If you've ever read some of my posts, i openly admit that gambling life has not always been good. It's only in the past couple of years that i've been able to understand it and get a grip.
I have rules in place and i've been breaking those rules so before things go pear shaped i'm having a month off. I've set a month time out on my verified sites apart from WHG sites which i'll do when the draws done as i wouldn't want to win and they report i'm cooling off.
My good friend has taken over my banking app for the month, i have no access. I need to reset rather than let the demon take over. I'll still be on here and watching streams.
Why share? Recognise when it's getting on top and sort it. No shame in doing so no matter how you need to go about taking the break. I hope others can do this.
superdavey - 31/07/2020 at 19:39
Hey, you are fine to set your month timeout now, your entries for this month won't be affected.
Respect for admitting it's got a little too much, no shame at all! I wish you well
Cheers Davey. I'll get WHG done then as well
Knowing when it's going pear shaped and acting on it
You're winning the battle mate.
Gamstop if you really feel you need it, a 6 month break could be bliss.
ALways here if you need us
I am really sorry to hear that you have broken your own rules and feel that you have lost control. You have however taken positive steps and that's very good news.
That you are openly discussing it on a forum and with a good friend to oversee your banking is a good sign that you have recognised there is a problem.
I think every person who gambles must understand your predicament and there are those who can recognise it but fail to act. I have a good friend who is a counsellor who offers advice to people who struggle with gambling. As a former addict himself he is able to relate to any issues that gamblers may have. If you would like to DM me I would be happy to pass you his contact details in case you ever need someone to offer help and advice.
If you are able to genuinely self exclude for a month and not gamble, this includes not going to a bookmaker on the high street, playing a fruit machine in the golf club, buying a lottery ticket or scratch card, signing up to a new casino, playing free slots (yes, that's included apparently), checking the odds, visting Youtube to watch streamers or indeed viewing gambling related forums then this will be of tremendous assistance to you.
The real test is however not whether you can do this as there are lots of tools to help online and friends to keep you right offline. Only you know whether you can do this and you need to break the urge to gamble. If you reach the end of the timeout period and where you are freely able to play online for another month and are therafter able NOT to play then your self discipline may be sufficient to allow you to play within your own limits in the future.
If you are already able to recognise that you would not be able to do this then an enforced self exclusion period and the use of Gamstop is probably the correct route forward. A month or two is not a long time and if you think/know this is going to be a hard challenge then I would urge you to extend it to at least a year.
This is not for everyone but Gamblers Anonymous counselling sessions and the associated counselling sessions are there to act as a real safety net.
I wish you well and as much as I have enjoyed your posts on here, if you disappear for a while or indeed permanently, you have me crossing my fingers that you'll conquer this.
Good luck
Hey
Always enjoy your interactions and the suggestions you have are spot on.
It took me a long long time to wrap my head around this side of life because for 25 years of it all those around me have continually told me to stop and made me feel as though there is something wrong with me. Due to this and listening because they were friends and family I have - attended GA meetings, counselling, hypnotherapy, self-excluded and put blocks on my finances. All with different results and different periods where I haven't gambled.
It's only about 2 years ago I decided to stop feeling ashamed that i gamble, the sort of shame where you think you are the only one that does it or lets it take control. Once I did this, began to budget and not spend outside of my means I was able to gamble as a treat. Next thing i needed to learn was to take winnings! 😆
The past couple of weeks I've broken my controls spending money I shouldn't, chasing losses and not been doing it as a treat and for fun. Past times I would continue down this road as
I'm not at the point of past times where I need to consider Gamstop. I think a month will do. It's been a couple of years since I've felt a bit out of control so I expect to be back to normal come Sep.
I hope between your suggestions and my openness that anyone else who may be feeling out of control acts rather than not as when it gets out of control it escalates fast and can destroy lives. However, done sensibly I love playing slots.
Everyone has their thing they do that they enjoy but really do not have to do (smoking, drinking, drugs, extreme sports and so on).
I'll still be around here keeping you company 🤪