Life With Sports Bets Only

My guess is that you're too hard on yourself and have lost yourself over the years. We humans are social creatures. Yeah, we can be introverts or extroverts but "no man is an island". You've been taught, as most males in the western world have been, to stifle your feelings... buck up and be a man. To me you sound depressed. What were you like as a little kid? What were you passionate about back then? Probably sports but what else?

Thanks Duncan and Carla for posts.

A lot of my stress over the years has been caused by change and unexpected events or situations. (Maybe that categorises most stress?)

So if I am the type of person who prefers things to stay as they are and doesnt find it easy to cope when things alter, that makes it difficult to change my life.

The phrase about change the things you can etc. applies. Where changes occur outwith my control, I'll now deal with them without random gambling as an escape and a crutch.

But to make any change to my life would mean inevitably some stress and without doubt more interaction with other people. I believe I already do or choose not to do anything which is in the category where one can do it alone. I have considered and analysed that to death.

So I'd like my life to be better, but it can only get better by dealing with stress and other people. Easy to see why I choose to carry on the same.

Hiya captain

See ur still flying along in ur recovery and its working for u and in the end that's all that matters, totally agree with u bout no change been good , I know having a routine works for me no urges at all whenever that changes the urges come but admittedly easier to deal with now, stress is always goin to be a major factor for anyone with a gambling problem as we both know it takes the pain away of having to deal with what's in front of us so short term great long term not so great, we keep trying

Really pleased with u its working and brilliant for sticking to ur guns and doing it ur way think a lot were expecting u to fall flat on ur face but ur certainly proving them wrong

Castle2

Went Christmas shopping today. First time for 20 years or so that I have been able to wander round the shops at my leisure and not feel any stress. I take time before going to identify suitable gifts, it's not that I just grab any old thing, but for years I have always been in a rush and stressed. That's because the plan was get the shopping done as quickly as possible and get to the bookies. Often I'd think' I've spent £100 on presents but I'll win that today and my Christmas shopping will have been done for free. Sometimes that did happen but of course it was false and short term gain only. No more.

This is a good example of how quitting random gambling is helping me in a way other than financial. Maybe more examples like this will follow.

It was a viscious circle.

Things in my life changed outwith my control or due to my bad decisions.

That made me stressed so I escaped to my hobby of gambling more and more. Gambling and winning relieved the stress and helped me to cope. But then gambling and losing eventually just added to the stress and made things worse.

I am living without random out of control gambling and dealing with change and stress without my addiction like most humans do.

The Christmas shopping experience gives me a hint that quitting random gambling may bring benefit in some small ways other than financial.

Eeeeeek! Christmas shopping??!! Now I'm stressed! lol Detest shopping period so it's even worse at Christmas time. But you're right... I also have often thought I can pay for this or that through gambling wins.... may feel differently without that gambling stress.... but not today... massive snowstorm happening right now and I don't want to drive anywhere.

Well, I reconsidered and did drive for groceries and a wee bit of Christmas shopping. I forgot about an overseas parcel I have to get off so I'm glad you mentioned it afterall.... not to mention the roads were so bad that hardly anyone was out so no crowds to beat off!

Love reading your diary captain,think I first starting reading it in 2011 when I first joined this site.

I've always done the same,a £20 xmas prez ended up costing 100 by the time I've actually bought it!

The thing that initially attracted me to your diary is your title.

I thought I'd have a bit of that,I could handle just betting on sports,cut the other cr** out.

I understand it works for you,I want it to work for me,because like every gambler I know everything about everything,if only I could stick to the bets I really fancy and have the discipline not to chase when things amazingly go wrong!

That's when the £300 bets on a basketball game played by a team I can't even pronounce come into play.

I'm not knocking your methods,I'm a bit envious I can't just put a tenner on the footy or 50 on england to win the first test,I've realised where winning could lead.

I started my recoivery on june 10th 2000,my first ga meeting,my journey has lead me to now,I'm in a good place where winning money doesn't appeal,but having an interest is missed.

Keep goin strong captain.

A prezzie, eh? Well, that would mean I'd have to read through your entire diary to find out if you've been naughty or nice!

Nothing new but I've never put this on here before - I absolutely love when it is time to go to bed. This is not depression, I dont think all day about bedtime but when the time comes I love it.

Like gambling it is an escape from life, I sleep and dream and my dreams are better than reality and involve me operating as the person I should have been.

So I've given up random gambling as an escape but sleeping and dreaming is a free escape which I can retain.

Of course there were times in the past where I couldnt sleep for worrying about debts and money lost that day. There were times when I was glad to go to bed and have the day over with and hope that the following day would be better.

Now all is calm and peaceful and I can go to bed relaxed. Still sends me a message of sorts though when my dreams are always better than real life.

Hi captain... am much the same. Bed time sometimes the best part of the day, sleep to look forward to and a release from the pressures of being alive. Snug as a bug in a rug.

Like you say though, when stressed about something, its almost impossible to actually sleep and that's frustrating.

I also love that feeling when I've had a really good nights sleep and I wake up feeling refreshed and alive.

I hate that feeling when I wake up, look at my watch and it says 3.54 a.m, cos then I know the day to come is gonna be full of yawns and that hollow sunken eyes look and generally not functioning well at all.

Generally I don't like the first 10 minutes of getting up in the morning. Awake but not awake and contemplating the day ahead. General feeling of wanting to switch phone off and pull covers over head.

Sleep is always free, now that's a good thing! Regards... S.A 🙂

Started watching the England game last night, a game I would never have bet on as a friendly. Thought it would be in the category of a game where I could just enjoy watching. After 15 minutes I was reading a book and nothing to do with the actual game. From a great love of football and other sports years ago, due to gambling my interest level is reducing all the time. If I dont bet on it, I cant be bothered watching.

The greatest game in the world has now become 22 guys running around kicking a ball for no purpose. Sad but true.

My football betting is confined to a bunch of games where I can track scores.

Morning captain

Thanks for the post gave me some great food for thought, with the football totally get where ur comin from for me now I can only watch the big games which av some meaning if its two mid table teams I feel the same just switch off and start to do other things or my mind starts wondering as when a bet was placed my mind was absorbed for the whole 90 mins even if it was nil nil with 5 mins left and I had 4 or more goals I would still av the same buzz as at the beginning of the game, however I don't miss the final whistle blown and having to turn back to reality which then was how am I goin to win my money back the random gambling u speak bout I couldn't accept the money was gone

That's the part where I feel u av so much control something I cannot do I wish I could but the reality and truth is I can't and never will

Recovery is bespoke and am really pleased for u and ur continued success

Full respect to u

Castle2

Stopped going into bookies to stand and watch races and see if I pick winners. Not a conscious decision, just realised I haven't done it for a couple of weeks. So only go in to pick up football coupons and then back to put them on. No urges whatsoever to gamble on random stuff, done with all that. Want it to be end December so I can say I have done 6 months, so focused on that target.

Nice one Captain.

In previous periods of abstaining, I've still popped into the bookies. As I seem to remember you mentioning before - I always found it was a nice place to go and chill out; if I had 20 minutes to kill between meetings or something, I'd always rather pop into the bookies than do some mindless wandering through the shops. Plus, a perverse part of me always wanted that little challenge/victory of being in there and not having a punt.

These days, I have absolutely no interest. At some point, I took a step back and wondered what that was actually doing for me. Nowadays, they just don't seem to register. Lots of people say they learn to hate seeing a betting shop - that they pity the poor souls hanging around outside smoking / nipping in and out to the cashpoint. I wouldn't even go that far - I see a bookies and it has little or no effect on me.

Congratulations on your continued progress. I have no doubt you can press on to end of Dec (and beyond). Keep up the focus and avoid complacency...

D123

Won money on the football yesterday which gave me a buzz. Had some near misses in last couple of months which gave me the downside. Also times when I've been nowhere near winning which puts me somewhere in between. But the major factor is I'm betting affordable amounts. I'm not chasing losses from random gambling.

Yes I got a bigger buzz when I won on football to recoup losses from the week on random. But that was false buzz - I was celebrating getting back to even for the week. Things are balanced and organised and in perspective now.

When I won on football in the past, I would just go and collect and not bet anything else that day. But the money would go gradually back to the bookies, over a few days or a few weeks or months.

This time when I go to collect it will be different. I will stick to the frequency and amounts I have been and I will not be tempted back to random.

So the buzz of winning is still there. Still good. But different. Different buzz and there will be a different outcome.