New Year's Day challenge!!!

3 days till your big 100 change. Great achievement that will be.

Mba

Yeah looking forward to getting the first ton done. Still feel very early in my recovery. I need to start posting more and I want to but I'm also conscious that I don't want to post anything negative so I read things and then delete them. I need to change my mindset.

Today is going to be a good day. Think that's the way got to look at things. Nearly hitting a ton. I'm up and ready for the day. Got to be positive.

Going to try and go through the alphabet in posts, one a day, as that will get 26 days of posts and bring us below the 50 day to the new year.

A - accumulators, anger, achievement...

So accumulators are what gets a lot of us into 'soft gambling'. The typical story involves a £5 or £10,accumulator on the footy at the weekend. Maybe you and all your mates did it or maybe your dad would put one on for you when you were a bit longer. They tend to be the catalyst for someone who has a compulsive gambling mindset and one win can lead to a feeling that winning is easy, followed by losses and chasing.

Anger - obvious one really. Most commonly seen after a huge loss. Often can be seen in the bookies being exhibited by fellow compulsive gamblers. At the time it seems funny but later when you're in the same spot you realise it's not at all. Steering wheels usually take the brunt of the anger on a drive home.

Achievement - whether it's a day or 100 days. Going a period without gambling is a fantastic achievement for any compulsive gambler. The allure is very strong and being able to take back control is an achievement in itself.

As always post me back any other As you want to share. Have a good day.

A for Abstain... missed the most obvious!

Acceptance
Accepting the past can not be changed.
Also the biggest one of all accepting you have been beaten
Sometimes it's good to walk away second best

Uncertain outcomes wrote:

Change, just a suggestion but why don't you change the title of your challenge to New Year's Day challenge - that way we know what we are aiming for and saves you updating the countdown - it will be a good way to encourage others to remain gf until the end of the year - just a suggestion so no worries if you want to keep as is - thanks for keeping the thread going. Best.

I think this is a good idea Change. I know its helping to motivate me knowing my 90 days will be at the end of the year

Hope everyone is well. So today's letter is B...

B - bets, blocks and barriers, balances, boredom and bathrooms!

Bets - fairly obvious, placing bets got us into this mess.

Blocks and barriers - the best way to put a practical hurdle infront of gambling but it's only a start and further work needs to be put into recovery... it's not the solution to the problem. Some easy blocks are self-exclusion, blocking software, reducing withdrawal limits on cards, carrying small amounts of cash, passing control to family etc. Anything that can make placing the first bet more difficult and put additional hurdles in place can be invaluable if you are dealing with urges.

Balances - constantly needing to worry about balances, not wanting to check bank balances for fear of crystallising what you already know... common issues for gamblers. Another additional stress in life that can be avoided by abstaining.

Boredom - a reason often given for gambling but really it's a poor excuse and it's a trick of the brain as a compulsive gambler will use anything to try and justify the next bet. Gambling is absolutely no cure to boredom.

Bathrooms - the place to hide after losing loads of money. A place where you go to hide from the shame. In recovery, bathrooms start being used for their sole purpose rather than a dual purpose.

Stay safe everyone.

Made it to 100 days!

Today's letter is C

Carr, control, compulsive

Carr - I'm reading a book by Alan Carr (not the comic) called how to quit gambling. It's giving me some really good insight into the addiction.

Control - recovery is a lot about control, being able to control urges and control your life. We're all here because life has become unmanageable and out of control and we need to get it back.

Compulsive - the behaviour that means we can't stop. The reason we can't get up and leave during a winning streak and definitely can't get up and leave during a losing streak.

Stay safe everyone!

Congratulations on the big 100 Change..
you are doing so well and I really like your alphabetic countdown.

Im now interested in that alan carr book and the bathroom one is so true. I did find myself spending longer on the toilet. ...longer having a shave....longer having a shower as id be on my phone before and after.

Mba

Thanks for the kind messages.

Letter D today...

D for debt, dedication, distant, down and determination.

Debt - dealing with running up debt and having no money to spend or everyday things or even having money available but chosing to spend it on gambling. Paying off debt tends to come last in a gambler's mindset. Perspective goes out the window.

Dedication - needed in heaps as it gets rough and recovery is not a smooth ride. There needs to be a committment to making a change.

Distant - typical side-effect is becoming distant from friends and family, avoiding social situations, avoiding conversations, sneaking off for gambling time along. It can be hard to correct the impact of these issues. In recovery, the fog clears and it takes time to correct back to normal life.

Down - recovery can be difficult and dealing with the ups and downs is something I definitely have not mastered.

Determination - more than ever determined to beat this addiction.

Thanks all.

Closing in on the new year...

Letter E today - for Even - compulsive gamblers always want to get even, chasing those losses and get back the money they earned and lost... never happens like that. The only way we get even is by quitting for good and not letting them get any money more we've earned...

Stay safe this weekend.

Had a busy day. Told the mrs I'd make a christmas wreath and she said there's no chance I could do it... so I went for a walk with my son and we collected a load of pine cones as a starter...

Today's letter is f for Fed-up, Foundation, Foresight

Fed-up - being fed-up is not a positive trait and it breeds a negative output to the day - got to remain focused on good things and good things will happen.

Foundation - getting a good foundation to recovery is really important, start with a week then build to a month then build to 100 days and go on.

Foresight - if we all had foresight we would never gamble - in the heat of the moment we forget the consequences and live for the next 30 seconds or 90 mins. Try to get some perspective in the long run and it helps in recovery.

Checking in Day 20.

Well done Change on your 100 days! Massive achievement you should be very proud

29 days for me today. Just checking in and enjoying changes alphabet.

Mba