I need to be here

Do you know what your triggers are or recognise patterns which could lead you to gamble? Also can you get to physical GA meetings?

Hi 

I think it’s the attraction of winning money quickly, but the reality is I don’t need that money really. Mix that with bordum.  After what you said I have had a think about it on the way home and I have booked my self into the gym 3 times this week. Perhaps that will help I haven’t been much since I started betting again.  Physical meeting I’m not sure about.

I am busy normally all day work at 6-6 then normally hit the gym.  I have had spare time which I don’t normally have in the evening which I have decided to sort out again with the gym 

I’m no expert but I have experience and history of gambling addiction and I’ve been clean for a while now but still the monkey is on my back and still has not left, I’m 27 and I’ve was gambling  From 10 years old but I have to keep myself in check or I could easily slip into my old ways, to be honest everyone is different and everyone has different triggers and weirdly enough I’d say for myself the gain of financial is quite small in my incentives, it can get me from any angle such as boredom like you said, upset, angry, depressed, anxious, the devil on my shoulder ‘go on have a bet you’ll feel much better’ but we all know that is temporary and almost all times with devastating affects, you work from 6-6 you seem like a honest hard working person and you deserve to reap the rewards of your hard earned money not lining the pockets or these glorified drug dealers. I know it’s tough and I’ve been there myself but if your serious about changing your life you have to set restrictions or make changes that can give you a better chance of no relapse, for me I have a few things I have an app on my phone which tells me how many days I’ve went without a bet with a picture of my fiancée in the background to remind me of what I could lose but for you it could be anything you care about just if you get the urge have a look and hopefully it could give you that vital extra time to think about what you could potentially end up doing, finding hobbies and the gym is great you’ve found a good one there, like you said previously staying on these forums because I know it sounds harsh and a lot of reformed gamblers say it but if you see a new member at on a forum or walking into a meeting in need of drastic help a lot of the times they will explain a bit of there story and seeing these new members will remind you of where you once were and were you don’t want to go back, there’s lots of changes and things you can do when you get an urge and I don’t know enough about you to make assumptions about how bad gambling is in your life but I know personally for me the hardest part was to realise that with gambling in my life I wouldn’t have a life and certainly no future, I hope that helps a little 

Thank you so much for taking the time to write such a message. 
I have been thinking about what you have wrote and I too think it’s escapism from the normal grind of life. 
You sound  like you have you have mastered the part I haven’t managed yet to stay away

longer term. (Excellent ).I completely get what your saying regarding the new people. 
I know  we don’t know each other but just typing this to you know knowing you have put effort into my situation really means a lot, hopefully the encouragement and belief to make day two and day three etc ...

I think I just need to let go the emotionally to money I have lost before and take this as a clean start .

One day a time buddy! Obvcourse yeah it’s difficult to let go of the money you lost but that’s where we get stuck in a loop trying to win back our lost earnings but it’s insanity, the harsh truth is that money is gone but you’ll be surprised that with how quickly life can turn around and become more stable without gambling, I mean say you did win that money back, great’ but then what? You’ll just put it back in and more, if you want to make a good financial decision then don’t bet another penny.

Trust me it’s difficult the early days going clean I know too well this thing is an addiction like drugs and I know you just wanna win that money back but it’s not gonna happen buddy honestly it’s just gonna cause more hurt, can I ask how long since your last bet?

you talk a lot of sense with the letting go 

I actually bet Sunday so Monday was the first day 

I tell a lie I put 2 pound in the machine in the pub last night and then thought enough is enough. 
Sat  down and wrote this message 

i think I had so moment where I thought what the f am I doing again 

So this is your first day of freedom from gambling!! Well done! Your first day of many hopefully, honestly give a few days/weeks see where your at and i can guarantee you’ll be in a better place than your at right now 

And by the way free from gambling means nothing where your risking anything for gain and doesn’t matter even if it’s not financially, and that means 2p drops at the arcades, slots in the pub a personal bet with freinds nothing, there was a fella that came into GA and couldn’t believe lottery was gambling lol but yeah just because you do t see it as a problem it could be a subconscious trigger. 

You might think I’m going too far or sound crazy but I’m just telling from my own experience and like I’ve said mate I don’t know your circumstances but that fact that you’ve googled gambling addiction forum of some sort shows to me you have a problem and you don’t want to do it anymore but honestly I’ve been there myself, you can do it!!!

Have a look at a recent topic raised by a new member it was 5 days ago titled day 1-it’s all uphill from here, very strong post and very good reply’s, these are the people you could also help yourself even though your in recovery as you’ve been through it yourself 

Hi there mate 

apologies I fell asleep and have just returned from a long day at work. 
although work was horrible today problem after problem it took my mind off gambling.

I sat here now thinking i did it I got through day one like you said but by bit.

completely get you about all forms of gambling someone at work today was talking about a fantasy football league for the second half of the season. I will have to swerve that.

i have decided to brake my week into stages get through today , then get through till Friday, then over the weekend.

fingers crossed I’ll do it. 

I’ll take a look at that post now for sure. Hope all is well and thanks for the time you have spent to reply in such depth

it really has helped more than you will believe just to get through day one 

thansk 

I just wrote a blog tonight about my recent feelings of temptation. I haven’t gambled since March and feeling 95% of the time like I have overcome my addiction, yet it’s that 5% of occasional temptation that reminds me I am on a journey and a battle to stay strong. I have began turning my attention to this wonderful community as my support.

I guess what I’m trying to say here is that I believe you have made the right step in logging back in here to turn for more support to stop.

And I feel you should hear that your blog story tonight has served as a safety warning for myself to not go through with any temptation, even when I feel 95% better these days, as deep down I know it never ends well…even with small bets! 

Thank you for your time and just know you have got this! 

Hello Mikee and Welcome to the forum. 

Yes you do need to be here and you will realise thats the best thing you have said for a long time. Even better you need to be sitting down with someone close and talking about what you have done

Gambling gets us from all angles for all sorts of reasons and all sorts of triggers. 

Ultimately its a drug addiction A trip which we craved first and foremost. Once on that drug trip you have no control. We have all been there.

Fast or easy money it is not! its called gambling for a reason and the odds are always against you.

Its a mugs game and a vice which is extremely addictive. The gambling dens dont set it up to to up our wages or entertain us. All the risk is really with you and you have seen the result

its an escape fix. if it was purely about the money we would wake up to it far sooner. I was vulnerable to it and spent 40 years as a J****E chasing the mess I made early on

I gambled away the price of a house so it was actually beyond a sinister joke that ever felt I was going to get it back. I was in reality a zombie planning or craving my next fix. I was an addict and I was mentally ill with addiction

If you seek help and realise you cant do this alone that is much of the recovery journey

Best wishes from everyone on the forum