The time is now - 7 days clean

Hiya

Well done on the abstinence before and the 7 days now. Also a big well done for installing Gamban which as you know will block the non Gamstop sites. You have a very good safety net with those two blocks. 

You sound very positive and have a plan in action so you no doubt are starting to repair the damage to yourself and way of thinking but I have no doubt you did that when you were a year off so know that part of the journey

Good luck 

Day 14 -----

2 week check in here, can't even remember the last time I'd have gone 2 weeks without gambling, its been so long.

day 8 was a big trigger for me as it was my birthday, I went to the sports and social club with my mum and uncle for a catch up, there's 2 machines there, I'd always have a play, but this time I decided to seat us so we wasn't facing them. Doing this meant I wasn't distracted by them and the lights etc

Although my mom spent a good half hour sat infront of them, I wasn't tempted to look to see how she was getting on etc.. 

But I managed it and didn't give in to temptation

I also opened up to my mom on the way to club telling her, I'm kicking it for good now and that'd I've been thinking about attending GA, she apologised to me on the way home and said she would be more supportive. 

She's on gamstop herself and banned from all the bookies and bingo halls, but she isn't ready to fully stop I guess.

Anyway

Positives here -

Sleeping better

Having clarity windows where my head feels clear

It's 3 days before payday and I actually have money in my account (UN HEARD OF LOL)

I keep checking in every day with chat gpt, I know people say AI is bad but it's really helping me keep a journal and keep me on track

I said to myself If I was really struggling I'd go to GA tonight there's a meeting in wolverhampton I can attend later tonight, I don't feel like I need it yet and have some freelance work on, so I'm gonna set myself the same aim for next wednesday, depending how I'm feeling means if I go to a meeting or not.

At the minute I'm not convinced I need it yet, I've got all my blocks in place and sticking to plan

Will be checking in next Wednesday on this thread for week 3

P.s Cheers Stuart for the comment been enjoying reading your posts

Day 16 was a big trigger day for me

It was my first payday being gamble free

Once I paid my bills all my bills, got some bits for holiday, still have a decent pot left for the month...

My paydays always went the same the past couple of years, wake up earlier than usual before work, end up blasting at least £300-£400 before I leave for work, then some while at work etc until I left myself bare for the month.

Getting through all that and having decent money left now, My brain was in a state of 'What now??' Today is day 19 and that feeling has passed now and I'm excited for wednesday's day 21, 3 weeks clean

You are doing an amazing job !!! Recognising and preparing for triggers. Good plan in place and marking milestones one day at a time. Looking forward to you posting three weeks clean on Wednesday. I will be on the 8pm chatroom that day if you are free and can celebrate it on there 

Wow here it is

3 weeks no gambaaa

Had a few cravings over the last couple of days, but reminded myself to lock in and keep busy which has worked, I checked into the chat room for the first time last night to say hi to people...

Yeah other than that no major updates, other than I told a handful of my work colleagues today and everyone was very supportive 🙂

So yeah my next check in, will probably be from an air port, I'm off to curacao in the Caribbean for two weeks next saturday and the day I fly will mark my first month. Quite weird that I'm going there as that seems to be where all the dodgy online casinos get there licenses from... but I am looking forward to a tranquil time away to decrompress and relax

saying that I'll probably check in next wednesday for week 4 just to keep myself regular 

Hope everyone is doing well too 🙂

Well done. It's like a rollercoaster sometimes and it's all about riding the curves 

Today marks 4 weeks - DAY 28

I must say my cravings have significantly reduced the past week as I've been keeping myself super busy, I'm looking forward to getting the full month goal the weekend coming.

I'm off on holiday for two weeks, so that's some time away from everything

I've been abit more open with my work colleagues too, today we were talking about how dangerous gambling is and I shared some on my experiences

I did have one trigger though, KLM text on tuesday night saying our flights had been cancelled, for some reason the first thing my brain thought was ' ah f***k it just have a play then' and I don't know why, second came oh need to sort this flight out... why did gambling come first, I guess thats the addict in me

Either way swerved giving in to that craving, and resorted the holiday out, we're going a day early now a bit of a ballache sorting out the car hire, parking hotel but not the end of the world and get an extra night away now

I'm not sure if I will check in while I'm away, unless something bad happens

but looking forward to coming back 6+ weeks free from gambling

Well done buddy for the 28 days and the extra vigilance over triggers. Hopefully work colleagues will be supportive as well. This is a lifetime battle and is never ending but putting the work in works