DAY 1

Alright herri I done the same thing the other week. Lost £500 in half hour after not gambling for 8 days.

I'm addicted to the fobt machines the roulette. And have realised that I can never play on them again. If I Eva want a life with money in my pocket.

After the mistake I made. I self excluded from all the bookies within 20 mile of my house and all the cashinos. Took me all day but made it clear to them I'm not to come in..

The thing is to learn from what you did. And move forward put things in place to stop it happining again. f##k the bookies. Iv gone another 7 days from then and not going to go backwards.

Hope this helps ya a bit to know ya not the only one just keep ya chin up. Deal with it properly

Tom

Hi Harry, you are not alone, keep trying, if you are trying at least you are doing way better than those who aren't...stay strong, Leanne xx

Hi Harry

Don't give up. Instead of thinking about how quick your £250 went in less than ten minutes, try snd focus on just what you could buy instead that that you will cherish and could last you a life time. We have all been in your shoes where we have lost so much money in such a short space of time. Tells us something about who the ultimate winner usually is doesn't it?

Take care and stay strong and committed to not losing any more of your money.

Feb.

Hi Harry, sorry to hear about your slip.

£5 on the football, £10 on the horses, then the rest all goes in the FOBT, I've done exactly the same thing hundreds of times.

I've just gone 50 days gamble free and I can honestly say it's the best I've felt in a long time, compared to some on here I only have a little bit of knowledge and experience on recovery but what I have found key in my recovery is to draw a line under the money and debt. I have accepted I cannot win that money back, in fact I don't want to, I always found relapses and continued spells of gambling was due to chasing the loss.

I'm sure you know what you need to do regarding potential self exclusion or handing over finances but it's the start of a new year and you don't want this one consumed like gambling like my 2015 was. Good luck

William.

looking forward to your post today Harry. Is it a gamble free one?

tri x

Hi guys thankyou for you words of encouragement! Today is indeed a gamble free one that puts me on day 2 haha, this morning has started off a lot better than yesterday as I passed my theory test first time! It's only 5 years later than all of my mates but atleast it's done now! Thinking of getting lessons and eventually getting a car is such a good aim to work towards and it's taking my mind completely away from gambling which is great!! I'm glad everyone is still doing fine and we are one day closer in the right direction 😀

have a wonderful day people!!

H.

Oh I also switched from smoking to vaping yesterday too so I have a new toy to play with! And it tastes lovely!

Hi there mate,

Just wanted to drop by and say well done on passing your theory test bud - Along with stopping Gambling and switching from Cigarettes to Vaping, 2016 is certainly starting off really well for you - Keep on going mate and make this year the best it can be.

Gambling is a b*tch and just such a waste of time - Keep fighting to rid your life of it pal, even when it seems like it would be a harmless bet - It isnt! It never is! Guard up my friend and beat this once and for all,

All the best,

Drew

Well done on day 3 sounds like a good day we like good days.

I see you are looking for advise the best thing I can say is read diaries on here it's all over the place and take the bits that suit you but be decisive and leave don't that door ajar.

What I have done is got all my dirty secrets out in the open no point hiding them,

I closed all my online accounts and installed blocking software,

I took a friend with me and my passport photo to 19 bookies that are in areas I visit yes it was a bit embarrassing at first but no where near as embarrassing as some of the places gambling has took me yes there's 100's more bookies about but I have to go out of my way to get there,

the triangle TIME, MONEY, LOCATION simple with out one you can't gamble yes it can be frustrating not having the cash on you if just want to buy something but you get over it.

Finally I went to GA I might not be for everyone some people have done counselling I don't feel ready for that,to be honest I nearly turned round when I got to the GA door but so glad I didn't it's been a great source of inspiration to me along with this site. Whenever you have a spare minute read a bit on here some great diaries to inspire you and 100 days on you will be writing this post to someone who is walking in your shoes today.

KTF

Hi Harry,

Welcome to the forum,:)))

It takes some guts to admit we have a gambling problem, so well done for starting a diary.

Looks like you are already reaping the benefits of abstaining, passing your theory test, switching to vapour cigs, and 2 days under your belt already, well done you.

Suzanne xx

Another massive pat on the back from me...Great work on all fronts 🙂

Go get those lessons, anything that occupies your mind is great for recovery! Keep pushing forwards - ODAAT

Well done for today Harry. I enjoying the vaping? I found it very good.

Day 3 today, stopped myself gambling in town even though it seemed at the time a logical thing to do, oh you've just spent £30 on socks and thermals you should probably try to win that back Harry, my brain is a funny thing but never the less I still dodged going in and am really happy about that! Not to happy about the weather though, bit miserable for my liking!

And thanks everyone for your support I think reading kind words that you all put on here really helps the urges calm down! 🙂