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[Catfish1604 WANTED $8 Outlaw]

So gambling has always been a part of my life since a young age playing slots at the fair ground, 5 years ago I lost my family because no matter what I tired I just couldn’t stop then I managed a 12 month break and life really picked up or me now i`m so deep in again i am working just to pay the bills and with nothing to show for it I have at the end of each month I started to try and add just a few hundred to my bank balance to be able to treat the kids, a holiday is out the question at them but thought a few days out would be good, well that has really back fired and am now £2,700 worse off in a month, nothing to pay the bills with and 2 kids wanting to spend time with their dad who cant even put fuel in the car to pick them up, I tried gamcare, one 2 one counseling, GA meetings (which I just found made every worse) im already signed up to gamstop for the full 5 years.  So what else can I try I know there is no pills you can take and im at the point where not waking up tomorrow would be better than today. I want to be able to self excluded from the bookies but working away so much makes it hard. If anyone has found a way to keep the demons away and get a life back pls share.

[Winningbird WANTED $574 Outlaw]

If you’re already signed up to gamstop, how did you manage to have a gamble? Was it bookies or rogue casino? I would honestly suggest writing to every casino I could find and tell them to exclude you. If it was a bookies, go in and self exclude. I understand the mindset you were in, I’ve been there a lot my self in the past, so please don’t feel like you’re being judged. Putting money into gambling to try and turn it to more just to take the kids out doesn’t  work well, trust me on that one. You should consider that once you deposit money onto a site, it’s gone. You’ve said your self that you can’t pay bills and don’t have the petrol to pick your kids up, so remember how you feel right now the next time you fancy a gamble. Really hope you’re okay and you feel better about this all soon. You’re not the first person to do it, and won’t be the last. I’m always around if you need a rant/chat. 🙂

[Catfish1604 WANTED $8 Outlaw]

Hi winningbird, thanks for your reply,  it was in the bookies the so called £2 max stake just got me more tilted and I bust my limit in a few mins then just got deeper in until the bank was empty, I do need to self exclude from every possible form of gambling but when you cant see a way out without a win to put some thing back in the bank its hard to admit deft, but i suppose giving up on life is a deft and right now I feel I could easily do that so ill get the forms tomorrow,

Just wounding if there is a way to set up a whats app self help group something away from public eyes to cry for help in the moment, not sure how we could start it without giving out phone numbers on here any ideas?

[Haz40 WANTED $1,166 Outlaw]

Trust me mate there are no pills worth taking. Gambling addiction is horrible which i know too well. Somehow you have to find the strength and motivation to stop. Time is on your side. You have plenty to change your life for the better. You say you have children in my opinion that already makes you a rich man. I can tell in the wording of your post this is something you can do. You can change and stop gambling in the bookies. Your kids are your motivation. Things will get better. You’ll look back on today and say this was the best day not the worst. Good luck.

[Winningbird WANTED $574 Outlaw]

I know you said you’ve been with gamcare, but have you been on the forums on there? Everyone is in the same boat there. Each and everyone with a gambling addiction. It’s a good site to go on to realise you’re not alone with the problem. I’d be happy to join a WhatsApp group for people struggling with addiction. There may also be loads on Gamcare wanting the same group. I took a CBT course to try and help my self and understand my problems a bit more. This may help, just google cognitive behavioural therapy and have a look through. Have you had a look on twitter/Instagram for GA members? I know you’ve been to sessions for councilling, but others that may be looking for support from others may have set up a group. 🙂

[Smokingbeagle WANTED $55 Outlaw]

Hi there is a telephone number in any bookies where you can ring them and self exclude yourself from as many bookies as you want .

i have GameStop , and gamcare installed on my devises and believe me it works .

i know you say that you work away a lot but your gambling goes more deeper than just trying to make ends meet .

You have done your balls in and that can’t change . You try win more you will just dig deeper .

remember your kids still love you and you may just need to swallow your pride and phone the bill provides and ask for a little help this month .

draw a line in the sand and forget about what happened yesterday .

I admit I have lost near £1300 in 1 session playing the new £2 machines they are absolute bollocks .

however if you feel the need to gamble then I suggest giving yourself a small pot say £50 and put on 10 x small football or sports betting per week.

you may win big you may lose but at least it’s controlled to the best of your ability.

good luck in the future pal it’s a tough road to travel trying not to be tempted

[ImperialDragon WANTED $68 Outlaw]

I have heard that the new bookies machines are problematic.  RTP as low as 86% on some of the stakes!!

As a gambler myself, I had a good run in the arcades for nearly 20 years, but the slots soured from late last year.  I think it was collateral damage from last year’s announcement which was meant to target the bookies only and it hit more sectors of the gambling industry than expected.  I had to self-exclude myself from the arcade.  It’s a bit of a pain having to go into each one, but it works for me.  My only gambling nowadays is £50/month on Video Slots (someone further up did suggest £50 as a limit) and sometimes £50 on Royal Panda.  I don’t play anywhere else, otherwise where does it stop?

[sportsbetpunk WANTED $24 Outlaw]

Around this time last year i’d pretty much had enough, really wanted to make the change so put some barriers in place.

Gamstop was great for giving up the online gambling, the thought of trying to play at a Rogue casino and losing my funds anyway has put me right off. I signed up for 5 years like you.

The next thing I did was difficult as I do like a sports betting. I banned myself from all my local bookmakers, it’s easy to do with MOSES (multi operator self exclusion scheme)

Self Exclusion

You phone them, tell them where you live, tell them what bookmakers you can access and they handle the exclusion for you. You fill out a form and you send a photo. The embarrassment factor has stopped me walking into a bookmaker on the list since.

If I do fancy a football bet i’ll get my Dad to pop in for me, that way I can stay in control.

Don’t get me wrong it’s not been a walk in the park and I’ve had the odd slip. MOSES/Gamstop have been great tools for me.

If you have large unsecured debt contact https://www.stepchange.org/ and they will help, they are a charity so no sales tactics or anything like that.

[Catfish1604 WANTED $8 Outlaw]

I did use the forums before with gamcare, Im a little  scared to go back due to how well i was doing before I feel of the wagon again but your right it is probably a better platform for these types of threads.

Hags thanks for your positive comments too, they made me cry but your right I cant change today whats done is done I can only change tomorrow but having people who understand makes it a lot easier to pick my up, have a fab weekend guys and thanks again

[BJM86 WANTED $22 Outlaw]

Hi Catfish,

I’ve been in your position a few times and almost lost my family and my business over it.

I would recommend that you check out this podcast ‘Not A Dollar More’ it’s a guy who is in recovery who shares his story and I find it really helps me.

I travel a lot too and listening to this whilst I’m driving etc really helps me stay on the right path.

As for the bookies luckily most of those will be gone within 18 months so it won’t be as accessible, but you still need to be wary of any slots. The service stations £500’s are savage, the stake really doesn’t make any difference – you have to try and stay away. I use the trick of not going into the main services anymore and getting a drink / loo break in the garage part instead. It works.

The WhatsApp isn’t a bad idea but you also need to be able to manage without anyone else, because let’s face it, us with a gambling problem usually do it when no one else we know is around…  if you want to stop you have to find what works for you. Nothing wrong with reaching out for support either, but if a reply isn’t forthcoming fast enough, it could be a problem.

All the best, chin up.

Ben ?

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