Starting from the beginning

Hi all,

Happy new year. I didn't want to start 2018 with the old cliche new year new me, but I figure now is a better time than any to start a fresh. I have been gambling for 3 years exactly now. I have gone a few weeks here and there without gambling, but the urge to try and win back money to clear my debts always takes over. I am currently in around 10k unsecured debt, and I owe my own personal savings 9k. The thought that I have lost nearly 20k in 3 years makes me sick. I have arranged counselling, and given my other half control of my finances. I have excluded from every site I can think of, and emailed lots of casino operators to multi exclude from their licenses.

Today I want to share with anyone struggling with debt a fantastic strategy (forgive me if this has already been talked about) I have found.

Luckily I do not need to go to the extent of going into a debt management plan, so I looked into debt snowballing. It gives you a strategy to pay off your debts as fast as possible, keeping your credit rating climbing as you go, and works with your budget. I found the debt snowball calculator on a very handy site called debt camel. I know there are other sites which offer this tool too. I urge anyone with gambling debts who feels hopeless and overwhelmed, to give this debt snowball a look into. I have now downloaded my strategy of payments and it shows me that I can be debt free in 31 months. I thought it would take me near on 10 years to clear my debt.

One day at a time, and I still feel anxious and apprehensive about controlling my addiction but I also want this year to be the start of getting my life back.