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Hi gb, well done on looking for help.
Well done on your 3.5 years years, the good news is this means you know you can stop.
When you stopped before did you use any support?
As you have found, there is no return to “normal” gambling. In fact often the addiction seems to try and make up foir lost time if we go back to it. Read the other stories here, you will see the sorts of thigns that have helped others stop gambling.
Do your family know about your latest gambling? I am sure one of them would be delighted mto help with one of the barriers you will read about – accountability. Limiting our easy/instant ability to act on an urge and not being able to gambel in secret is a big help. I would think this would also help with the shopaholic thing as well.
I will leave it there for now. You stopped before and you can stop again. This ti9me though you will have some barriers in ploace. This ti9me you can continue to use support to maintain recovery. 3 1/2 years was great and support will make you stronger still.
Keep posting and maybe I will see you in ojne of the groups here soon.
Hi CraigMac,
I’m sure you will have read the barriers that have helped others on some of the other threads here?
Here are some suggestions though – you deposited money on your Sports Book – how about closing it and, importantly, asking them to ban you? There are also blockers you can download to stop you signing up omn opther gambling sites.
Accountability – who can help you with this so that you can’t gambel secretly or instantly act on an urge? When I first stopped I had all bank statements etc sent to mu mum’s address and on payday my money transferred to her account. It was still my money of course, it just meant that I couldn’t gambel it.
Report your credit/debit cards lost or damaged. You will get new ones. Get someone else to open the envlope when they arrive and scratch off the 3 digit code. You then can’t register them on any online sites.
Keep posting and let us know what positive steps yopu are taking now, while you don’t want to gamble and before the urges return.
Hi Notclutch and welcome to the forum. Welldone on looking for help.
If you read the other stories here you will see a lot that you will relate to, you will also read the success stories and see the sorts of thigns that have helped others stop. What are they doing that you can apply to your own situation?
There is a lot of support around these days and you are more than welcome here. I wouldn’t rule GA out completely though – if AA helps then a meeting for another addictin could help as well. 30 minutes away? How long did we spend gambling?
Did you ban from those bookies? Keep posting and let us know what other positive steps you are taking. Hopefully see you in one of the groups 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!
Hi Craig,
“……The first week, I’m focused, happy and excited to live life on my terms. By day 30………”
So, what can you do between day 1 and day 30? How have you been filling your time? Importantly, what barriers can you put in place now , on day 1, when you don’t want to gamble so that you are less able to act on the urges if/when they return in a month or so?
Keep posting and let us know what positive thigns you are putting in place.
Keep posting and let us know what positive thigns you are putting in place.
Hi Peperovich, well done on looking for help.
Also well done on getting yourself excluded from your local casino. For the online sites you have started usig you can also ask the ones you have signed up to to exclude you. There are blockers you can get whoch will prevent you signing up at others on your devices.
I recommend not getting involved in your colleagues gambling discussions. A few “I’m not interested because I’ve decided to stop gambling” should help with that. People only talk about their wins anywasy so don’t belive them.
Read the other stories here. You will read a lot that you will relate to. You will also see the success stories and the sorts of things that have helped others stop gambling.
As well as getting excluded from those gambling sites one of the other barriers you will read about is to do with the finances – accountability and restricting access to funds with which you can gamble will help.
You have presented your family with the problem; now you can show them by your actions what you are going to do about it.
Using support is important and you now have a lot of it available. You have this forum, the support groups and the helpline here. I also see that there are Gamblers Anonymous meetigns in your country and that would be anotehr great form of support. Here is a link so you can find a meetign near you. https://www.gamblersanonymous.org/ga/addresses
Keep posting but please do not, as you suggest, post your personal social networks here as they would have to be removed. Please read our terms and conditions.
Keep posting and hopefully I will see you in one of the groups here soom.
Hi no1gambler, You can stop gambling I promise you. I am not a believer but if there is a God/Allah then he did come through for you – he brought you here where you can get support.
I suggest posting in the My Journal Forum where you will read many sytories similar to your own, you will get more support and feedback there as well from others.
You have mentioned “wishing death upon yourself” so i need to give you this link. https://befrienders.org/ There is always someone to talk to and there is a lot of life after gambling.
I look forward to readaing your progress in the My Jounral Forum and hopefully I will get to talk to you oin one of the groups here as well. Keep posting.
Hi Mutley and welcome back. Well done on your 4 or 5 days gamble free.
As you say, no money = no gambling, we can use that in recovery. How can you limit your access to funds when you do get paid? What things can you put in place now, while you can’t gamble, so that is is harder to do so when you can.
As you say, there is always a way around barriers, we can tighten those barriers though.
How about support? You haven’t been posting here so have you been getting to GA or anything like that? Lots of support options in the UK, here and sites like this, Gamblers Anonymous, Gamcare, the NHS clinics, even residential support.
At the end of the day if we could do it on our own then none of us would have been in the chit in the first place. Keep psoting, look at what things you can put in place to make your next bet less likely. Then while the barriers are giving you a breathing space use the support to start working on other things.
We, and/0r your other support options, can help you stop gambling. Use your Dr and mental health support as well.
Keep posting and maybe I’ll see you in a group soon.
Hi All, the system seem s to be running the Friends and family group anyway but infortunatelyyou won’t find a facilitator in there. Anyone who would normally be joining there is welcome to join me in either the Nre memebers groups which is running now or the All Welcome Drop In group which follows.
naluiza e bem vindo ao fórum. Bem feito em procurar ajuda. Você pode parar de jogar, eu prometo. Leia as outras histórias no Fórum My Journal. Você lerá muito com o qual se identificará. Você também verá as histórias de sucesso e os tipos de coisas que ajudaram outras pessoas a parar. Eu recomendo iniciar seu próprio tópico nesse fórum, você receberá muito suporte e feedback lá. Espero vê-lo em um dos grupos aqui também.
“I am just refusing to accept that gambling is stronger…… Sadly it’s likely to be a case of accepting it now…. or later when deeper in the $hit! The addiction tends to be progressive if we carry on gambling.
Maybe look at it like this…. Get in the ring with a boxing champion he would beat the hell out of you or me. Now if we were stupid enough to get in the ring again or stand up he’d do it again… and again…. and again….
Stop getting in the ring and he can’t hurtus again and we can get on with everythign else life has to offer. 🙂
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 TeamPS: 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 Yoyo,
To quote:“… but enough. Must do something to really cut acces to money. This is the only way.”
What thngs have you been able to put in place?
Hi and well done on looking for help. Also well done on being honest with some of the people around you.
I certainly wouldn’t tell you to sort out any other issues to solve your problem, for two reasons: firstly it is unlikely you would be able to focus on sorting something else out while still in the grip of addiction. Secoundly, thoughh long term it might be usefult to address other issues that wouldn’t solve your gambling problem anyway. Once we cross the line into addiction gambling becomes a promlem in it’s own right, regardless of the cause. If/when you address other issues you still won’t be able to return and gamble “normally”
Using support is also important. You now have this thread to keep a r3ecord of your recovery journey, hopefully I’ll see you in a group soon as well. There are a lot of other support options around these days as well. See if you have a Gamblers Anonymous meeting in your area, no one there would judge you and you can get great support. Keep posting.
The supportive members of the family can help with some of the practical steps you will read about on other threads here. Financial accountability, maybe going with you as moral support when you exclude form your usual/local casinos.
Hi Thbr. Here is a link to the support groups. https://www.gamblingtherapy.org/support/about-support-groups/ It’ll show upcoming groups, when there is one on just click on connect, hope this helps and I’ll see you Monday. Or if you are around I am there now for the next two hours.