The most difficult addiction is gambling

Quote
I do some work for one of the top addiction centers in America. The most difficult addiction is gambling, is the only one where you can WIN. Can’t win from drugs or booze but that Next race, hand of cards, etc you can win. Only addiction with a plus side.
UnQuote

I find the above statement ironic but also to be so true. The wining is a trap and only fuel the desire to gamble more frequently and recklessly.

Welcome to the forum hopless32, Roman R, Gabone25, NoMoreBetsPlease, clevergreen, Knoxious and all newcomer, together we can get these monkeys off our backs.

Remember, wining is losing because it is never enough.

Thank you very much, rainbowcolor.
I started betting a while ago, but I am determined to quit forever before it's too late(it's never too late for a change actually). It gives you such a high, at least to me. The sounds, colors, the thrill of getting that one big hit..it's like the best drug(although I have never tried drugs, maybe it gives you the same feeling more or less) and after you lose you feel like crap.
It is both winning and losing, yes, but when you think what you can lose.. material things, house, money.. the biggest loss is never material though - your time, your health, your sleep, your happiness, your friends, significant others, marriage and children. My uncle is a good guy but felt to the trap back in 1993 when he lost his business. Guess what he lost after that - everything left.. he lost his home, his wife and two children. And he still gambles..
In the past two weeks I have lost my appetite, my sleep, even the small nice things don't give me pleasure.
I want to stop before it gets even worse. I am thinking what will I win in life when I am clean from this mess.
Stay strong, everyone!

rainbowcolor wrote:Quote
I do some work for one of the top addiction centers in America. The most difficult addiction is gambling, is the only one where you can WIN. Can’t win from drugs or booze but that Next race, hand of cards, etc you can win. Only addiction with a plus side.
UnQuote

I find the above statement ironic but also to be so true. The wining is a trap and only fuel the desire to gamble more frequently and recklessly.

Welcome to the forum hopless32, Roman R, Gabone25, NoMoreBetsPlease, clevergreen, Knoxious and all newcomer, together we can get these monkeys off our backs.

Remember, wining is losing because it is never enough.

I agree with that, the winning is the fuel and you CAN win but in the end you gonna lose everything you have and not only the material things but your health, dignity and even lose your mind.

Thank you rainbowcolor

You are welcomed RomanR and hopeless32, we are all in the same boat, we will keep rowing and do the best we can and support each other.

hopeless32 wrote:In the past two weeks I have lost my appetite, my sleep, even the small nice things don't give me pleasure.
I want to stop before it gets even worse. I am thinking what will I win in life when I am clean from this mess.

This is a brutal disease with dire consequences and no amount of occasional wins will compensate for the frequent losses. The win you will have is getting your life back when we stop gambling. All the best to you hopless32, you can do it.

Gambling is really BAD! I have tried Drugs before during my College days but was able to stop it completely after 3 years. I have been gambling for 10 years now and I actually gambled this morning and lost .I relapsed so many times. Now i said to myself again i quit. I hope for good and forever. Never stop aiming to quit,others did it!

I've lost count of how many times I vowed to stop and then gambled again , sometimes within hours of swearing " This is it , I can't do this any more , I can't keep living this way . " .

It's true though - in my heart of hearts , I knew I couldn't stop trying to free myself of this addiction , even when I felt like it would never happen . I made myself stop seeing my relapses as failures and started seeing them as reasons to try quitting again . It was one of the hardest things I ever had to do and I only did it by fighting it one minute , one hour , one day at a time .

The greatest and most successful survival tactic of this addiction is its ability to keep itself a secret . We're drowning in plain sight of the people who love us . Little did I know at the time , but just reaching out to one person and saying " Help " was all it took to start me on the path to saving myself . It doesn't matter if it's a friend , a family member or a room full of strangers in a GA meeting . Recovery is a long , hard road but none of us have to walk it alone .

NewSunRising wrote:It's true though - in my heart of hearts , I knew I couldn't stop trying to free myself of this addiction , even when I felt like it would never happen . I made myself stop seeing my relapses as failures and started seeing them as reasons to try quitting again . It was one of the hardest things I ever had to do and I only did it by fighting it one minute , one hour , one day at a time .

Well said NSR, relapses are not failures, but if we just give up and let the addiction take over and stop trying, that is failure. I learn from all the countless relapses and it got better and better and I manage to stay away longer each time.

My motto is if you throw mud at the wall many time, some will eventually get stuck. I wish everyone another gamble free weekend.

The journey of a thousand mile begin with one step.