You said, “It’s crazy once you have not gambled for a while and think about how obsessed and emotionally invested you were while gambling it’s hard to relate to yourself, feels like a different person.”
I so identify with that. I look back on my life when I was in my 20s and 30s and think – why why why? I am not sure which was worse when I was in my teens and 20s when I didn’t really know the damage I was doing to myself, or when I was in my 30s when I did know and carried on anyway!
Willpower is a big part of stopping, but also feeling compassion for yourself and realising that there is no need to keep hurting … Keep strong!