Gambling Addiction & Recovery Support Group
Compulsive gambling is an urge or addiction to gamble despite harmful negative consequences or a desire to stop. A preferred term among many professionals is problem gambling, as few people described by the term experience true compulsions in the clinical sense of the word. Problem gambling often is defined by whether harm is experienced by the gambler or others rather...
Hello. I placed my last bet on 10/6/2016. I went to my first meeting last night since summer began. I had a very busy summer which helped keep my mind off gambling. My favorite wagers were on sports. Football season has just started up and it has brought back alot of gambling thoughts and emotions. I decided it was time to get back to regular meetings. I'm glad that I went last night. I saw many familiar faces that welcomed me back to the group as if I hadn't missed a meeting. That is a great feeling. I have done everything I can to remove myself from anything sportsbetting, but somehow some online places still seem to find a way to send me promotions. I do not want to start falling into the same patterns of lying and spending money I can't afford to spend. I don't want to let myself down or my family. I'm not sure yet how forums are supposed to work so I thought I'd just share what's on my mind today. I hope everyone is doing well.
My last bet was on 02/23/2017. It was poker machines for me. I've been to some GA meetings, too. I've learned so much about recovery there, and here also. I love this forum! It helps me with my accountability, but more importantly, it lets me know I'm not alone. We are not alone.
Thanks for sharing here, we need all you have to offer. Just for today, I will not gamble. One day at a time, friends.
I read through your threads. I can totally relate. I gambled in other ways for years with cards and what not, but football got me hooked. Especially with how easy and convenient it is to wager online. I got so used to wagering online that I wanted to keep the action going by betting baseball. I watched baseball, but was never a big die hard fan until I started betting on it. Before long I was watching games or following scores I didn't even care about because I had money on it. I even found myself betting on things like tennis for example because it was the only game being played at the time I had the urge. It is truly amazing the grip this addiction has on someone. I kept it all a secret for years until our credit cards were finally maxed out and my wife tried to use one. Then I had to come clean. I'm glad I got "busted" because I would have just found another way to keep betting and digging a deeper hole. You're not alone. It has been a work in progress for me to find other things to occupy my time. I have almost needed something else, healthy, to obsess on like I did gambling. I am going to try and become active reading these threads. Keep your head up. You can do it
Congrats on 2 days! I did everything I could to change my routine at first. I closed every account that I had and tried to stay away from those distractions. It is easier said than done. After the two days turned to four and then a week and two weeks became a month I started to realize that the betting that I thought was a hobby or fun at one point was actually extremely stressful. After some time passed I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I cannot believe the stress that betting caused. I couldn't see it at the time or was lying to myself about it. For awhile, I got so angry at all the money I gave the books. They didn't steal it from me. I made a conscious decision to place every bet I ever made. I can think of a million other things I would have rather done with that money looking back. Reading on here is helping me in between meetings. I wish I would have found this website sooner. You can do it
One addiction. Overwhelming and demeaning. One way to fight it, one day at a time!