What a day!

Good Evening,

Welcome to the forum. Your realisation that gambling has got out of control will be the greatest 'lightbulb' moment of your life. You will have received all the correct and necessary advice from the advisor I am sure.

Today you did not gamble and every single day you say this you will begin to feel happier and stronger. It is a tough journey but one in which you can succeed. This is a wonderful place filled with overwhelming support and the best part is we are all compulsive gamblers so we know how you feel.

I will not ramble too long this evening but it really is great to see you start a diary and many others will offer you a similar warm welcome.

Take Care,

Flagg

Hi Irene

Welcome to the forum and well done for your first gamble free day. Just like Flagg said it really is a great place to be, lots of support and encouragment. Im On Day 10 and the recovery diary has been a fantastic help as have other memeers kind replies. Wishing you all the best x

hi irene

welcome to this very supportive site i couldnt do it without the people on here,they are amazing just a shame on the circumstances that we have met,

i relate to your diary alot the odd £5 online and when i won £30 back i would be made up and withdraw it :/ long gone are them days, and i was the same turn volume down on laptop so no one would no what i was doing :/ awful i would just be fixated on the screen for hours not eating ect, im on day 12 now and im starting to see a little light at the end of a tunnel,

i wish you alot of luck in your recovery remember you are not alone keep posting 🙂 Hollie xx

well welcome and yeah that on-line stuff is just way to easy to get caught up in. never did it meself mainly cause im just afraid to give it a whirl. im bad enough with going to the casino and plunking my money there and to start it in me house sounds like a nightmare waiting to happen. glad ya got the blockers put in and should be a big help there. taker one day at a time and hope to be hearing more from ya.

Hi Irene,

Welcome to the forum and nice to speak to you in chat and so pleased to see you have started a diary well done on taking that first step towards recovery it took me nealry 20 years to admit I had a problem.

Your not alone here and you wont be judged we understand how you feel and what you are going through and your right you can pull your way out of this.

You will hear this a lot but it rings true for all compulsive gamblers, try and take it just "One day at a time" as yesterday is gone and tomorrow is not here yet.

The money lost has gone now and you must stop chasing it you will find things a little easier if you can accept that.

Post on your diary and read lots of others if you can you will find lots of good advice and things that will inspire you that you can have a gamble free life.

I wish you courage and determination to be committed to this and will keep an eye out for your diary.

Take care

Blondie x

Thanks folks for taking the time to read my Day 1 diary. It means a great deal to have your support.

Irene

Hi Irene, we started out and ended up in exactly the same way. I started with bingo, if I won £20 I was happy, then I moved onto online slots. Started off small and the bets steadily increased. Until winning wasn't an issue anymore, neither was work, a social life or eating. Gambling more was the issue! I was completely out of control and would do anything including volume off, another window open ready to pop up on the computer incase anyone walked past. All to hide from everyone that I had a problem.

Then like you I realised I had a problem and I would never win, So I must stop to.

I wish you every success with your new life. The first few days are hard, but keep busy. I have seen for myself the positive effect that stopping can have on a person. I only hope that this time I have stopped for good.

Hi Irene

we all been there girl the important is not to be too hard on yourself and just remember you done the right thing stopping know as you could have lost a lot more including family and friends to this evil demon called gambling so a big well done and the people on here are great I was gambling for 27years and have now stopped for 65 days I will not lie to you it is a hard road ahead and not an easy path to tread but the rewards are diffently worth it in the end

Take care and good luck

Hugh

Time for rant! my heads bumping and I have a sick feeling. What a financial mess! On the upside, Im not rushing home from work to spin!! Surprisingly, I dont want to (did want 2 earlier!). Shared with 2 friends-had to explain the tears somehow! Made me grateful Id chosen them as friends-not condescending at all, their kindness makes me cry more! The rollercoaster continues-Funny old day!

Day 2, no slots-yipee!

Finding it hard 2 accept my losses but know I must 2 look forward.

Felt for ages that I was the only 1 with this problem- spent some time this evening reading forum/diary posts, realise that Im not. Taking comfort from some truly inspirational personal stories.

Thanks for sharing and supporting me.

Irene

well congrats for getting threw the day.

Thanks theassiam. Hope ur well.

Had a better sleep-headache seems to have gone. Looking forward to day 3 slot free!

Congrats on you 2 day bet free.

Stay strong and go 1 day at a time.