How to overcome gambling when you can’t sleep

Don’t know if it will help you but have you tried listening to calming music when you wake up I normally put some on and just lay and fall asleep with it in on keeps my mind off things 

@8vfky5wa6m

You need to block the sites so that it is impossible to access them to gamble.  Gamban is a really good app to use to do this.

Self exclude from the site as well.  I'm not sure if you are in the UK but Gamstop will ensure that you are not able to have any accounts with UK casinos.

Block gambling transactions with your bank.

Hand over your finances if you have someone close to you who can help.

Also, look into the triggers for gambling.  Why do you wake up wanting to gamble?  What can you replace the gambling with? Podcast? Reading ect

Thank you ‘Bean’ for this.. I am in the UK and I have blocked myself via Gamstop. The thing is Gamban VPN that I download to block the websites can easily be removed on the iPhone.. and strangely when I have the urge I go and remove the profile! I am on my 4th day gamble free, and I feel like I am Turning a corner. Last night I binged on movies to put me to sleep, but I felt myself thinking and feeling sad. 

Hey, yes I have the same, it came from breastfeeding and being a lone at night for years, then dreading sleeping then finding something to help me through the night. Now at the moment Im shifting to netflix and if its really bad I go tell my partner and sleep with him (Im currently sleeping with daughter) Or i have a snack. Im new as well so I get it. I have also blcoked everything and on the sies I used to use I put self exclusion. You got this! 

Well done ‘Freebutterfly’! I totally relate to everything you have said. I feel like I can do this now, after years of promising myself I have this addiction under control.. clearly I didn’t! 
now hoping this Forum and realising I am not alone with this, almost gives the the courage and will power to plough on with this recovery. We’ve got this! 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼

@8vfky5wa6m  afternoon 

All good advice above. Create new norms in your life and new habits and interests.  

Bank block in accounts like monzo are really good

Where you can ban yourself for a year at a time for gambling transactions. 

Keep talking to Gamcare and it's community.  Help line open 24/7 so they can gake your call during the night as well. 

Son gambled online for 9 years , now in recovery for 18 months 

Hope all goes well.

Patsy 

Online peer supporter 

Have you tried “sleep stories”  Also I find “the honest guys” have a YouTube channel, they’ve lovely meditation and also one on your inner child, it’s like 10mins long, and made me be really loving and forgiving to myself. I cried like a baby. 

Even on YouTube, I swear by them, they ease my anxiety. 
I think the mindless scrolling, going on to the slots etc, is you distracting yourself and feeling like you have control over things. 
Take it all 1 minute at a time, breathe. 

I never had any interest in gambling, but one day, a social media ad caught my eye, and I thought, "Why not try it for fun?" I started with a small $50 deposit and bet $5 at a time. Surprisingly, my balance quickly tripled, and I thought I could really make money from this. Encouraged by my early wins, I increased my bets, only to watch my winnings disappear just as fast. Convinced I needed a better strategy, I returned to smaller bets and saw some success—until greed got the best of me again. Chasing losses, I ended up deeper in the hole.

Sleepless nights followed as I stayed up searching for the "perfect" bets. It strained my marriage and had me glued to my phone constantly checking scores. After a harrowing month and a $2,000 loss, I realized the only way to win was to stop gambling altogether. With the steadfast support of my wife, who was there for me despite the challenges, we took decisive action together. I closed my gambling account, uninstalled the app, and embraced the significant relief that followed. This decision, to cut gambling out of my life completely, is undoubtedly one of the best decisions I have ever made.

I learned the hard way that the house is designed to win, and you're really battling against yourself as much as the odds. I've seen others lose everything to online gambling. It might start as fun, but it quickly becomes stressful. You might think you won't get greedy next time, but it's in our nature. Thanks to my supportive wife, we were able to stop. Remember, it's never too late to stop. You can still turn things around.

Alongside the self exclusion tools why not have your mobile phone in another room while you sleep.

A cheap alarm clock costs a few pounds, a cheap radio alarm clock is probably a tenner.

If you can't do this, put your phone out of reach. It's one thing to reach for the phone, another to get out of a warm bed and cross the room.