£2,000.
I am trying to let this sink in, this year alone i have worked out i am £2,000 down due to sports betting online. My salary is only 22k so thats a big chunk for me.
I am 26 and started gambling at 21. First 3 years was fine, most i lost in one month was £100 then all of a sudden i had a month where i lost £1000. I went from staking £10 to £100 in a matter of days and not realising what i was doing until it was too late.
I went the next 8 months almost gamble free, sticking to my limits of £10 a week losing nothing more until another bad month where i lost £600.
Went through last year fine but this year i seem to have fallen back into it , lost £1200 in April and now have just lost £300 in last 2 weeks, have worked out have lost just under £2,000 since the new year, i cant keep doing this.
I have tried blocking apps in the past but after doing well for a few months remove them so i have asked for a new bank card and going to get girlfriend to scratch off the security code on the back. I have asked my bank in the past to block me from gambling sites but they say they cannot.
I dont know why i have become addicted to gambling, its not helped my dad being a CG, it came out last April that he had lost £100,000 since 2012 , i remember him always introducing me to new bets, i see how much he struggles and i dont want to turn out like him.
I just need to break this routine of being bored all the time and having no hobbies, i gamble a lot when i am bored looking for some entertainment, have also read that depression is linked with gambling which is what i suffered with for a while a few years ago.
At least now reporting my card lost i cannot deposit anymore and not being able to with my new card will help a lot.
Just thought would get all this out and to have something to read back on everything now and then , if anyone has any input then great
Thanks , CM
Hi cm call gamcare get some counselling if you want to find out why. Lots of people think it can be hereditary. Others an illness. Who knows. But ultimately it's down to you. You can control you actions. Hand over finances, online blockers, self exclusion. Go to GA. Find a hobby, go to the gym, read, run walk. The list is endless. The only person who can change is you.
Thanks for the reply, I went to a couple of one on one sessions a few years ago about my dad and the counsellor said I have been through a lot with him and he can see why i often struggle to with gambling. I didnt gamble for a few months so stopped the counselling but with me it seems i can stop but the addiction is always there. Ill see today if i can arrange some more counselling.
Hi CM003
I can see that you are interested in arranging some counselling. You can call the freephone helpline on 0808 8020 133 for some help from an Adviser who can refer you for counselling today. I have also included a counselling link for you, I hope it helps.
http://www.gamcare.org.uk/support-and-counselling/free-counselling
Kind regards
Cade
Forum admin
How are you CM
did you make the call to Gamcare?
Stay strong bud, you can beat this.
Havent done it yet, i have requested a new bank card and will get the security code scratched off so that i cant use it online.
Went into a high street bookies yesterday for first time in few years done a fiver accumulator almost came in but not to be this weekend, i dont feel urge to bet anymore like i do and can online. With online its a few clicks of a button and you can deposit however much and that is what i need to block myself from doing, i will not spend £150 a month like i do online in the high street bookies, handing over the cash in store is a lot more realistic and i can see what i am doing rather then depositing online and not taking into account what i am doing.
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