Hello
not sure if it’s ever really a success story, or just another step on the never ending road of recovery, but I got to thinking tonight about how long it had been since I had gambled, and that prompted me to check my gamstop account.
my 5 year exclusion period that I signed up to after hitting, without question the lowest point in my life, had expired in march this year. after seeing this, I quickly signed up for another 5 years and felt bloody fantastic about how I didn’t even flinch at the idea!
I then thought about the dark days after I was able to admit I had an addiction to gambling; explaining to my wife what I had done and the impact it had had on our life, the guilt, the shame, thoughts of ending it all (I don’t type that lightly) and that brought me back to this forum to revisit my posts from that time.
re-reading my initial thoughts on this forum made me do several things; cringe, cry, smile, re-Live the guilt, but above all, an overwhelming sense of achievement and pride at the progress I have made in the last 5 years. Dark times have to come first.
I am in a completely different place now compared to then; after being sure my marriage was over and I would lose my family, we somehow began to heal. My role in this was simple, be transparent and don’t gamble. We all know in reality that this is the opposite of simple for an addict, but understanding how your family see your addiction is critical to your recovery, and I took that as a challenge to maintain recovery and rebuild my (and subsequently our) life and so far I have held firm.
lets be honest, the addiction we all suffer from can never be truly cured. I still see Tv adverts for betting sites and think about whether I could ‘control it’ this time, or re-live that rush of a rare win, but it is only a fleeting memory now, time really does heal but although you absolutely have to forgive yourself before you can move forward, never forget why you made that decision to stop, it is absolutely crucial!
Whatever step on this never ending road you are on, please never lose faith; I was as deep in as you could be, I lied about money, where I was, what I was doing, why I was so angry (after covering up another loss usually) and gambling nearly cost me my marriage, my son, and my life.
you can beat this, whatever stage in your recovery you are at you 100% can conquer it, one step, one day, one week at a time.
if you relapse, understand the reasons, deal with your emotional response and go again, just reading this is all the assurance that you need that you are serious about recovery.
I am a gambling addict, and I haven’t gambled for 1,956 days. I hope anyone that reads this can celebrate this milestone and beyond on their journey, the pain and temptation never truly goes, but life without gambling is so, so much better!
Thank you for sharing the journey of your recovery with us today.
You have shown great candour in sharing the details of your recovery from gambling and I commend you for your honesty as well as the resilience you have shown in confronting your gambling.
It can be difficult looking back at our old selves and seeing how we used to be but the fact that you are in a very different place today demonstrates how far you have come.
There are many resources out there for people who are just starting their recovery from gambling. Our helpline is available 24/7 and one of our helpline team would be more than happy to help anyone who would like help to stop gambling.
Thank you for sharing your experiences with recovery from gambling and do continue to make use of our forums and chatrooms
Thank you
what an awesome read well done to you sir for achieving such great things in your life and not admitting your gambling addiction is or ever will be beaten and letting your guard down as every one here is only one temptation from going down the dark path again
Hi mate and weldone done, if this isnt success then what is? The objective is not placing a bet and u have demonstrated to make the correct decision in which a number of other people have made a different choice which then leads to further destruction worse then they have started, i look up to people like yourself has i made a different decision after 3 years free from gambling and had more relapces on the way had i made the same decision as yourself i would now be 8 years clean however im just over a year clean now and my life is a million times better
Wow a phenomenal story to read. What an achievement. Reading such stories are what keeps me determined to beat this after 73 days gamble free.
You are an inspiration to all of us in our infantry stage of recovery to know we have light at the end of the tunnel.
Thanks for sharing
Amazing story and a big boost to my confidence. I’m 4 months clean and have no desire to go back. To read people’s successes and set backs are what make this forum great. The task of quitting seems insurmountable on day 1, but to be able to read the positives can really boost someone’s determination. It can be done and you are proof of that. Anyone who goes 1 day without gambling is proof of that, and to continue that for 5 years is a huge achievement.
Congrats again, and thanks for helping others by sharing your journey.
Stay strong 💪
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