Hello,
I'm new here. Two years ago, my (ex) boyfriend introduced me to online gambling. At first I thought it was so much fun when we did it together. At the time I was not loosing a lot of money and I was in control. When we broke up , I started gambling because of lonilinnes, boredom and bad mood.
In these 2 years, I have lost all my money in the bank and currently borrowed money to get through the month. Noone knows about my struggle and I feel so much shame and guilt.
After a big loss now I am in day 3 no gambling. I want to make it work but I can not stop thinking of all the money I lost and how stupid I have been. I must stay away this time and take care of myself.
Thank you all for sharing your stories. It makes me feel less lonely !
Well done for posting on here. It’s not an easy addiction to overcome. First thing, and probably the hardest, is you’ve got to forget about the money lost. If you don’t it will just eat at you constantly. You’ll get random reminders all the time when you have an unexpected bill or your friend gets a new car but you’ve got to let it go. Stay strong.
Totally agree. Its extremely hard to not remember the money lost and think about what you could do with it. Unfortunately that money is gone and nothing you can do will bring that back. Thinking about it can be a tempting way for your brain to get you back gambling. Maybe one big win will come my way. It wont, and if it does, you will lose more.
I highly recommend talking to someone about this. A friend, a family member. Gamblers live in a world of lies and to keep this secret to yourself can also be dangerous. We lie to ourselves the most. If you cant speak to anyone, please reach out to Gamcare or GA. You are not alone and there is plenty of willing ears to hear your story. It can be a huge relief to have someone listen.
Please use Gamstop/Gamban and block yourself from everything. Take away your temptation, or at least make it harder to access. Keep yourself busy, find a hobby. Can be anything. When I quit I googled hobbies as I had no interest in anything. I still don't have a hobby, but I now read allot more and cook more food or go for a walk. It's all about changing your old routine. Boredom needs to be filled or your brain will start thinking about gambling again. This diary is a great way of filling some time.
Wishing you all the strength to get through this.
Stay strong 👍
Forget about the money lost I know easier said than done but will only keep the gambling thoughts alive in terms of winning it back you will see your life get better really quickly as you will see the bringers of not gambling keep talking
Hi All 2nd day for me yes thinking of money lost is killer also thinking of the wins for me thinking I can have mass of cash in pocket and in bank account again only to go through same circle of giving it all back no matter what I hope you all have nice weekends, gamble free is my aim, day 2 is here ☺️x
I have exactly the same experience! You have to stay strong and stop playing, find something what makes you happy and change your focus . I screwed up as well after 8 months I didn’t play and today I totally screwed up, I feel ashamed I can’t cope with my emotions but it’s just temporary situation and it will pass. You know you’ve been in that position before and you know that it will be okay , you’ll be fine ! Stop focusing on what you lost , I did that too but it will take your energy and you’ll be in the same circle again of feeling guilty. We’re strong and I know we can get through it and have much better life x ! Change your focus but I’m proud of you that you realised what happened and why you did it but it’s never gonna happen again. Stay strong x
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