no win situation

Having a bit of a struggle this week the urges are coming thick and strong.Coming up to christmas last year i had a tough descision to make. Work wasnt going too well, lots of debts and of course the gambling. How was i going to give my kids a christmas? stopping gambling was not enough . It would stop me going further into debt ,but wouldnt buy my kids toys. I needed the mortgage money. So i give up the house and stopped gambling up until christmas .We were lucky and got a rented house. We moved in on boxing day.I I was depressed at losing the house but the kids got their presents.In the new year i found i had money left each week (no big mortgage to pay)So yes i started gambling again. Why im now feeling depressed is because want to stop gambling for ever,not just till christmas.Is it easier for me now simply because i have to stop.

hi mate im sorry to hear your situation though with the house and that but you have your family and thats something to be thankfull for.its also a big infuence on you stopping your addiction and giving your kids a great life with the money you will be saving from not gambling.its a long road but im sure you can do it

Hi al

watched racing today on tv, cant say i would have had too many winners which makes me feel better.I didnt feel like i wanted a bet today.

going out tomorrow to watch city so that will give me something to do.

Im spending a lot more time with the missus and kids lately just getting them ready for trick or treat (not the missus she needs no help lol) just joking . She seems a lot happier the last few weeks. Im not going to worry about christmas this year because there is only me who can mess it up and gamble my wages away.But not this year . I hope we can all do it.

Hi Jeff,

Well done on your progress. I found the easier bit when i had no money to my name and therefore couldn't gamble, well thats common sense. I worried about pay days and loan payments from university because this then took away the restriction to gamble. When i started getting a bit of money (which was a massive shock to actually have disposable money!) i began to realise the true value od money. I think this is helping me see that gambling wastes yours money, not gambling gives you oppertunity to buy things and not worry about any big losses recently incurred by gambling. Just personal opinion but thought it might help, and i know we quit around about the same time but i'm starting to see it alreasy. My loan from uni was over a grand, last year this went in no time. Just keep strong, stay postive through the urges and enjoy spending hard earned money!

James

Hi all

Well thats my first month out of the way . I found it easy enough though at times especially the first few days i had urges to gamble.

So anyone just starting their recovery it does seem to get easier. I suppose you notice having more money to spend on your family and without actually realising it you spend more time with them.I know its not the same for everyone we all have different gambling habits.but i hope people can take comfort from this and it can help them through the first days. Of course i still have a long way to go and i know at times it will be really hard but i just keep thinking of what it was like 1 month ago.Anyway onwards and upwards. think positive all.

Hi exgambler jeff,

Congratulations on your 1st month, great achievement. Your diary and posts elsewhere are always positive and upbeat, great to hear.

Keep on keeping on kid,

DT.

Hiya mate, cheers for the post and if I were a gambling man which Im not these days Id say you were definitly a manc...just for the kid comment lol!...and then reading through your post and seeing you support City also gives it away!

Well done on your first month mate and keep up the good work...We are all better people without gambling, we'll never be able to just be small gamblers and have little bets here and there cos we are compulsive so we are better off without!

Anyway, nice meeting ya and hope we're both around for a long time to come!

Take care

Hi All

Just starting my second month now and i feel like i havent gambled for a year .Ive got to be honest i thought it would be harder ive been gambling for 30 years and tried to stop so many times.

Im not saying it will stay easy i know when things go wrong it could work against me.

What i am saying is that i appreciate all the help and advice you have all given me.you have got me through my first month and i hope you continue to give me good advice. Thanks all Jeff.

Hi Jeff,

Thanks for your note in my diary. It prompted me to look up yours and I must say you deserve a prize for your positivity. Also congratulations on your month thus far, its a great achievement and I hope the days keep nudging up for you.

Your posts about boredom struck a chord with me because I have had very similar feelings. Like you said I have nothing to be bored about really. I work full time, get out a lot, love music, dabble with playing the guitar, read, etc etc yet at times my mind feels like it needs something a lot more. Guess it takes a while to change the habit of just about a lifetime, so I'm trying to be patient. Hope you continue to be too!

All the best mate,

wtl.

Hi All

Today i have watched the racing on tv. I have been doing this the last couple of weeks and apart from the first week i would have lost each time so it makes me feel better. Now i know a lot of people will say im tempting fate but honestly it hasnt bothered me or made me feel like a bet.

The first week when i feel i would have won didnt even bother me because lets face it ,i would only have given it back to the bookies next time.

I have got into a routine over the past years of sitting down watching racing on tv. then losing i getting pi**ed off headaches etc and obviously being skint.Im now doing the same thing with a happy ending lol .It wont work for everyone i know but it takes away the boredom for me.I dont get the adrenelin rush of having a bet but i dont get that horrible feeling afterwards.

A lot of us will still watch football matches without having a bet on them,so im treating the racing the same.My next goal is to get to christmas gamble free and give my family the christmas they deserve.Last year i played poker on christmas day while the kids were playing with their toys what kind of father does that .But not this year they will get my full attention.

Hi gambler Jeff,

I am one of those people that would suggest that you are tempting fate. Its the fact that your picking winners in your mind. Those mind bets can turn into actual bets.. especially if youve had a bad day and your looking for something to alter your mood. The comparison with me is watching others play my favourite slot machines.. eventually I would play again.

I'd also suggest that their is a difference between horse racing and football... Without the betting industry the racing of horses just wouldnt happen (maybe i am wrong).. whereas the game of football and the love of football would continue regardless.

Just my thoughts at this moment in time. Working my recovery just a day at a time... S.A 🙂

Hi jeff, thanks for writing in my diary, you have done really really well to go a month without gambling. If i was you i would be careful about watching the racing though mate, since i stopped just over a week ago, i hvae been doing ok really, but the one night i watched the poker show i realy wanted to gamble and very nearly did, so just watch yourself. Oh and i am a Manu fan 🙂 Not sure i fancy our chances today though.

Hi Jeff,

Just wanted to say thanks for your msg on my diary - I dont feel like an inspiration at all but if any of the catalogue of mistakes I have made with my life can help others not to follow then Im glad.

You seem to have made a great start and I am looking forward to having a wee read through your diary when i get a chance! At the moment im having a hectic day but wanted to thank you for the encouragement.

Keep strong

Eyes X

Hi Jeff

Thanks for the post mate, i'm always keeping an eye on your progress, just been too busy to write on your diary! Hope things are still going ok, you seem to be doing fantastic! A month in! I read that you feel you've given up for a year, i know what you mean, its amazing how something that used to always be at the fore-front of your mind gradually becomes an after-thought!

Keep up the good work mate

James

Hi all

Thanks for the posts everyone.

SA your advice and help is always taken in by me and i do agree that watching the racing on tv could cause someone to gamble.,but for me i have never opened an account on line because i know it would be so much easier to lose more money.so i would have to get into my car and drive up to the bookies by which time i would hope reality to have hit. I think with me m8 if i slip it will be on impulse like you say you couldnt watch your mates on the fruit machines and i know i couldnt stand in the bookies when my m8 put a bet on.you put things into perspective and make them so much clearer for me you are right there is no way racing could survive without us mugs but football would carry on so thanks for your help kid

Now back to today im a little apprehensive because although i can travel over 100 miles per day for work today i have a first aid course, which just happens to be 3-4 buildings away from my ex local bookies. I havent had to pass it in the last 5 weeks lol.On a good note the urges to bet are getting less frequent and are not as strong.