Putting a stop to it.

Hi All.

Just thought I’d say what’s been on my mind tonight, as it might make it easier for me to comprehend.

Basically, I was on a 6 month gamstop self exclusion, which expired a week ago. I mainly excluded myself for slots and that is where most of my money went, although I did do the odd bet on the football, only £5/£10 here and there though. 

I lost a lot of money on online slots before my exclusion, so after the 6 months, I thought I’d be in a position to manage it better. Fast forward a week and I’ve blown fair bit of my savings, haven’t had to go in to any debt, but it is still sickening the amount I have spent, which would have been much better spent on my kids.

I’ve had a chat with GamCare tonight; and they had some great advice. I’ve extended my Gamstop by a year, should have gone with the 5 year auto-renewal option in hindsight. I know there are unlicensed bookmakers outside of GamStop, but I’ve never really felt the urge to go to any unlicensed ones.

Despite everything, I am feeling confident about the future and resisting my urges to gamble. I am in a position to save money (albeit not a lot) and this money should be spent on my children and not being selfish and quite literally throwing it all away.

Hoping that I can draw a line under this and move on, and put real focus on spending money where it should. I am hoping to buy a house soon, and that won’t be possible with several gambling transactions scattered over my statements, so I will be glad to see them fade away over the coming months.

I think ultimately you can only stop when YOU want to stop, and for me that day came today, so long may it continue I hope.

For anyone else still struggling, money comes and goes, but it is much better spent on your future, your friends and your family. So I hope you can find a way through too.