[hambone]

My story is almost the same as yours; last year I was 125k in debt and it was impacting my family and I didn’t want to tell my wife.
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nI was working a remote job and got another remote job, I’ve been working it for 14 months now and next week will be 1 year Gf. I’ve almost paid all my debts off and my life has completely turned around.
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nYou need to stop gambling immediately, it will never solve your problems. I chased losses forever and just kept getting in deeper, that’s how we work.
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nFind another source of income, it’s the only way you’ll be able to stop gambling, otherwise you’ll feel the need to chase your massive debts for the next 5 years.
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[hambone]

UPDATE:

I am still going strong – I’ve passed my unofficial 1 year GF (I had a slip up in July for 1 bet so I am counting that as my OFFICIAL 1 year,but my last real gambling was in May 2019)

I continue to grow. I am getting in a better place financially, though I keep getting reminders how much damage I’ve caused. My credit score was ruined due to late payments on personal loans I took out to support my gambling. I’ve gone over a year without a late payment, and my credit is now “Excellent”, but I was declined for a car loan and a credit card recently, despite good income and score. It turns out these take years to fix, so fortunately I don’t need either right now.

I’m still working multiple jobs and paying down my loans, I’ve paid off 9 or 10 loans in the last few months, and should be out of this debt by early 2021 based on my calculations.

To anyone out there struggling, there is a way out. I have paid off over $100k in my personal loan debt in the last year.

GAMBLING IS NOT THE ANSWER
CUT YOUR LOSSES
COME UP WITH A PLAN ON PAPER
EXECUTE!

Gambling is NOT the means to an end. It took my 10 years and hundreds of thousands to realize that. There are NO SHORTCUTS. The only way out of this is to STOP TODAY!

Stay strong folks. This is beatable. If I can do it, ANYONE can.

[hambone]

Checking in….

294 days GF. This month I got not 1 but TWO bonuses from my jobs. One is going to personal loans I took out while gambling, the other towards a personal goal.

Things are progressing. I’ve just recently hit the 1 year anniversary at the second job I started to payoff my gambling debt. My debt has gone from 100k+ to about 40k, and I have my paychecks planned for the next 6 months – if everything goes as planned ALL the debt I’ve accrued over the last 15 years gambling will be paid by the end of December.

Every day is a challenge, and each week I survive is a huge step forward. Gambling is the last thing I think about at this point, I just keep chugging forward.

I wish everyone here who is struggling the best, and just know that if I can do this, anyone can. I’m approaching 1 year Gf for the first time in 17 years (and I’m 35, so half my life). I just found out a few days ago my wife is pregnant with our 4th child, and I have the joy of knowing this is my first child who’s life I NEVER gambled during.

Best wishes everyone, stay safe and stay strong.

[hambone]

Right there with you man, I am 35, gamblined most of my adult life in some form or another. I ran books, gambled myself. In the end, I ended up with about 100k in persona loan debt, credit cards maxed, credit destroyed.

Last year I made the decision to get clean. I realized I was gambling as a means to an end, not for fun. I picked up a 2nd job to pay my bills, and I’ve been clean since July 7th 2019.

My bills are lower, credit is almost back to where I started, and my brain is completely re-wired. I’ve found some hobbies to follow instead of sports and the betting, and life is better.

It will get better. Figure out WHY you gambled. Was it to pay bills? Get another job. Were you missing something in life? Find out what fulfills you Put up barriers and youll get there.

Trust me when I say your life can be turned around, and in 6 months you wont believe how you were living. This doesnt have to be your life.

[hambone]

Thanks for the comments!

I’m now 243 days GF.

I’m still at the point where when I do things, like yesterday I went to a birthday party for a friends daughter, I still remember gambling on my phone while being at the party. It seems like a lifetime ago, but it struck me yesterday that soon I’ll remember the previous year and NOT gambling, which is significant for me.

I’m writing today because I had a major event. I checked my credit score today and it jumped 39 points this month as I continue paying off loans.

Last year this time was my absolute low, and in one year my score has jumped 152 points!

I’m now looking at houses as I continue achieving my financial goals and dig myself out of this mess I created. Don’t get me wrong, I have a long ways to go. But, I’m almost to the point that if I decide I want to finance something, I can do that without worrying that my gambling has ruined that for me.

It’s a long fight, but I can honestly say I haven’t had the urge to gambling in quite some time. For everyone out there at rock bottom, YOU CAN DO THIS.

I gambled out of necessity. I didn’t know how to deal with financial pressure like an adult, and instead whenever something came up, my outlet was tying to win the money.

We all have our reasons for this sick disease, I just want anyone reading this to know that by stopping today, your life truly begins. It won’t be easy, but the life you’re living is not your only option.

[hambone]

Our stories are similar, but I turn 36 in a few months. I’ve had great jobs, made great money, and have almost nothing to show for it because of my gambling. 8 months ago I hit rock bottom, and I’ve spent the last 8 months working my ass off to get back to square 1. It kills me seeing what I did to my family – but all I can do now is my absolute best to try and make it right.

It will get better. The urges will go away and the wrongs will be made right. Stay strong and trust me when I say the only way to fix the situation is to remain GF.

It took alot for you to get in this mess and takes even more to get out and there are no shortcuts.

Stay strong.

[hambone]

213 days GF. Life is better than ever, financially and personally.

I’m working 3 jobs at the same time paying down debts and getting my head out of water. It took alot to get myself in this mess and it takes even more to get out.

Occasionally, I’ll do something I haven’t done since I quit gambling, and have a flashback. For example, we recently took the kids to an indoor play place; I suddenly remembered the last time we were there, I had a few huge bets live and was constantly checking my phone to see how it was going. It felt good knowing I didn’t have to live like that anymore and could just spend time with my kids.

I have a long way to go, but am making it. to anyone out there struggling, just trust me you can do it. I had over $100k USD in debt and am chipping away, if I can survive these jobs for another year I’ll be debt free for the first time in my adult life.

[hambone]

Listen to me when I saw this. Read it over and over again.

Gambling is not the solution to your problems. It never has been and it never will be. The *only* outcome to gambling will be negative. Forever. If you ever think differently, it’s your addiction and your mind conspiring against you

[hambone]

Well, so far, so good. I’m still GF, and recently hit a milestone. A few weeks ago I tried to buy some Bitcoin (how I gambled before) but this time it wasn’t for gambling. Anyways, the guy tried to steal my money and it took about 3 weeks to get it sorted out. Eventually, I got the Bitcoin back, which I wasn’t expecting. The problem was, I suddenly had $300 in Bitcoin and didn’t need it. I didn’t have a good way to get it into my bank, and it sat in my account. Usually, I would have deposited INSTANTLY. I thought about it, I admit. I even logged into an old account I still had left. It was even harder because this was before Thanksgiving, and this was the first Thanksgiving I didn’t bet football. In the end, I left the money in my wallet for about 3 days before getting it out. This might not sound like much, but it was a huge accomplishment.

Still fighting the good right, still gf.

[hambone]

It’s been awhile since updating this, but have been checking in regularly.

I am still GF. I am pretty swamped working 3 fulltime jobs at the same time, but I am making great progress. I’ve been using 1 job to pay my wifes student loans (from 49k to 27k now) and paying for a few home improvement projects, as well as paying off *all* of our credit card debt.

I am still working my “secret job” to payoff my loans, and although I am making headway, it’s a little frustrating how slow its been. My loans account for about $3000 a month, and my job gives me $5700 a month. I’ve been putting everything towards my loans, but previously I was taking $1400 more a month home, but I started putting $700 per pay into my kids college fund, as I had borrowed from it before.

I am getting there, just wish it was a faster process.

I’ve had some urges to gamble recently which was surprising. I always bought in using Bitcoin, and have recently been buying bitcoin again to buy myself edible thc gummys (helps with other issues) and I think having that access is a trigger, though I’ve kept it under control. I’ve been scheduling all my payments the day before I get paid, so when my paycheck hits, everything is accounted for.

Thats it, keeping up the good fight, best of luck all.

[hambone]

Paul,

I was part of the same cycle you described, I was in so much debt, I would stay up until midnight and as soon as my paycheck direct deposit hit,I was buying bitcoin online. by the time the sun came up, my extra money, and usually my entire paycheck was gone. The bills I had scheduled bounced, and I was getting calls from the lenders for the next 2 weeks.

The thing that got me through it was:
1) I got a 2nd job so I didnt *need* to gamble to pay my bills.
2) I created a spreadsheet that accounted for ALL my money. The extra money, went towards paying off loans.
3) I cancelled my debit card, and all the accounts I was using to buy bitcoin were disabled or I was banned (from chargebacks).

Once it was literally impossible for me to buy bitcoin, it got easier. Once I saw the financial plan, it got even easier. As I executed my plan and saw progress, it continued to get easier.

It’s been almost 6 months since my last bet. I am still about 90k in debt, but I’ve paid about 50k since I quit gambling.

Trust me, it will get easier. There is NOTHING good that will come from gambling. EVER.

[hambone]

Just checking in. Still GF. Last week I got the title to my van in the mail, which was a surreal moment. For those of you who don’t know, last year I took 15k from my bonus that my wife expected to pay off the loan and gambled it, so being able to pay it off myself was a big accomplishment.

2 weeks ago I paid off 1 credit card, and Inna few hours my other one will be paid off. I’ve still got about 100k in loans, and I’m only paying about $5000 a month in them, but I’ve been making other progress too. I started contributing the max to my 401k, and I finally started depositing $700 per paycheck toward the savings account for my kids college that I plundered years ago.

I’m not making the progress as quickly as I’d like, but as long as I keep paying my bills in time and applying the extra towards loans, I’m hoping to be out of this hole soon. Honestly, I don’t care much about the payments, it’s more my credit score. I was very late on 10 different accounts in March, and it’s trashed my credit. I’ve got over 30 accounts, and I’ve made every payment since then, I just don’t think I can get approved for anything right now. Down the road, I’d like to be able to buy a new car, buy a new house etc. My salary between my 3 jobs is currently almost $400k, so the income isn’t the problem, I just don’t know how much a credit score matters. I’m hoping a few more months of steady payments will help, I’m just disappointed at the progress.

However, it’s been 5 months since my last big binge and 3 months since I made any bet. I went across the country last week for work and was invited to play poker at a coworkers house, which I really couldn’t turn down. Needless to say, I lost $40, was terribly bored and didn’t have the slightest itch. I was so glad when it was over.

Anyways, that’s it for me. Talk to you all soon.

[hambone]

Bump for whoever needs this

[hambone]

Still fighting. I had $5000 USD in my bank all weekend and didnt spend anything, previously I would convince myself to gamble, end up losing it all and then all my bills would overdraft the following day. I paid off my car 3 days ago, and I get paid from another job tomorrow, so I have all but $150 scheduled to goto bills.

Even with all the progress I’ve made, I still struggle with the day to day life of a non gambler. I’m not sure how long our brains need to re-wire and not need the dopamine, but I am still looking for some sort of stimulation after being a high stakes sports better everyday for the last 5-10 years.

I just realized today is exactly 3 months clean. I’ve made huge progress paying off debts, probably paid $30,000 USD in those 3 months, money that would have been gambled before. I’m proud of the success, but I am frustrated with how long it takes for things to improve. I want my credit score fixed, I Want my loans paid off so I Can go back to working 1 job and have a normal life.

I guess I need to stop feeling sorry for myself, I did this to myself and it took years to create this damage, its going to take more than 3 months to fix. I’m very fortunate to have the opportunities I have to get myself out of this.

[hambone]

Good luck, I’m afraid you’re going to need it if you’re continuing to make bets, keep accounts open. I had to completely and totally surrender to come clean, but I hope you’re different.

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