Hi,
My name is Bradley and I am a gambling addict.
I am a 19 year old student who's gambling is out of control. Today is that day I have had enough. I am £11,000 in debt and have no way of paying it off. I am in need of help both mentally and financially.
Please can you guys help me not only to stay clear of gambling, but also provide me with information of charities or sources of clearing these debts.
The main thing is the debt... I used to gamble what I could afford for fun. Then it became gambling to win money and when I lost, it was gambling to cut losses, which is all but impossible.
I have made the first step of self-exclusion from all websites and once my debts are sorted I can get my life back on track.
I am going to take it one day at a time and hope you will help me along my journey.
hi bradley
firstly let me say this, well done for finally taking the step of joining this site, it really means that you understand you need help.
i am where you are, iv finally had enough, but yet i have said this to myself 100 times. and everytime i get paid, i spend what i cannot afford, i have payday loans all over the place, long term loans, i even gamble my rent money sometimes. it is an ugly disease, and a serious illness to be afflicted with. im 28 now and have been gambling since i can remember, it only started to c*****e me about a year ago, suddenly just gets out of control right?
its like a "zone" that you enter where nothing matters, there is no financial worries and you can just throw all your money away and not think about it . till your out of the zone and the guilt starts, the depression, the worry, anguish, anger, lies, deciept. how can this be something thats happening to me?
well my friend, i also have chosen today as the start of my last real hard attempt at gambling abstinance, as of today, we will not ever gamble again. no scrathcards, no slots, no bookies, and little by little we can get our lives back on track.
a long and tough road is ahead, but we can get there, we can be normal again.
my only advice is that you stay positive, see this as a real harsh life lesson learned. find things to fll your mind with other than winning/gambling.
i have started to learn a language and play the piano, things that ultimately you can never be perfect at so you can spend endless time on them i find are the best tools.
our minds can overcome the feeling of allowing the 'zone' to take over.
my name is Chris, and im going to take this journey with you bradley, from today.
my first checkpoint is going to me may the first, one month with no gambling, we can do that right?
i hope to hear back from you with good news then, and this time it will be good news.
good luck my friend 🙂
Hi guys,
That is a great insight Chris, I never thought of it as a zone but I totally get where you are coming from; I just was just in a zone last night and lost a lot of money which would have set back on track. I have friends but no real support structure and I sometimes feel I am on my own and makes me gamble; I really need some support.
Bradley, sorry to hear about your situation but it is great that you are taking steps to deal with it; Im sure there are many people on here who wish they took these steps when they were 19 (me included!!) Self exclusion is a great start, I wish I could give good advice on debts just work towards a goal and not dwell on what could have been.
my name is Richard and I want today to be my last ever gamble as well; I have a chance for a new start in September- to go back to university to do a course I always wanted to do; If I carry on gambling it wouldn't be possible, I am in a pretty dire straight now but I have just about got my head above water.
What makes it worse is that everyone keeps congratulating me on getting on the course but I feel so low about the future.
Good luck guys Day 1........
Hi Bradley - yes, well done for taking this very important first step of admitting your problem and seeking help. Make contact with one of the GamCare staff members - I am sure they can direct you to lots of other helplines, counselling services etc, and they have their own counselling lines too.
You have made a good start by self-excluding - you can also install blocking software such as K9 (free) if online gambling is the problem.
Then try to come on to this site as much as possible because here you will find support and encouragement.
Best wishes
Joanna
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