Day 15
Taking small steps towards recovery and two weeks feels like forever!
Having received my bank statement which I haven't felt able to open, I am now looking forward to getting next months statement which will have no gambling withdrawals on it!
I look at this as a short term target for myself
I would also like to share a bit of advice I learned when I first found this site in 2009 in the hope it may help someone else
This is that very few institutions mind if you pay them early, so use this where you can to reduce your risk of gambling with money that isn't actually yours!
When I first arrived on this forum in 2009 I had very substantial gambling debts and a big sum was owed to hm Tax man
He wanted his money straight away and I didn't have a red cent. To cut a long story short, I worked like a dog for the next 6 months and paid him the money, but vowed never to put myself in that position again, it was a seriously stressful time
Since then, although I went back to gambling, I always set aside the tax and have kept this away from money I could access and possibly gamble
During my recent blowout, I found that this money provided me with a false sense of security, it was winking at me with flashing lights enticing me to gamble with it
Fortunately, I did learn something from my past episodes and I did not lose it, so I have last week paid most of the tax that isn't due until August 2015 some 9 months early!
Apologies for the length of the post, but the point I guess I am trying to make is that when I get paid, I find it useful at this stage of recovery to pay anything you can even if it's early
You cannot be tempted to gamble if you don't have access to money
It has been a valuable ethos to have for myself when recovering and something you really lose sight of when being in the dark depths of gambling
So onto today, Saturday, always a difficult day to negotiate, but I feel well up to keeping the beast away from my door today!
Just for today, I am not going to gamble
Weldy
Hi Weldy
Firstly, well done on two weeks!
It seems we have a similar history, both starting on this site in 2009 and both now still trying to stop. As we've had reasonably long periods of abstinence, we should both know what we need to do and what works for us.
For me, I never continued posting enough, something I want to change this time. Even if it's just for me to look back on.
Good luck for today, it is after all, one day at a time.
Take care
M
17 days completed and feeling good right now
Concentrating on the work front and getting on top of this compared to how things were just a few weeks ago
Will continue to work at this just the one day at a time
21 days and still going. Work has decided to throw me some curved balls and has gone bandy on me, so if i wasn't in this period of recovery i know exactly what i would be doing, which would not be pretty!
I must just keep the head down and stick at this, one day at a time...
Hi Weldy,
Just thought I'd pop in and catch up with your diary and see how your doing. Hope you're still keeping the demons at bay.
Like you, I drift in and out of the site, but intend to put some hard work in from now on. Christmas is coming and I for one do not want gambling effecting my finances over this period.
Keep strong my friend
All the best
Ade
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