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Hi Nick, well done on looking for help. Laura has already given you some great adice. Read the other threads here and you will see the sort of things that have helped others stop gambling. Using support is important – if we could doit on our own then none of us would be here in the first place.
Filling your time is important. We all have different interests. Look at past activities that stopped when you were gambling. Look at thigns you have always wanted to try but never have. Lots of free activities about. Planning your time is important, fills time and thoughts away from gambling.
Keep posting and let us know the positive steps that you are taking.
Well done on telling your parents.
Yes it is hard to stop, it is even harder to control it for any period. It just keeps the addiction ticking over and it’ll be waiting for a chance to explode again.
My advice on stopping cold turkey is to not “just” stop gambling. Have those barriers in place. You found that week hard but it would probably have been easier if you had been banned from the casino and had other barriers in place – the addiction is less likely to send those urges when it knows we CAN’T gamble.
It is also important to not just sit there not gambling, plan your time and fill both your time and thoughts with activities away from gambling.
The most important advice I can give is to use support – if we could do it on our own then none of us would be here. Keep posting here, connect to the groups. Use other local support if it is an option, such as Gamblers Anonymous meetings.
I do hope you choose to avoid gambling, it is a progressive problem and things tend to get worse if we carry on. keep posting.
Hi Joey, As you have found, it is a gambling addiction. It doesn’t care whether our “drug of choice” is the scratch cards, the casino or anything else, it just looks for a way to get it’s fix. Read the other stories here, you will see many stories similoar to your own. You will also see the success stories – what are they doing that you can apply to your own situation? Whilst you have good intentions i would not recommedn your advice to anyone reading, nor to yourself. If we were able to control our gamblign then we wouldn’t be in trouble in the first place. I would recommend against keeping the addiction ticking over, rather than attempt the limits you propose you would be better asking that casino to exclude you. It is a gambling addiction; avoidfing all forms of gamboing gives you a better chance of success. You will also read how accoutability helps. Do your parents know about your gambling? Or that it has been a problem? It is good that you have put some of your money a few days away from you, as you say, thinking time is key. Your parents could help with further accountability.
Keep posting and again, i would recommend getting excluded from that casino rather than looking for a “control” we haven’t found in the past.
I had to delete your email address. This is the world wide web and it is not the best place to share it. You can talk to others in the groups we have here, check out the schedule. You will also get people responding here as well.
Hello and thanks for starting a thread in the Gambling Therapy forums
Here at Gambling Therapy we pride ourselves on being a caring and diverse online community who can help and support you with the difficulties you’re currently facing. We understand that this might be a tough time for you, particularly if you’re new to recovery, so come here as often as you need to and participate in the forums, access online groups and connect to the live advice helpline if you need one to one support. We’re in this together!
Here on the forum you can share your experiences in a safe, supportive and accepting environment. The beauty of writing it all down is that you can take your time and you will be creating a record of your progress that you can look back on if it ever feels like you’re not moving forward. So, share as much or as little as you like but do try to stick to keeping just one thread in this forum so people know where to find you if they want to be updated on your progress or share something with you.
As well as the forums New Members are invited to join Charles in the New Members Practical Advice Group On Mondays at 21:00 (UK) and Thursday at 19:00(UK)
And on that note….
I’m going to hand you over to our community because I’m sure they will have some words of wisdom for you 🙂
Take care
The Gambling Therapy Team
PS: Let me just remind you to take a look at our privacy policy and terms and conditions so you know how it all works!
Great to hear that you are enjopying the benefits fo not gamblign Johnny. Holidays are BIG in my own recovery as well, they really highlight the difference between then and now.
You are right, the odds the casinos give don’t really matter to us now but I reflect that it wouldnt matter how good the odds were in our favour – the nature of the addiction is no win is big enough so we would just “reinvest” any winnings until we lose.
Hi Tango.
It is an old saying – actions speak louder than words. If the last time you were here you were just saying the things peole wanted to hear then this time you can show themby your actions.
Get back to posting, get back to GA – let your actions do the talking.
Hi and well done on looking for help.
I would suggest reposting this in the My journal forum – it i9s a busier forum and you will get more feedback and support there.You have stopped before so you know you can stop again. This time after a period of being gamble free you will still be getting to GA meetings, still be posting here. Keep using support and it is easier to maintain recovery.
We can’t gamble our way out of debt, we just dig the hole deeper. Get yourself excluded from where ever it is you normally gamble, ask your wife to help you with proper accountability so that you can’t access funds with which to gamble.
Keep posting but again I would recommend the My Journal Forum.
Well done Flit, keep posting.
Hello and thanks for starting a thread in the Gambling Therapy forums
Here at Gambling Therapy we pride ourselves on being a caring and diverse online community who can help and support you with the difficulties you’re currently facing. We understand that this might be a tough time for you, particularly if you’re new to recovery, so come here as often as you need to and participate in the forums, access online groups and connect to the live advice helpline if you need one to one support. We’re in this together!
Here on the forum you can share your experiences in a safe, supportive and accepting environment. The beauty of writing it all down is that you can take your time and you will be creating a record of your progress that you can look back on if it ever feels like you’re not moving forward. So, share as much or as little as you like but do try to stick to keeping just one thread in this forum so people know where to find you if they want to be updated on your progress or share something with you.
As well as the forums New Members are invited to join Charles in the New Members Practical Advice Group On Mondays at 21:00 (UK) and Thursday at 19:00(UK)
And on that note….
I’m going to hand you over to our community because I’m sure they will have some words of wisdom for you 🙂
Take care
The Gambling Therapy Team
PS: Let me just remind you to take a look at our privacy policy and terms and conditions so you know how it all works!
Hi Liz, you have already had some good advice from Monica. None of us can do it on our own, that why we are in this mess in the first place.
You say that this is destroying your relationship. Well, no guarantees of course, the actions that will help you stop gambling are the same actions which might help rebuild trust etc with your partner. Actions like getting banned from that casino, actions like asking your partner helping with accountability and financial barriers so you can’t access gambling funds as easily. Actions like checking out your local GA meetign and continuing to post here.
Keep posting and let us know the positive actions that you are taking.
Hi Craig, well done on looking for help.
It is good that you already know that you can stop gambling but need support. The good news is that there is a lot of that support around – here and other sites, places like Gamblers Anonymous, counselling and more.
Your fiancee can also hopefully help with some of the barriers you will read about on the other threads here. She can certainly help with accountability. Show her by your actions how serious you are about stopping, ask her to help with that accountability, get to those meetings, get a blocker for your devices that will stop you visiting gambling sites.
From what you have said about previous addiction issues I would add that this time don’t “just” stop gambling. Make sure that you find some healthy options to fill your time, a variety of options – that way you are less likely to switch from one problem to another.
Keep posting and let us know the positive steps that you are taking.
Hi Flit,
well done on your realisation of the problem and on looking for help.
If you have been reading the other stories here you will have seen that you can stop gambling. there is a lot of life after gambling stops. You will also have seen the sort of things that haved helped others stop – things like getting blockers to prevent online gambling, financial barriers as well so we don’t have the unlimited, unaccountable access to gambling funds that allows us to act on an urge.
There is also a lot of support avaialble to you – here and other sites, places like Gamblers Anonymous, counselling, even residential support.
If you think your partner will be leaving you tomorrow then I would say the best thing to do would be to tell him today. That way he won’t just be discovering the problem, again, this time you can show him this site, already have found the address of your local GA meeting, be making arrangements for your wages to go into his account, that sort of thing. In short, whilst there are no guarantees, it will be better to present the solution to the problem, not just the problem.
Whatever happens with your partner though, you will still be a compulsive gambler. You can choose to now make your next bet tyhough, one day at a time, and take the actions that will make that more likely.
Keep posting and check out the group schedule as well, hopefully see you in one of them soon.
Hello and thanks for starting a thread in the Gambling Therapy forums
Here at Gambling Therapy we pride ourselves on being a caring and diverse online community who can help and support you with the difficulties you’re currently facing. We understand that this might be a tough time for you, particularly if you’re new to recovery, so come here as often as you need to and participate in the forums, access online groups and connect to the live advice helpline if you need one to one support. We’re in this together!
Here on the forum you can share your experiences in a safe, supportive and accepting environment. The beauty of writing it all down is that you can take your time and you will be creating a record of your progress that you can look back on if it ever feels like you’re not moving forward. So, share as much or as little as you like but do try to stick to keeping just one thread in this forum so people know where to find you if they want to be updated on your progress or share something with you.
As well as the forums New Members are invited to join Charles in the New Members Practical Advice Group On Mondays at 21:00 (UK) and Thursday at 19:00(UK)
And on that note….
I’m going to hand you over to our community because I’m sure they will have some words of wisdom for you 🙂
Take care
The Gambling Therapy Team
PS: Let me just remind you to take a look at our privacy policy and terms and conditions so you know how it all works!
