My answers ate litterae lengthy because i think these questions deserve truth and little more complex then just "yes" or "no"

A: do you really want to quit gambling?
Answer: at the beginning of my recovery, when I was at my bottom, I would have said "yes" with no hesitation. After 2 and half years ( this time) into my recovery, I will say " not really", the reason for this is because I do like gambling, there are some aspects of gambling I do enjoy. But, I cannot gamble because I am unable to stop once I start placing that bet. So, I chose not to gamble without wanting to quit. I do not repress or restrain myself from gambling, rather I accept who I am, a compulsive gambler, chose to abstinent from gambling.

B: do you just want to quit losing?
Answer: absolutely "yes". This refers to "yes" for financial reasons but most importantly for loosing myself. Yes. Financial burden has brought me down to my knees, but I really wanted to win at life, happiness, fulfillment, serenity and peace within myself.

C:why do you keep doing it?
Answer: there were many factors while I was doing it. To escape from reality, to double my money. To celebrate, to get my thrill and misery, to fill the boredom, to chase my loss, to win more, and every reason there was...

I continue to run on these cycle for almost three decades it really didn't hit me until I was so sick of the person I was. And dire desire to live a life without guilt, shame, sorrow and remorse. I wanted to be a person who can live without this secret, a multiple personality like, I wanted so bad to be a whole person who can live with gratitude and in peace.

Thanks for sharing, cease the moment, one day at a time!

Love,
Victoria

Sounds like you are digging deep to get to the root of your problem. I wish you well!

Onto your questions:

I last gambled in Jan 2014 and I have no desire to return to it. None.

A. When I first quit, the answer was an emphatic yes, and it remains so to this day. However, the "why's" behind that answer have changed a bit with time. When I first quit, my financial situation was dire, and that gave me the motivation to quit. Today, my financial situation is much better, but I also see more clearly what my time spent gambling did to other areas of my life. Even if I could be guaranteed to always win, I can honestly say I do not want to return to that life. Endless hours spent in a smoky casino, pressing a little button.

B. Again, I may have said yes to this one in the beginning, because I thought the money was the problem. But I truly do not want to waste another minute of my life in a casino. Money has nothing to do it.

c. I don't! But when I first quit, if I could have been promised a win every time, I may have continued on. The endorphin rushes are terrific. But now that I've kicked that monkey off of my back, I prefer living life.

Regardless of what terms you use to discuss your gambling, it sounds like it is creating a problem in your life. For me, I reached a point where I knew I could not control myself once I pushed that slot button. I am definitely an addict. My solution was to ban myself for life and accept that I can never gamble normally - ever. Big picture wise, its not a big sacrifice to make for a more stable and rich life.

I wish you well!

I started going to the casino because it offered a smoker friendly social venue and there were many depressing things happening in my life I needed to escape from.
I won a lot of money when I first started playing. This was FUN!

This last year the worm turned and neither neither I nor many others were winning as frequently as we once did and a lot of them gave up and self-banned long before I did.
A week before I came to that decision I took $200 to the casino and needed $4K to get even. I captured a $2900 jackpot right away, claimed it and went down the street to my bank and put $1000 in the after hours depository. It was a Friday night and I knew that money would not post til Monday morning. It would help me keep from doing something really stupid. I went back to the casino and lost $900 trying to get the rest of the money I needed. The next night I went in . played a different machine. I put $20 in, selected a $2.50 bet and hit $500 on the first spin. I claimed it went to the bank and deposited another $300, then lost the $200. The night after that I played still a different machine and had $400 in it before I got a $1000 hit. $600 ahead and I played it all back without winning anything else.

A week later I went in with $400 and vowed If I did not catch up I would quit. I didnt , and I did. Simple as that. And I do not miss it at all.

The moral of this story is when you get ahead, get out. Tomorrow is another day. If you sit there and keep playing, you will lose it all back. No matter how unpleasant it is to just go home, LEAVE immediately.

I disagree with you wholeheartedly. My gambling addiction was not about trying to make money. There are so many more levels to it than that. Money was just the vehicle I required to satisfy my addiction. It was the only role money played in the entire process.

The significance of money today is it's the most long lasting consequence from my addition. I have not gambled in over 1 year. In that time I have been refreshed mentally, physically and emotionally. The bad habits I picked up while gambling have been left behind. I quit smoking and exercise regularly. I have been socially active again. No longer is an addiction in control of my life. With all the progress I made the deepest scars are still the financial ones. It's going to take me 5 years to get myself back together financially.

If it was just about winning some money gambling addiction would be much easier to deal with. But it isn't for the overwhelming majority of people. So to quickly answer your questions:

A. Absofuckinglutely. And I did.
B. No. The only purpose money served was it allowed me to play longer. I was not trying to make money.
C. I stopped. But what made it so hard was the pattern of self abuse I exhibited throughout my entire life. I believed I was not worthy of happiness and was vulnerable to something self destructive as gambling.

Good for you, highlimit

A. As dumb as it sounds .. No, I don't want to quit gambling, but I know I have to because (B) I just want to quit losing. C. Because I am a compulsive gambler and I have not yet become willing to do what it takes to stop. ( full well knowing that I wont win and I will never get my money back ). Ugh!
Im just being honest. Not trying to be a smarta** ... I didn't gamble today but I have been rather depressed.

You do not sound dumb, h/c and do not sound like a smart*** either.

I did not want to quit, but I could not discipline myself to stop after an x amount of time, or dollars. I tried to just stay away without taking the self ban step but something would always happen to drive me back.

I am finding it is not hard to not be able to go in there. I live in a reasonably small town (less than 20K people) and there is only one casino.

In the 16 days I have not played, I tell myself I have won $1600 by NOT playing. :)

A: Do you really want to quit gambling? Yes. I wish I never started but wishing won't make it so. I'm a compulsive gambler. No matter how many times I tried to set limits, as soon as I walked through that door I lost all control. After giving up my access to cash I still discovered ways to find it (giving up access is still a good deterrent). Toward the end there I thought I might have a stroke from the lack of sleep/care and excessive smoking. That was my own, personal wake up call. The money can be replaced but I don't want to die or have to live with a disability that I brought upon myself.

B: Do you just want to quit losing? That would be nice but very highly unlikely. I read somewhere that 60% of the $$ casinos take in comes from compulsive gamblers. In my case, that makes perfect sense since everything I won went right back to them.

C: Why do you keep doing it? I'm working on that part and suspect it will be a long journey. I was able to obtain therapy via my state gambling help organization.I can say that the longer I abstain, the less of a hold it has on me. It' like a re-awakening. Right now I'm cleaning up the mess I made so it's not all that much fun but I'm beginning to see little rewards in my financial situation and big rewards in my physical and mental health.

All the best to you.
pennyluv

And best to you, Pennyluv. Sounds like you are on right track. Don't forget to ask God to help you stay there, and Thank Him for your small successes.