The First day of no gambling.

Hi Steve and welcome to the site.

Well done for admitting its a problem and wanting to stop. I am a few months in now and the difference in myself and life compares to three months ago is untrue. You can be happy again if you stop now and although it is extremely difficult I kid you not it doesn't take long until things start to look up. The old you starts to come back slowly but surely and the urges become less. Have you put any blocks in place? As most of us even with the most amount of will power can't stop on this alone. We are all on this journey together so reach out for support there are many wise words shared here.

Stay strong and here's to a gamble free day.

Take care

Bex

Thanks Bex. Today has been really hard, the urge to gamble was significant. I found myself very restless so I decided to go for a a long walk round the park. It helped and I feel better for it.
I have closed my online accounts but I have done this many times before. I just hope I can resist tomorrow.
Here's to day two.

Come on day 2, you can do it ( if you have ever seen the water boy I picture the guy saying this) You can do it and always makes me smile. If you haven't then one day you are bored and trying to overcome your urges then I recommend you watch it, its quite silly but if you are anything like me will have you laughing throughout and the urge will be gone. And it will be much more fun then tuning into a website to part with your money and paying to become a motionless zombie for an hour or ten.

On a more serious note you said you have previously self excluded from online sites, online also being my problem. Have you considered putting blocking software on as an extra precaution or contacting your bank to stop these type of transactions( depends on who you bank with). As we all know if we want to gamble that badly we will find a way even if you open a new account elsewhere, I for one have done this myself but any extra measures you put in place will only serve in making this process easier by removing more temptation.

Take care

Bex

Hi Steve, I wish you all the best,I also have just started on my quest today to stop gambling.I think of gambling like you all do a lot, I have wasted more time/money and effort on machines and online gambling than I ever wanted to.I have felt like a zombie putting money in with no actual thought of the reality of how much and the reality of how losing it will effect me or my family.With the thought of clawing back some of what I've lost or the chance of playing the games main feature which never seems to come.Keeping occupied in other things walking and new hobbies I also find helps.Hopefully we will all manage to give up.Kind regards.

Bex I have looked at Gamblock to help me but being honest, I have looked at the price and thought I could use that to gamble and win money. Do you know if it's worth getting? Or which is the best to get?

Good look Homer with your effort to stop gambling. I have done exactly the same thing. I have often gambled a weeks wages on a tennis player to win the next game without even knowing anything about who's playing or caring about the consequences. That is until I lose. It Makes me feel sick just thinking about it. The feeling after you've lost and realised what you should of really spent the money on is the worst.
However that can't be changed, just need to be positive that it ain't going to happen in the future.

Good luck and stay strong.

Depending on what phone/computer you have there is k9 which is free to download. I have installed this on my tablet and got my daughter to put in the password so I can't take it off even if I wanted. There are lots of blockers and although you may think it is a waste of money to pay for one, think about how much money it could save you in the long run if you get the temptation to open a new account somewhere. I am sure the blocker will work out much cheaper. Good luck.

Just another thought if you use your phone to gamble then you should be able to contact your phone provider and ask them to put restrictions on for 18+ sites then you won't be able to access any gambling sites.

I have an android phone. I have done the 18+ restriction in the past, it's only takes me a second to long into my account and remove the restriction. The gambling blocker is my best option (was going to say bet then ha).

Thanks for your help.

IDF its an android phone then k9 should be fine with it and you can download it through playstore for free.

So day two is coming to a close and still gamble free. It's been hard, still thinking of gambling alot and all the money I've lost and what I could of done with it for my family. However I'll just take everyday at a time and hopefully these feelings of guilt and restlessness will fade. Good luck to everybody else. Stay strong.

Day 3 is nearly over and still gamble free. It's the weekend however and tomorrow the football season starts up. That'll be a real test as I've always had a weekend football bet which has often led to my gambling spiralling out of control. However I'm determined to stay gamble free. I won't even be checking the scores. Roll on day 4.

So day 4 is coming to a close. There's been lots of temptations. Every advert on TV seems to be some kind of betting offer. I just see some kind of gambling everywhere I look. My mates asked me if I wanted to go and play bingo tonight, I made an excuse up. I know eventually I'll have to tell them the truth about my problem but for now it's one day at a time.

Hi Steven,

Hope you made it through the weekend ok. It has been a tough one. Let me know how you got on, stay strong!

Alright mate I'm five days without bet. I kept myself pretty busy, I went out with the family yesterday instead of watching the football. It's been easily my best day so far knowing that I can do a weekend without a bet. It's payday this Friday though so the upcoming weekend is going to be a real test. I normally go crazy payday weekend and left close to broke by the end of it.

Hope you're doing well mate and congrats on a gamble free weekend.