Hi jlou,
Welcome! Im addicted to gambling at the casino. And, I played this morning thinking I would self ban myself after I spent their 50. It didnt work out that way, so Im looking at diff ways to stay away from there.
It sucks, I know ... the obsession and compulsion to gamble. I know for me if I dont stop Im gonna lose all the $ Ive made thus far at my business and there will be no money to pay the bills, and then I'll be borrowing .. from somebody.
Thanks for posting here, I check the site often, and yes, it does help to read the posts here.

Hi!!
We have all been there...it's a dark road and it's lonely out there.

I know that by helping others it actually comes back to help me. Last saturday night I had a trigger....the casino had sent this card that said their would be extra money in the pin money that we already had. I took the bait and wanted to go. My husband said he didn't think we should go. After about 2 hrs the feeling of wanting to go gambling passed. I had gotten on here instead and read post's. I was moody and had my little pity party but when it passed I thanked my husband for saying no.

Just keep reading and reminding yourself of the past experiences that you have had in casino's. Play the tape all the way through..all the way to the part where we are kicking ourselves again for believing that "THIS TIME" might be different.

This is not easy...it's just worth it. When you feel like you need help reach out. Is someone there for you? I called 1800 Bets Off..that is when I met my GA counselor. That person has never given up on me...God only knows why she hasn't but I sure am happy she believed in me even when I did not believe in myself.

Hang in there...one day at a time. We are all here for each other and you can find comfort in knowing you are not alone in this. God Bless..and Take Care.

I had to put a limit daily withdrawl of $100 on my debit card so I could stop gambling. It's the only thing that works. Whatever you do, don't give up on your ability to stop gambling. You are not alone. Soooo many of us are trying to resist the urge every day, just like you. I just joined this site 20 minutes ago after reading posts for the last few days. I've been gambling free for 6 months. Of course, I had some minor screw ups in those 6 months. But, nothing like before, when the screw up was so bad, that it would make me physically ill.

jlou
I stand the same with options if I were to go back and lose more; I wiped out my 401K and I had money saved from the last 13+ years in the last 3 jobs, it was a substantial amount, and ALL gone, I took the last $6000 before x-mas so I could survive, etc.
I just recently stopped and hope to continue on this path. I do feel better, though I still have some financial things to deal with, at the end of the day....I will survive and rebuild, we all can from this. (We can't change our past mistakes or actions) What has been important for me to actually forgive myself for what I have done; I'm not a bad person, just bad choices when it came to gambling and I accept that about me.
Instead of spending time thinking about gambling; I picked up the phone to call a friend just to chat; e-mailed someone I haven't talked to in a while, read, time on here....there is so much we can do in our everyday lives that can impact us and others in the right way. We can do it!!

Thanks for all the posts. The support here means alot. There s not too many places where you can go and be honest about your gambling. It s good to know people understand that we re not bad people. Hopefully I can spend my time more productivly.

jlou - Yes, boredom can be a big trigger for me as well. I can sit there and think there's not much to do and then when I make that mental decision to go to the track, it's like I'm on fast forward, knowing I gotta get down there as soon as possible, figure out the handicapping aspects and of course, take money out. It's all baloney. I've spent too much, lost track of valuable time and lived in a weird existance that had nothing to do with "real life".

Yes, dating might be a nice venture. Just have fun and enjoy getting out and about. Take care and remember we are with you.