I've been addicted to casinos through my 20's (about 10 years total)

from my own personal experience

you won't stop until you are tired of worrying if you will win or lose each time.

so you need to get tired of the stress of the expectation if you will win or lose...and this is a good thing that stress exists, cause it might be a reason for you to stop gambling

i haven't gambled for quite a few years now


BTW: if any other users here have gone through other addictions and you want to tell us, either tell us here or open a separate thread we want to learn what made you stop

thanks!

 

Last edited by a moderator: Nov 3, 2021

People with gambling addiction suffer from the compulsive urge to gamble. They often lose their entire fortune on slot machines, in casinos or through betting. Gambling becomes serious, because the consequences of gambling addiction can be dramatic. Gambling addiction is a disease that can usually not be overcome without professional help.

 

I was there for a year a very long time ago.

I believe it is pretty important to make up your mind everytime before playing that it is not possible to win in the long run. You can only lose because the player always has an handicap. There is not even a 50/50 chance. So it simply does not make any sense to even try because it is more likely to lose than to win. There are no tricks like doubling up and what not because everytime you double up your risk doubles up as well -> no risk management possible which is crucial.

Just try to tell this to yourself if you want to play next time. It helped me. Didn't touched this any time after this year and I do not even have the desire to try because I know it is not possible to win.

 

But because a big chuck of the money goes straight to the government pockets, just like lotteries, etc, the more people gamble and lose, the better.
The direct proof governments don't give a fuk about their citizens, who are just a bunch of working ants, that must feed the government machine.
And that's why not a single country dares taking some measures against the majority of the latest gambling machines, I mean, VIDEO GAMES...
Fifas, overwatch, fortnite, etc etc, hundreds of millions of 6-16yo kids are becoming addicted to the in-game microtransactions and lootboxes, that exploit the users and brains the exact same way as the real casinos : colorful characters and objects, explosions, great sound effects, and the promise of obtaining that rare armor, gun... or a $10'000 prize. Again, just like a casino.
Of course, game developers don't want kids and their parents to know that particular object actually costs $15 or $25...and so they display their prices in some weird currency: magic coins, credits, diamonds, etc.
1st step, just like a casino: make people forget they are using $, €, or any other currency.
Because an item that costs $19, that's a lot of money! But if it costs 2200 gold coins, suddenly, that is OK!
7yo kids and older quickly become addicted to opening magic chests, magic boxes, etc, where great prizes awaits them.
Gamers spend hundreds of billions every single year, on these games. Studios like electronic arts, have 0 scruples, 0 moral, 0 nothing, when they sell a fifa game to pegi3....a game where the most interesting aspect is.. buying player packs, and pray they will get a Messi or Ibrahamovitz... with 0.00001 odds
But EA defend themselves, by saying parents have many tools to control how their kids play, buy, etc !
Because that's perfectly normal, for a parent to worry about visas, paypal, money, etc, in a game that is supposed to be played by 3yo kids...
I would like to have the numbers... how many dozens of millions of gamers have committed suicide.. went totally broke... filed for insolvency...depleted their credit cards... depleted their bank accounts... depleted wife or family savings...divorced...lost their house or property... lost kids custody, etc etc... because of these freaking video games, and their predatory, exploitative techniques...

So, anytime a deputy, politician, etc, dares saying something against gambling. Kids addiction, etc etc, all these big companies need to do is saying 'ohhh... without monetization, thousands of devs will lose their jobs... it will affect over 220'000 people who work for the industry.. blah blah...'.... and year after year, nothing is done. These companies make more and more billions, they only focus their resources on games that can make at least 1 billion... everything else they release is crap.

Meanwhile, millions and millions of kids, every single penny they can find, they spend it on these video games/ casinos.

I would also love to know, how many of these kids that were addicted to these video games, who are now 20..22..24.. how many play online casinos... or have other addictions.

So yeah... governments will send 5 guys with shotguns, to your house, because you have a beautiful green plant called cannabis... they will send those guys to fine you, arrest you or even kill you, because... they DO care about you and your health, and they don't want you to grow that plant, that could be so so bad to you. But if you spend half of your salary on a online casino, THAT, it's perfectly fine.

 

Just remember house always win but gamblers must of the time loose. sorry but it's true

 

Everything in life is a gamble. I gambled my future in pursuing a musical career. I lost big time.

 

Every fookin night there's adverts!..ive bailed my son numerous times! but the biG =C@NTS still take ya doe!

 

2-8-14 was my last drink. i am not cured, what i have is a daily reprieve. i don't know what changed it for me, i couldn't and Lord only knows i tried everything. everything. and i am aware that no power known to man could stop me from choosing to drink tomorrow, but i think i'll be ok.
find others like yourself my friend, you'll find they understand like no one else does. do what the successful ones do, not the ones who talk big game. only you know if you'll do whatever it takes, even the others like yourself cant tell you that. my prayers for you

 

if you've found some success, maybe start a meeting? theres something to giving back. a successful sponsor might not have any successful sponsee's but he's 100% successful nonetheless
(you have to understand what giving is for to get that one)

 

hey thanks for your message!
what you mean start a meeting? where and how?

the thing is, as i explained in my post, i had to get tired of the stress and actually reach kind of rock bottom to stop.....I had to get dissappointed with myself as well too many times but it was a 10 year spiral, thanks God i managed to stop caring less for it

I don't know any other way

 

Read this carefully and download the PDF. Print it out and put it down where you will remember it every day.

Gambling Addiction and Problem Gambling
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/addictions/gambling-addiction-and-problem-gambling.htm

PDF
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/addictions/gambling-addiction-and-problem-gambling.htm?pdf=12393

Small steps - Read - Learn - Understand


Help
The biggest step to overcoming a gambling addiction is realizing that you have a problem. It takes tremendous strength and courage to own up to this, especially if you have lost a lot of money and strained or broken relationships along the way. Don’t despair, and don’t try to go it alone. Many others have been in your shoes and have been able to break the habit and rebuild their lives. You can, too.

Learn to relieve unpleasant feelings in healthier ways. Do you gamble when you’re lonely or bored? Or after a stressful day at work or following an argument with your spouse? Gambling may be a way to self-soothe unpleasant emotions, unwind, or socialize. But there are healthier and more effective ways of managing your moods and relieving boredom, such as exercising, spending time with friends who don’t gamble, taking up new hobbies, or practicing relaxation techniques.

Strengthen your support network. It’s tough to battle any addiction without support, so reach out to friends and family. If your support network is limited, there are ways to make new friends without relying on visiting casinos or gambling online. Try reaching out to colleagues at work, joining a sports team or book club, enrolling in an education class, or volunteering for a good cause.

Join a peer support group. Gamblers Anonymous, for example, is a 12-step recovery program patterned after Alcoholics Anonymous. A key part of the program is finding a sponsor, a former gambler who has experience remaining free from addiction and can provide you invaluable guidance and support.

[Read: Support Groups: Types, Benefits, and What to Expect]
Seek help for underlying mood disorders. Depression, stress, substance abuse, or anxiety can both trigger gambling problems and be made worse by compulsive gambling. Even when gambling is no longer a part of your life, these problems will still remain, so it’s important to address them.

 

Good on you for taking control of yourself. It's not easy and I doubt it ever goes away.

Personally the only addictive behavior I have a problem with has been with cigarettes. I stop for a few years, start again for a few months, stop again. That's been the pattern for 20 years or so. Right now I am in the end of a smoking phase, I can tell it will not last much longer as there comes a point where I masochistically enjoy the withdrawal and just stop.

I don't know why it's nicotine in cigarette form either, I've pretty much been exposed to and tried every hard and soft drug that is known to man outside of injectables and never had the urge to go back to anything other than smokes. My drinking of alcohol is low, caffeine not much to mention a 1-2 cups of coffee or tea spread out over a week with sometimes a break of a month or so. Had an MMO stint that lasted a few years where I was in that top 0.5% of players in a pretty big game, world firsts and shit, but that got boring and scheduling became a chore when I went back to civilian life and the world created time constraints and regimentation was no longer a bulwark to participation.

I get how gambling can become addictive, I've bought a few lottery tickets when the jackpots have been obscene but always with the mindset that I have a greater chance of getting stuck by lightning while getting rapped by space aliens from a planet of cotton candy tasting fit chocolate amazon women with exceptional asses who flew to earth on a ship shaped like a phallus covered in Unicorn and Ice cream stickers.

We are all just mostly hairless apes trying to make it from the cradle to the grave while messing it up as little as possible. As long as you are honest with yourself and can see the difference between facts, fears and wants you have a good chance of not regretting most of it at the end.

 

what made you stop hard drugs? how long did u try them for?


also i heard cigarettes is actually the hardest thing to stop as silly as it sounds

 

The drugs were there and so was I, people were 'partying,' that crowd wasn't tight on money so people shared.

A few times casually each at least, but there never was anything to it and I just get really sleepy afterwards. Nothing that spectacular that I wouldn't do sober happens when I am high. I am pretty uninhibited by nature so the drugs weren't really opening up any new areas for me. So I just stopped, slept it off during a vacation and that was that.

Caffeine is supposed to be harder but we are all just different enough that general statements like that when applied to individuals are marginally accurate while still valid.

 

The under/over on this thread is 43 posts, who wants in?

 

Last edited: Aug 17, 2023

In my experience, stopping is not hard. And I've been addicted to multiple substances including booze, benzos and meth.

What's hard is getting to the point where stopping is your only choice. I'm talking hitting rock bottom and digging even more, over and over, for years. You either stop, or die. Once I was there, stopping was a piece of cake.


Also important, I was extremely lucky in that even at my lowest I had people who gave me love and support. Most addicts don't, and that's one of the reasons (probably the main one) why many addicts never recover.

 

It's incredibly difficult, but absolutely possible.

 

I also was addicted to gambling (only in gambling halls with gambling machines here in germany) for over 30 years.
I have never been in debt, but I have always gambled away everything I had left. I became more and more withdrawn and my only "friends" were the people in the gambling hall. Every time I got extremely angry about my own stupidity. Then Corona came along and saved me, so to speak. The gambling halls had all been closed for more than a year. I suddenly discovered that there are other things that are really fun and cost much less. Now the gambling halls are open again, but I don't feel any urge to go there at all. Since I stopped gambling, I suddenly saved 15,000 euros in 1.5 years. Before, my account was always empty at the end of the month. Bless the Corona Virus.

 

well.. you just did lol
any group discussion where people share their strength, hope and courage is called a meeting.

if your interested in doing a regular weekly kind of thing, theres either online or in person types and again as simply as setting up the chairs is called a meeting.

you might want to do a little leg work for the type that your planning, is there an organization, and do any laws apply.
for helping people online, you can probably find well established forums and closed groups.
for setting up an in person meeting you could piggy-back or coat tail with other groups in your area. like hospitals, hotlines. a popular method in my area is smaller types of meetings pair up with AA or NA places. for example an SA meeting (sexoholics anonymous) doesnt have alot of members so they meet at the AA club. and get to use the resources, pool tables, volleyball and baseball fields.. there is some smaller group that meets at one of our hospitals (dont even know who they are) but they always get guest speakers or planning a trip somewhere.
do be careful whose line of BS your getting into, recovery is a big money industry and i learned a long time ago that has more different ways of building a better mouse trap than you can imagine.

special thank you to all of you who are/ or have fought a battle of your own. there is great courage in saying so

 

brings up an important part of the discussion, those who have been hurt or affected by it.
im the biggest chearleader for Alanon
while its usually a small number of people who say they have a problem, somehow almost every person alive has been affected by, or knows someone who obviously has a problem. and theres help for you too, its called Alanon.

if a person thinks its difficult to stop a behavior, its nothing compared to the pain of a parent who can't help their child and is faced with a choice of either enabling them, or letting them hurt themselves. thats a hard choice like you can't imagine, and theres help for you too. happy people who know its not the parents fault. Alanon