as I wasn't really spending the money on anything.
Extra money is always an added bonus. Living life without the addiction talking I've found myself in a lot better place physically and mentally.
You'll probably find after a few months away that you're better off without gambaling.
I'm not going to say it's easy because it isn't. Some day's are harder than other's. It's just making better use of your time that is key.
Cheers Deano, I'll consider everything you've written and thanks for the advice.
Do you completely avoid all gambling now? Ie, when I'm out with my pals we sometimes end up in a Casino.
Does drinking make it worse for you? I find if I've had a drink I want to gamble more.
R.
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.
