Calm & Confident

Hi Stephen thanks for the post on my diary. Lets keep the guru challenge alive. We all make mistakes but to get back up and start again takes courage. Welcome back, adam

​

Hi Stephen, hope you're well pal. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Pras

Hi Stephen hope you're well? I couldn't log in for a while but glad to be back now! Still GF and working lots. Here's to the GF future take care Sx

Thank you Adam, Sharon and Pras for posting on my diary.

It's certainly good to be back on the diaries, keeping a record of my progress.

Hopefully this will be the time I finish with gambling for good. I am excluded from the casinos and 50+ betting shops in the surrounding area plus I have registered wwith Gamstop...stephen

Hi Stephen, well done for taking preventive measures. We can do this! Onwards and Upwards. Wish you a great week ahead.

Pras

Many thanks for your support Pras.

I am totally committed to being gamble free and see no reason why I cannot achieve this. I have relapsed on several occasions but that is all in the past.

Onwards and upwards is where i'm heading...stephen

That's the spirit Stephen. We shall overcome this illness by taking one day at a time. We can do this pal. Take care mate.

Pras

Proud of you for fighting on and not giving up well done Stephen for all you have achieved so far on your journey. You can only get stronger from all you have learnt along the way, slip ups are just the gambling monster thinking it's won and everytime you start again you kick it back to the gutter it came from. We can do this! 🙂

Best wishes,

Angel x

Thank you Pras and Angel for your kind words of support and encouragement.

I had a good day yesterday with swimming in the afternoon and Salsa dancing last night.

I am just taking one day at a time. A bit of socialising, keeping fit and exploring my gamble free options...stephen

Life is for living because we're a long time dead and running away is not really an option.

Gambling for me has just been a way of burying my head in the sand and has never brought me anything but sadness.

I am 68 next week and intend living a life free from gambling. I still have a lot of living to do and who knows what might be waiting around the corner. I intend to explore all the options available to me and hopefully have some laughs along the way...stephen

Your exactly right Stephen life is for living, for to many years i lived like a recluse because of my gambling and its only now i have stopped for a good period of time that i feel i am living a normal life again ... its good see you in good spirits and looking forward to the future, we both like many others on here have wasted far to much time because of this addiction, time we can never get back, lets not waste any more... wishing you a good day ahead.

You have certainly hit the nail on the head there. Apart from all the other bad stuff associated with gambling we have wasted so much time which could have been spent on things worthwhile. Friends and family had to take a back seat as the addiction messed up our heads.

You have done remarkably well Chartom in going without a bet for over 300 days. I believe you have good insight into how the addiction can keep trying to get us back gambling. I admire the courage, tenacity and common sense which has enabled you to come this far. You recognise the dangers and have put exclusions and blocks in place to help keep yourself gamble free.

Friends like Chartom, Sharon, Matt, Sars, Pras, Duncanmac and many many more have proved that there is life after gambling. I intend to follow there examples and get my life back to some kind of normality...stephen

Excellent advice Sans. Thank you.

My niece is running in the Royal Parks Half Marathon today and I am very proud of her. She is not what you would call an athlete but has worked hard to prepare herself both mentally and physically.

A major battle for me is overcoming my compulsion to gamble. Working hard on my recovery involves taking practical measures to prevent me from gambling. It is also important that I learn lessons from the past whilst living in the present and steadily moving forward. With a twinkle in my eye, a smile on my face and a belly full of hope I will strive to enjoy my gamble free adventure...stephen

Hey Stephen. I really hope you can crack it, it pains me when I see you open your new diaries up but remember that you still will have all our support. Onwards and upwards. Is there any extra ways you can help protect from however you managed to gamble? That’s good about the marathon too. Scott