Gambling- the sure way of getting nothing from something! 11th May 2014

Day 80! Great way to start the year,I've always wanted to quit gambling,I always thought I would be a better more complete person.

Oppurtunities,prospects will only improve as I have more time on my hands to do things I should of been doin years a go. Who knows wot 2014 has in store?

Onwards and upwards,happy new year to all!

Happy New Year....Keep up the good work and... Happy Birthday!

Urges to gamble today none exsitence,this holiday has been a real test,I got through,things are on the up!

f*** u c orals, w hill,3 65 and all the other legal robbing theiving b******s! Happy new year,pass me the champers!

Day 83, things gettin bk to norm after xmas, just realised its sat! No thoughts of gambling,on my guard for complancency.

Hi Robby, thanks for your post. Congrats on 83 days great going. I'm on 7 I think but am working off a clean sheet from start of 2014. I am aiming for this to be a really good one. Had lots of ups and downs in 13 so moving on from that with a positive mindset.

Keep strong

Pat

Day 85, Normality resumes,its good to get bk into a routine again,tho my work is not busy this time of year,it helps to keep my mind busy.

No urges,I'm ticking along nicely,I've become so tight I couldn't dream of wasting a penny on gambling.

I think I've grown up at long last,having 2 kids helps. They come 1st no matter what.

Getting through xmas was a test,I'm confident of getting through the year gamble free,I'm not gona get too cocky or confident,I know how this addiction can sneak up on you.

3 months on 13th is my next aim.

Life is so much better now,I can actually plan things,all my hoildays are booked for the year,money is gona be put aside for days out,my 1 debt will be whittled down. -all I have is resentment for the time I wasted,its taken me 13 years of trying to give up to get to this point,I just wasn't ready before now,my time has come,time to enjoy no matter how much money I have or don't have. I'm in a good place and gona stay there.

Good positive post Robby and I feel empathy with you.

I thought for me 5 and a half years of trying was a long time but you have done so well to stick at it for 13 years.

Think we are both in the place we want to be gambling wise and need to stay there.

As examples I used to buy a racing paper 3 or 4 times a week, check form in daily papers every day, take time off work every year for Cheltenham and Aintree, this wasn't so long ago and I could never have imagined being at a point where I don't have interest in horse racing at all now. Think it's so important in our recovery to get to a stage where we naturally have no interest. Having blocks in place helps but if someone relies on blocks to curb urges for too long they will eventually fall off the wagon.

Thanks for the post captain,- your bang on there when you say- u have to get to the point where you naturally have no interest in certain things like racing/gambling.

Like you I spent most days studying form,I probably spent around 3 grand a year on papers,tipsters and commentary lines- my life did revolve around horses/gambling. I gave up buying papers a couple of years ago,which has helped me a lot.

Before I had kids I did use to plan my holidays around ascot,cheltenham,goodwood- it never occurred to me y'day when I booked my holidays for the year- you could call it cicumstances- I'd prefer to call it progress.

Thanks for the post captain,things are going good.

Thanks Robby glad you feel at peace without gambling, good place for your head to be.

A poster a couple of years back had the daily mantra of saying 'one day I'm gonna go and take £500 out of the bank and have a right good gamble.....but not today'. He had been saying that to himself every day for about 2 years of abstinence at that point. I liked that and I'm kinda using that myself some days when boredom or stress kick in.

Thanks for the post captain- I like your thinking.

It is too much to take in at times that we can never gamble again,that's a good way of coping.

My approach to giving up this time as been different. I've still got access to my debit card,my joint account- money is avaliable whenever I want it,well what money I have! I'm learning to trust myself again.

A friend of mine gave up smoking after 27 years,-he always kept a pk of cigs on his mantle piece,he has given up for 6 years now,I never understood why he tempted himself everyday,I do now.

Plenty of thoughts of gambling,but they all fall on deaf ears,I just can't see the point,win you lose what you win and more,lose you and you chase,end of!!- it has finally sunk in.

3 months gamble free 2mo,my health,wealth and life has improved 100%.

Well done on the 3 months Robby, glad things are looking up for you on all fronts, keep it going.

Hi Robby, just read through your diary and can relate a lot to what you are experiencing. My last bet was 21-11-13 so nearly reached 2 months. But the biggest thing for me has been i really feel this time that i will never gamble again, something in my head has clicked. My last day of gambling saw me with over £750 credit in an FOBT, it was pointless, i just kept playing, wishing i was going to lose so i could leave the bookies. I ended up losing this and another £150. I think i finally saw sense and realised there was absolutely no point playing these machines if i could never walk away with any winnings, i would always say "1 more spin wont hurt" , that would lose so i'd carry on till i'd lost the lot. Nothing i won was ever enough. I never had any huge wins but im sure even if i won 15k back then to pay off my debt i wouldnt have paid it off, i would just have raised the stakes on my bets. I wish you all the luck in your recovery.

Thanks Robby and you are dead right. What I loved about the virtual racing was the honesty though - there are no stewards enquiries, no fallers over the jumps and no non-runners!

Day 95,- very true captain,I had a habit of putting money on what ever was 10-1,sad desperate bets,the bookies probably have a built in 25 % profit on their vurtual races book,what chance has the mug punter got?

I've struggled a bit the last couple of days,glad in a way,I don't wana get too complacent.

Yesterday I was bk in the thoughts of having 700 on man city at 1/7 for a quick hundered,just as a one off!

Would it be a 1 off??

Today my thoughts have revolved around subscribing to a tipster,thinking I've now got the discipline to stick to his tips.

Crazy thoughts.

I've been down this road before,gave up for a while,got some funds together.paid a few hundered to a dodgy tipster- henry rix etc who apparently has made thousands the previous years,as soon as I subscribe they go through a losing run.

Or they start of winning,my stakes increase.

The particular tipster I looked at 2day cost a grand for the year,claims 80pts profit,if I bet 50 a point that's 3 grand profit.

This brainwave is flawed in many ways.

1 - the prices recommended are never obtainable.

2 - the 80 pt profit is b******t.

3 - I would chase any losses

4 - I would play up any winnings until lost

5 - I would lose faith after a losing run and probably stop backing the tipsters tips

6 - I have no discipline and I'm a compulsive gambler.

Sorry to jibber for any1 who reads this,I've typed this for my benefit to knock some sense into myself.

Robby,

Hope all is well mate.

Those tipsters are a joke mate. Will tell everyone on the outside without their tips what a great day they have had. anyone with there tips have proberly lost.

Tipsters are very usually just compulsive gamblers trying to make a few quid to feed their habit.

Onwards and upwards mate,

Hanz