Hi, Im new on here and never thought I would ever need to be on a forum such as this but here I am. I am 40 years old and have worked in the gambling indusrty of over 20 years as a betting shop employee and online customer services. I have always enjoyed watching sport and as a consquence of working in the industry enjoyed a healthy appetite for punting on the numerous sporting events that are now shown. For most of the past 20 years I have been able to control my habit and actually enjoyed betting not just for the thrill of having a punt but also because I enjoyed the social side of betting with friends who share a similar interests. I am not able to pinpoint a preceise moment in time or single trigger, but just recently I started to up my stakes and actually started to bet with the foolish aim of trying to 'buy' money. It started with my first £500 bet when I was attempting to pay off two credit cards and then further bets in the £500 bracket. I only used to be a £10/ £20 recreational bettor. Some of these big bets would be successful and this would encourage me to place bets of similar value - when my first £500 losing bet occurred I experiened the feelings Im sure many people on here can relate to of guilt and stupidity. At first I thought I could control this behaviour, but last year I was lucky enough to have inherirted a large some of money. Regrettably the having access to a large cash pot has highlighted to me that my gambling is becoming out of control. Recently I have placed bets in excess of £1000 and though my first few of these were sucessful I have had a poor recent run and yesterday while under the influence of alcohol I managed to lose £1500 by placing bets from my mobile. I have never experienced such a sickening feeling of guilt and sorrow as when those bets lost.
I am on here now to seek advice how to curb my gambling instincts. I do not wish to self exclude just yet as I have always enjoyed a bet..but I am seeking any help that can be offered to resist my urge to bet such large amounts especially when it is so easy to bet via mobile app and when under the influence of alcohol. I hope I may be able to find the help and advice I am seeking before I risk losing a lot of money. Thank you
The only option is to stop comlpletey otherwise you will keep going. I told myself i would stop with one account but kept gambling. You can limit deposits via the online sites but the problem is you'll have the urge to spend more and open more sites. STOP NOW
Poblwc is right. If you don't give up completely NOW. You'll end up in real BIG s**t.
Trying to buy money on odds on shots is one of the quickest ways to the poor house.
You've had a sickener by losing £1500. If you continue that sickening feeling will be repeated on a regular basis.
I've been there, done it and lost over 200k.
Exclude/block gambling sites/give someone else control of your money.
Seek counselling.
Choice is yours
Best Wishes
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