Hi all, I'm 22 years old and have been gambling on sports for the past 4 years. Over the past 2 years, after graduating from Uni, my gambling problem has developed into a full blown addiction mainly due to a sudden and captivating interest in horse racing. I've realised this is becoming a problem and have tried to quit in the past, without any sustained success. After reading many other diaries, it's become clear to me that it's vital I stop now and focus on my future, rather than looking back in 10 or 20 years time after gambling the 'most mportant' years of my life away.
I'll be posting my progress in this diary weekly, and I'd appreciate any support and advice in how others have managed to control and manage this addiciton.
Thanks
Bugsy
welcome to the forum a place where you will receive a wealth of support and some amazing advice.
Well done for addressing your addiction now and not like me taking twenty more years of destruction to concede defeat.
The compulsion to gamble is for me without doubt a progressive addiction were the stakes are raised and the risks of losses other than financial heightened.
My advice is there is a triangle.
Time-Money-Location take one away at all times and the punt becomes impossible.
The results the same for all of us compulsive gamblers.
A 100% payrise.
Take it a day at a time and take all the help you can.
You are not alone.
Most of all enjoy recovery. Today my friend you did something amazing.
For that be proud.
Duncs stepping forward never back.
Thanks for your response Duncs, day 1 completed bet free.
Week 1 completed, a little tricky over the weekend but thankfully got through.
Bugsy
my friend that is truly a fantastic post to read.
Thanks for sharing
keep doing it.
One day at a time.
Duncs stepping forward never back.
Well done on your continued progress pal.
thanks, I appreciate the support. I read a great quote on here, 'another day - another dollar saved'.
Wow, back again after a month long relapse. Hopefully I can stay bet free for the remainder of the month.
Wow! Time really does fly - I can't believe it's been a year since I first started this diary. A year has passed but unfortunately many things have remained the same. After my last post, I had continued to gamble throughout the summer, making some money then losing even more. Towards the end of the summer, I had the worst spell in betting history, losing thousands of pounds. This made me take some resposibility, and after reading Overcoming Gambling by Philip Mawer (great read) - I finally quit. I managed to quit for 6 months, but then, at the beginning of April this year, I relapsed and all of my compulsive gambling issues have come back - even worse than before.
I'm starting again from square one today (6 months progress has been wasted) and will be making an effort to be more active on these forums and post my progress more frequently this time around.
Thanks for the support.
welcome back bugsy, sounds like you have had some success of abstaining from gambling and i am sure you have seen the positives of that lifestyle.
Start a fresh, make 2014 your year!
Talbs
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