Just a quickie - when you want to quit gambling, is it essential to stop EVERYTHING?
I went to a few GA meetings before relapsing last year, and they swore by the cold turkey method, not as much as a school fete raffle ticket.
I only ask because when I have tried to quit fruit machines in the past, I have found refuge in the IT-Box quiz machines you find in some pubs.
While it might cost me £100 in a bandit over an hour, a quiz machine might cost me £5. They are better fun, better value and for anyone into their general knowledge, a reasonable chance of winning something.
I'll go with the majority on this one - is it better to pack them in too? Technically it's gambling, I know that only too well, but in my mind it's like going from being a 60-a-day smoker to a one-a-day man.
I kind of understand your point but is this not the gambler in you clinging on for dear life? It's nothing for me. I know for me doing this would feel wrong and could well escelate into other betting before I know where I am. Just let go for good my friend.
HI Kev, welcome to the Forum,
GA is completely right, It has to be zero tolerance, without exception.
It is not about the quiz machines themselves, it's what they might lead to. I remember trying to give up initially after stopping four years ago and playing 2p tippers; it stirred up enough emotion in me to move onto 5p Fruit Machines and suddenly I was in the Bookmakers, throwing hundreds away.
A lot of people make this mistake, and a lot of people relapse as a result. Even when I stopped gambling, I still used to eat my lunch in the Bookmakers but now I realise how foolish that was because all I was doing was keeping everything fresh in my mind and leaving myself wide open.
Being able to go back to small bets is the holy grail for compulsive gamblers. In my six years of being part of this Forum, I haven't seen one case out of tens of thousands of posts where someone has been able to do it successfully; we are not built that way my friend.
JamesP
Hi Kev
I think it depends on the individual but generally speaking it’s best to keep away.
Difficulty is, even if you don't intend to gamble loads or do a particular type of gambling you would be putting temptation your way and one thing leads to another and before you know it BANG - disaster strikes.
For me, I was only ever interested in the roulette machine and only the roulette feature and once I started I would keep going and going until I eventually had that loss we all know about where you give back your winnings plus a bit more.
Could I now go and have a couple of pounds on the football and walk away if I wanted to? Yes.
Could I buy a couple of scratch cards and not bother if I lost? YES.
Could I put a tenner in the roulette machine and walk away if I lost - NO CHANCE!!
For the record I don't bother with anything (plus am self-excluded) but the point I am making I suppose is that different things trigger different reactions but overall I would recommend not bothering to gamble.
If a person gave up cigarettes would it be ok to have the odd one to be sociable or where would that lead?
All the best with whatever you decide.
Dave
Brilliant JamesP - absolutely spot on.
Hi - I go down the casino a couple of times a week but I have a rule with the roulette - I will only have 5 goes - I just couldn't sit there all night staring at the table, it also becomes unnerving! With 5 goes it's a quick fix and still gives me the buzz and thrill - I think the bottom line is it's all about control and mind over matter. I would never think to myself "I will go and double my money tonight", I would think "I may be lucky and go home with a bit more than I came in with". At the end of the day it is a form of entertainment and control is a major aspect with this kind of thing!
Hi Vic
Yours is a great example of being able to stay in control. So many people (me included) know that with certian types of gambling once they start they are powerless to stop.
Glad you are able to have the control and as you say people are buying entertainment and to buy something we have to hand over cash which is eventually kept by the provider of the entertainment.
Keep controlled buddy.
Dave
I always saw quiz machines as not gambling but akin to playing an arcade machine e.g. Street fighter II or Sega Rally etc, as opposed to gambling to win money?
Perhaps just me but even in my darkest days when say a loss of twenty quid on a fruity might lead to a three hundred quiz chase on a FOBT never felt that about the quizzer.
Hi again Dave,
Just to correct from previous message! Yes control is a major factor, but the other day I lost big style, so really it is better to go cold turkey, especially around chrictmas - excuse the pun!
Nice to return to this.....it has to be all for me,I’ve committed myself to last chance on this, zero , zip, nothing, never.
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