Why do I gamble?
If gambling has stopped being fun for you and started to feel like a problem, you may have found yourself asking "Why do I gamble?"
Do I need to give up gambling?
Some people who are problem gamblers can return to a controlled level of gambling. However, most people prefer to abstain, or give up gambling for good. There are no rules for determining whether you should reduce or stop your gambling. Generally if you're losing more money than you can afford, accumulating debts, suffering mentally, physically, and/or socially, giving up may be your best option.
People gamble for lots of different reasons and sometimes those reasons change. You might gamble regularly at the TAB ‘to win money' but join the Melbourne Cup sweep in your office ‘to be sociable'. You might usually play the pokies alone but share a machine when you go out with family and friends. Understanding why you gamble can help you change your behaviour.
Why you gamble
Check this list below or write your own list
- To win money
- For entertainment
- To be sociable
- To make a big win
- To forget troubles
- To escape from problems
- For something to do
- For excitement
- To avoid talking to people
As well as all these reasons, people may gamble as a habit. The reasons they started have been forgotten and the habit just goes on. You can take steps to break the habit.
How to cut back
Tell others about your decision
It is easier to stick to decisions if you tell other people about them. Why not start by telling someone important to you that you are going to try to cut back on your gambling? Remember, you need to choose carefully and talk to people you can trust when looking for the support of others.Set limits and stick to a budget
You need to decide how much money you want to spend (that means ‘risk losing') on gambling each week. Think of it as entertainment money, not an investment. If you choose to spend $20 at the TAB or on the poker machines, spend only that amount. If you win, do not add the winnings to your initial stake - spend it another way. If you have debts, then include regular repayments of these as part of your budget. Set repayments as low as you can so you don't end up really short of money - that could just add pressure and make you want to gamble more.
Write your own gambling diary
A gambling diary helps you to be honest with yourself about how often you gamble and how much you lose. Keeping a diary can help you develop self-awareness and change your behaviour. Remember, you do not have to gamble everyday or lose money every session to have an issue with your gambling.
By identifying the thoughts, feelings and situations that occur before and during a gambling session, you can start to understand the causes of gambling. This knowledge is important if you are going to break your gambling habit as it will tell you exactly what triggers each episode.
You can use the information in your diary to weigh up the pros and cons of your gambling.
Get your thinking straight
Problem gamblers often end up with some pretty strange ways of thinking about how much they lose and how skilful they are at gambling. Often gamblers have no idea how much they win or lose in the long term but they believe they are in front.
The only way a gambler can be sure that he or she is thinking straight when they say ‘I'm ahead' is if their diary records actually add up to a profit. Otherwise, you must assume that you are behind and make sure your thinking fits the facts.
When you start to make changes to your gambling habits, say good things to yourself. This may seem silly but what we say to ourselves is really important. It helps you change old habits.
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Hey guys after reading all the comments I have come to the conclusion that I am in the beginning stages of pokies addiction. I need to stop! I have unexplained money missing in my husbands eyes and I just keep lying about it. I have a problem and wish to stop. I gamble out of boredom as i haven't been able to find work....excuses huh. Yeah i know! I don't want to loose everything, and out of love and fear of my husband I have to stop. I hope this goes well for me! It will..... day one begins tomorrow!
I have a definate problem with gambling on the pokies. Today I wasted $1800 and couldn't stop till it was all gone. I even left the club and went down the shop to use an atm that accepts credit card cash withdrawals. I don't know why I do it but I could give a whole lot of reasons. Sounds ridiculous but I was left alone today and found myself down the club for a few hours.
I do want to give it up but I don't seem to be able to for a long period of time.
Hi
I have been trying to stop sports gambling for ages now.
i have self excluded from heaps of online bookmakers but i still manage to find others. I'm always chasing trying to get the debt i owe , funny thing is i get the debt but then i say i little more then bang that mad minute comes and i just start dumping. It was blackjack this time after a big win on sports , won another 1 thousand on online black jack then dumped the 3500 in 1 session , started out with 10 dollar bets and lost control. sorry if im boring you guys but hope my signs can help someone else , i read about a diary which i have done now , its working. will report in 2 weeks see how i go then. Its easier to remember your stuff ups if you write them down and remind yourself everyday.
thats what i will be doing plus paying off my debt :(
For all the comments noting your loved ones with an addiction, spare a thought for us lonely singles whose main reason for this horrible cycle is LONELINESS and we have No Support Person - that includes broken family relationships.
Gambling is a socially acceptable form of cocaine use, but probably worse than drugs.
I am stupid for losing $15K in 6 months on the Pokies, only realising the impact afer attending my second gambling therapy session. I started in Las Vegas 7 years ago playing Roulette... reading that 25% of compulsive gamblers in the state of Nevada have attempted suicide! Since going to Vegas I'm down $90K before I even turned 30 years-old, now wretched Pokies! These are Satan's machines, here's an excerpt from Vic Government's Inside Pokies publication about the casino:
Usually your chances of winning the highest prize on a machine are less than 1 in 10,000,000. That means that you have a better chance of winning Lotto or even being killed by lightning.
'Linked jackpot' prizes are not an added bonus; they are just another prize making up the 87.5% returned to players as winnings.
Don't Double-Up, it gives the machine another chance to take your winnings - rapidly.
Those are the hard facts of gaming machines. Bless you all in your recovery to normal lives, as I'm trying to repair mine.
I started gambling when I was 19, I went to the casino with a couple of mates for some fun. I took a hundred dollars and played blackjack. We used to play at the same table. After a couple of months we would go back take another couple of hundred dollars. I started to go every month and then every week loosing hundreds of dollars. I moved a way and now I go to the casino alone and lose my pay check. I feel like a complete loser every time I leave at 4 or 5 am. I've known about my gambling problem for a while. I been able to pay my bills luckily, but its getting to the point where i'm paying bills late. Today I woke up after a drunken gambling night last night and told my self today is the day. This is my first step. I even applied for a casino job so I cant gamble. If I get the job that would really help with my problem as its against the law to gamble if you work there. I'm only 22 years old, gambling for only a short time and I already feel like my life is going down the drain. Its time to give it up.
I can relate to most comments on here and how gambling affects lives,as much as it may seem like am bragging at what i am about to say,its not intended to sound that way.I have my house paid off,i own a new car, i have no credit cards,i dont owe anyone money,i have a normal job,and yes i do gamble for fun yes fun.I bet $1.50 on a horse race,you may think you dont win nothing doing that,but i am not out to win anything, i dont neeed the money, purely its just for fun,and for all problem gamblers your winnings are in your pocket even before you start gambling, by betting just a small amnount you will see that its just as much fun as chasing those big losses..I hope this is some help to those who really need it.. cheers...
Well i would like to start by blaming someone for my problems, however after 20years of gambling and losing money i have no-one to blame except myself.
I have wasted a good 20 years of my life and around $750,000,but when i gamble i do not feel as though it is a problem.
I ask myself why i gamble and the reason is because i have a very compulsive personality and love sport and animals. (Horses, Greyhounds etc)
I have been working 3 to 4 casual jobs all my junior life, including some crazy 24hr shifts, only to blow the 2,000 I made, in one Saturday afternoon at the TAB with friends.
As i have grown older, gambling has cost me several relationships and is the reason i don't get to see much of my 2yr old son.
Gambling has changed me in ways that make me disgusted at myself. I would rather put on a $20 bet than put petrol in the car or buy food.
I have tried to break free from the shackles of gambling, but i know by doing this i will most definately lose close friends as well, this is why i have put it off for so long.
The only thing I am proud about with my gambling is the fact that i have never stolen money to gamble, however when i think about it i have....
I've stolen the time and caring i should of given to my son, my family and friends.
I've stolen a big bright future with wealth earnt from all the hard work i have put in over the previous 20yrs, for my son and maybe future wife.
I have stolen the time to get to know friends and family, hear about their problems, offer guidance and support and help out where i could.
I am posting this message because I am 35yrs old, seperated, have a son that i barely see, single,now living at my ex girlfriends house because i can't afford to go anywhere else because I am still in more than $60 thousand dollars debt.
PLEASE CONSIDER MY STORY BEFORE GAMBLING AWAY YOUR LIVES.
In return i will take on board those stories that have affected everyone else.
P.S Its good to know that there are so many people out there willing to help us with our ADDICTION,
Regards John.
My soon to be ex husband has run our family into financial ruins. It all started early in our marriage. He stayed up late at night neglecting me, the children and his responsibilities. He blames all his losses to my lack of support for his online dream of being a "professional poker player". His life has spiraled out of control. He is applying for disability due to his mental and physical state that has crept upon him. I tried being supportive but I can handle only so much lack of intimacy and love this game has taken from him and our family. He still wants to pursue his dream of poker at the expense of his family. I will never support the "game". When will it be "rock boottom"? When will he open his eyes to the damage he has done? He gave up a job where he supported us comfortably but hated it. He is willing to throw away his education to pursue the unknown. I see this as nothing but selfishness. What about our family? What about the kids dreams. We have to sell our house because we have no money to even pay for any of our bills. We are getting divorced due to the hate he has for himself and me. I attribute all this to online poker or gambling. It is a serious mental illness.
I was very lucky at a very early age. No not in gambling but in life. With nothing more that a 10th grad education I worked hard found myself in the right places at the right times more than once and by the time I was 35 found myself making $500K a year. By the time I was 40 years young I had just under $3-Million in cold hard earned CASH. Then dont ask me how or why I started betting on all types of sporting events. Within months I went from betting $500 a week to upwards of $30,000 a day. It did not matter the sport I bet on it. Over the next year I held my own high when I one and indifferent when I loss as I always reasoned with myself that I could afford it or there was always tomorrow. In addition to my sports betting was the lure of blackjack. Anyine who knows South Florida knows that until 2009 the only way to gamble was to go out into international waters which I did almost 7-days a week. You name the casino boat I was on it. Within 3-years my home was in forclosure, my had in millions were gone, everything I had worked for was all but gone. Now in my early 50's I have some how landed back on my feet but the big but is I still have the gambling bug. Anyone who says they can stop well is better than me, no I dont go with the kinda of money I was did but I still gamble $2,-3 thousand several times a month Why I really dont know why only that I still recall the times I had won $250,000.00 more than once in a matter of a few hours. I guess I still think one day I will have that one magical blackjack session that will allow me to recapture all the millions I have lost. ANd that my friend is the BIG problem. Getting that idea out of my head to just except the fact that that day will most likely never come. ANyways this is a true story about how I lost it all and yet still gamble. I know its crasy...Good luck ..
I too gamble for the escapism...to have time away from the kids, to have me time. I don't drink, only go out once a week and that is to have a 'press'. I can go with a couple of dollars but my partner wants money all the time when we do go out and I give it to him just so he'll leave me alone even if eventually it mean having no money left from my pay. I am left with no money to buy food at times and have to borrow from others. I try and resist the urge each week but I can't. My partner is constantly critical when we do go out saying things such as 'to win you need to bet big' or by coming to me when he has spent the money he had and press the buttons on the machine to increase the bet. I know I have a problem but can't seem to help myself. I am $17000 in debt and cannot seem to get out of. $17000 is alot of money when you have five kids. I feel that I do not have a good support network with respect to this issue...I have done it again tonight.
I don't know where to start,
It's a complete mess.
I don't really get an urge to gamble, can walk past a bookies no problem and zero interest, fruit machines - don't even notice them.
When I'm at work bored I play online roulette...........
I hate myself for it
I can't tell my wife as it would be the final straw.
My life is - should be good I earn pretty good money.
Yet I have (unbeknown to my wife) £3k credit card debt £4k loan
all through online gambling.
This month I got a £1.4k bonus and promised I would pay off 1/2 my credit card bill................
I paid £400 and then toda y just lost £800 on roulette.
I'm so depressed by it all
In Feb I had to admit to my wife I had £3k on the credit card, she went beserk,
I said it was because I had a go at the forex markets and lost.
Eventually we released £3k from the mortagage to pay it off..........
2months later and it's back to £3k, just through the roulette.
I feel so sick, yet how can I tell her that I lose all my (our) money on roulette.
Aside from gambling my life is really good, yet if I admit to my wife my problem I'm sur eshe'll leave me - which from her point is fair enough - I could see why.
Why do i do this to myself and my wife?
so so so sick of it.
To the above writer.
Please for the sake of your children GIVE UP!!I have been there where you have nothing for a Birthday present for a nearest and dearest. It is just sickening. Look I am a practical rational person like yourself but the gambling does not discrimate ! Black/ White Rich/ Poor Male/ Female Old or Young when you are biten you are biten. I stare at myself in the mirror and cannot believe that I myself have gambled thousands of dollars away. I now have sky high blood pressure and a couple of other medical problems all through gambling. It is just not worth it. Your children are your most important asset please take care of them and be happy for them.
I wish you every luck in beating this horrible disease.AND think of this
if you had a life threatening illness you would fight like mad to stay alive
so even if you have to think of gambling along theses lines and fight to give it up.
Hi,
I really need to stop gambling, and am going to try to from today as it is again causing big problems in my life. I have been a problem gambler for some time now, and whilst I have had periods which I tend to abstain or control my gambling they are few and far between.
I have not worked for some time and over the last month or 2 my gambling has really escalated to the point where I have finally eroded away any savings me and my wife had and I had to come clean with her. She is very upset, worried, and concerned and has just gone through a bit of a health scare and this certainly hasnt helped. I really hope I can stop my gambling, get a job, and get back on track. I feel so down right now, and have also been drinkning heavily and smoking which tends to go hand in hand when I gamble.
I see a lot of my friedns with houses and other things and know I have wasted so much money it really hurts. I just hope it doesnt contribute to the breakdown of my relationship with my wife as it did cause a lot of problems in my previous relationship. I just want this to stop.
Hello im here as i have a gambling problem i love the pokies ive been goin since i got my car license and when i have money in my purse evern if its only 10 or 20 dollors i gamble it n i sumtimes do win but mostly i loose n have like 50 cents left in my purse i cant help myself its so attivited n hard i wish they wood band the bloody pokies there every were see when myself n my brother n sister when we all turned 18 my parent took us 2 the pokies n see if we like them n when i went i just loved them at 1st i didnt know 2 pay them n didnt nderstand how they went but i know now and i did call up gamblers help line 2 get sum addivce about my problem they said i had 2 go n see a consuler im thinking 2 go ahead n get sum help im doin it 4 myself n my family n my bf look at this i dont drink or smoke or do drugs so i think gambling is not that bad as it is but it is ITS VERY BAD n VERY HARD 2 GIVE UP so i think i rang up the right line and writing this out i feel ablot more beta n i need 2 give up n save my money not waste it the the pokies if i had the guts i wood smash every pokie machine ill be upset aswell as of the feeling cos of my gambling problem
Yesterday I lost another $500 this week. My last $500 lost was just last Tuesday and today is Friday. Thursday is my worse day of the week because its my day off work.....where Im by myself ( which is dangerous). I owe money to every pawn broker near where I live, I'm disgusting. Yesterday I pawn my annerversary ring for $70 thinking that this money world win back all my loss. I went in yesterday with $430 and some of that was meant to pay rent, when i was down to my last $30 I was devastated because I have to lie to my husband again why I couldnt pay the rent this week. So I prayed so hard to win all my money back.............I actually won all of that back even with a profit of $10. But I'm an idiot........I put all of it back and walked out with $2 in my wallet. I am so sick of it, and I want it to end. I have no children right now, dont want it to get worse.
I have just read other people's comments and I must say I am already feeling a little stronger because of others honesty and stories. I have been gambling on pokie machines for approx. 16 years. I can't believe it has actually been that many. I have stopped for long periods, mainly though I find my way back in a venue, ready for that bit of magic I think might happen. But I know it's not even that anymore. I feel blank. Disassociated from the rest of the community. Isolated... because I feel so useless and stupid, knowing every time I go into a venue I am tempting these dreadful feelings. The elation if I win is so short but the horror feelings of losing seem to last much longer. I have previously been to... meetings and lots of counseling yet still am in denial that I will be ok and am in control. I am not in control. I have lost all my money and have so much responsibility as a single mother. Even my love for my children hasn't stopped me. I am on the exclusion program yet keep discovering new venues that get further and further away, yet I am willing to do the miles. I am feeling so unwell today because of what I have done, being consumed by the scamming process of trying to find cash to pay the bills. It is a sickness and I feel so ashamed that I can't beat it. I wish I was more positive so whoever reads this could gain strength rather than reading my but depressive thoughts. I am looking forward to "day one" tomorrow of no gambling but fear the workings of my mind when I think I am better.It's my sons birthday this week and here I am with nothing in the way of a gift to offer him. I am usually a rational caring person who would never deny my children anything but in reality I am not offering my family much except hardship and a unhappy mother. Sorry it was not uplifting. Hoping I will continue writing in this forum though and have positives to share next time. Good luck to everyone that is also struggling with this awful problem with compulsive gambling.
i was introduced to gambling when i was 16 i started with sport gambling, then horses dogs, pokies, no casino, at first it was to make the game more exciting, but i know realise as a passionate sport fan that this is just an excuse to gamble. its the same old story you start, u have a win then u keep playing, the more u play the more you lose, i believe that there is an acceptable level of gambling as it can be fun, but why spend your money on that, why not play a computer game or board game, u get the same thing, recreation. the problem is that we have a culture of a quick win. this culture makes me feel less remorse on problem gamblers, but it can become a mental disease whom i do feel for...
you CANNOT win on ANY pokie machine, in the long term anyway. think about it...why would they create a machine that loses money and lets patrons profit in the long term? i've never played a pokie machine in my life because im too smart for it. i know i am.
i guess you could say i have had a mini addiction to the TAB but nothing serious, my real problem is just spending money in general on pointless things like fast food etc.
my technique to spending minimum money was too withdraw all my money from my bank accounts and keep it in a safe at home, that way i always knew how much i was spening and could see it for real, because when you have a bank card its so easy to spend money and you dont realise how much your spending when its all figures of money that dont actually exist.
I have been gambling on the pokies for twenty years and have lost heaps of money at the moment can spend up to $2000 per session. I kept tellling myself to stop but can't seem to go more than a couple of weeks. I often tell my self I willjust put $5 in but never stop at that. Currently I am reducing the amount I can withdraw from my savings card at ATM's. I have cleared my debts but now eating into my savings. Reading all the stories shows that there are a lot of people in the same boat as me. **** I am hopeful I will be able to stop. For what it is worth, I think that we hynotise ourselves, and we need to break this because you can't be hypnotised to do something you really don't want to do, which means deep down we want to gamble and deep down we need to change that to we don't want to gamble, we know it in our heads but that is not enough as we all know. We have all been sitting there thinking I should not be doing this and wondering why we are. To finish off don't beat yourself up and never give up trying to break the habit. Good to everyone with a problem, I can say I sympathise with your pain and loss
I have lost $1000 over the last weekend. I lied everyone and tomorrow is my birthday, I would really like stop going there and i'm lucky to find this site where i can write about it. This helps a lot of people around the world.
If you are reading this, stop going because this is the right time to make good decisions in life.
Hi, i have a problem with gambling, i have found myself taking days off work to gamble and have spent $1000+ in one day. Even when i have had winnings i always end up putting it back in the machine. Why do i do it?> i have thought long and hard about it and i guess its boredom. I have a full time job, study part time but have little else in my life; its a form of escapism, where i dont have to think about anything nor do i have to explain my behaviour to anyone. It has not affected me financially as yet but i can see my savings dwindling away and this concerns me. Even though i do have financial security i realise every time i walk out and beat myself up about how much i have put in the pokies, that i go without things but am willing to put money in a machine. i know you can never get ahead but i enjoy it.
I have now decided that im going to take small steps to stop gambling, have a limit, not take any cards with me and when the money hs finished, its finished. From there i also realise i need to find another more productive outlet to filter my boredom into so as to then give them up completely.
The silly thing is that rationally i know all the right things to do but then that bug BITES AND ALL LOGIC AND RATIONAL THINKING GOES OUT THE WINDOW.
However, i have made a commitment to myself that it is a serious issue that i need to address and resolv.
Under 10 years ago I only owed $39000.00 on my apartment, now because of my gambling addiction I owe $160000.00. I cant stop and even when I was recently given money to pay of some debts I gambled it.
I go to the pokies often and although I have banned myself from the casino still go to the Tabaret. I have a new partner in my life who is so anti gambling, I cannot tell him... although today I told him I was giving all cards to him so I cant access any money and he can give me a weekly allowance.. and he is happy with that.
I hate what I have become how I have financially ruined my life and lied to get money.
Hi all, I live in the uk, i too have a massive problem with what we call fruite machines, specialy now the jackpots have been put up to £70, I am only 24 and have been with my girl friend for 4 years I love her very much but she knows nothing of my habit, she knows nothing of the fruad case that is going through the courts for fruadulantly changing a business cheque to £1000 rather than £100 just to feed my habit of gambling. I want to stop and it has helped reading all your comments, The problem is I say now that I am going to stop but as soon as I get paid at the end of the month i feel the same thing will happen again I will go down the nearest pub to try to raise more funds and end up losing it all. I do wish you all the best of luck I am going to try my hardest this month not to go near a fruite machine as they were made by the devil, and they are there for one reason TO MAKE MONEY, NOT GIVE IT AWAY!!!!
I woke up the other day to find that I had lost $20,000 in less than 12 months on a combination of poker machines and the stock market. When I say I woke up, it was actually my wife who has woken me up to this. I make the decisions to gamble, I am the one who is out of control. Why couldn't I see it? Why can't I admit it?
Why am I still doing it? I DON"T KNOW, but I know I am sick with it.
I had a brush with the pokies about 10 years ago, which cost $'000's, but not as many as I've lost now. I got back on track but cannot for the life of me gain control at this time.
Why? What was the trigger? How do I recognise it now?
I feel better just writing this, but is this just a short term thing? Who knows?
Good luck to you all, I am now doing something about my problems.
I am a hard working newly married man with two new step daughters from the marriage.. we have a house and some savings and everything looked good from the surface.. After 4 months of marriage the truth surfaced that my wife was seduced by the lure of pokie machines... it began by money not being transferred into accounts and the lies just started one after the other..... After $10,000 later the real battle begins..... we still have our house and our marriage but the lies really eat up inside.. i want to help her and im afraid that this will one day surface as the lure of the devil still exists... tv commercials, flyers in the mail stories of big winners are posion to the weak...
there is no good from these pokie venues... there is some employment but the amount of destruction it causes to the community is not trully portrayed... its a big cover up with everyone fighting there own individual wars.... ****..... THERE IS NO GOOD FROM POKIE VENUES..........
from a man married to an infected gambler... i hope we can move on and not feed the devil another cent..... Wish me luck as i will say a prayer for all the people out there fighting the same fight..........
I'm a partner of a long term gambling addict (16+ years) - we have only been together 12 months... and its been a living, emotional hell. Work, family, friends and a great gambling counsellor have been my saving graces especially when I got to the point where I just couldn't cope any longer by keeping his gambling a secret and bottled up inside.
I'm at a point now where I almost no longer care what my partner does with his money or how many hours he wastes at the Tabaret and this makes me really sad to think someone I love can be so self destructive and that for me to get through my day, I have to disassociate myself at a certain level from him - unfortunately love isn't always enough when so much damage is done and the trust is gone. I am so over the excuses, the promises, the lies, the stealing and all the things we both miss out on as a couple. His life is this ongoing drama from pay day to pay day - all focused around feeding his addiction. He's been diagnosed with mild Bipolar Type 2 - apparently this is very common with people with an addiction problem and can be easily treated with medication, yet he refuses to take it. Gambling is seen as a manic (heightened/intense) episode, usually followed by feelings of regret.
The insanity of it all is like a snowball. I struggle saying no when he asks for money yet I've learnt there is no benefit in giving in. Nothing changes. I have to constnatly find my inner strength to stay true to what is good for me, to focus on keeping me well and to have a life for me outside of his addiction problems. So, so much of my time has been spent worry about my partner, worrying about the bills and where he was that I had forgotten to take care of myself. I had to let all this go and let him own his actions so I can be free emotionally of the pain his gambling causes me - like cutting the string of a balloon.
I live a large regional city and love the pokies it has never affected us financially as I always pay the bills etc first BUT the time I wasted was so bad. Go into the venue at 2 pm and before I knew it it was 7 pm What a waste of my life I do self exclusion ( 9 yrs) and it works for me, I don't want to go in my normal day . But as soon as I am else where I am thinking about the pokies even before I leave home. I have done the counseling. I think I am so addicted, I agree with an earlier post it isn't about the money it's the free spins (yeah right we have paid for them) or the feature. I have also had some fairly large jackpots 2 within 3 months and I only play when out of town now about once a month. I always say when I go into a venue the sensible me steps aside and someone(thing)takes over my body and brain. I also play bingo that's ok? it is said you can only spend so much money but you can still buy the tear open tickets. I makes me sad when I see young people playing the pokies.
I have lost more than 100k over the last few years on online casinos. I hope I've now stopped after I had a 24k win a few weeks ago the went back the week later and lost the whole lot in 2 hours! All the time I was convincing myself that I could wipe out that 100k deficit!!!
I earn a very good salary but my gambling has put my once stable life into real jeopardy. My wife doesnt know about the gambling as I've been able to cover the loses with loans from a 'hidden' bank account but now I owe 60k and the stress is killing me.
The simple answer is that I regret that evening a few years ago when I first logged on, staked 500 and won 1000. I even cashed that in and treated the family but then went back, and back and back.
The casinos do everything they can to delay paying you out so that you will go back and play (Casino rewards in my case) and they delayed paying me for over a week - always having an excuse that they couldnt pay, and then I finish up gambling it all back!
Please listen to me - don't be tempted - if you don't start you never have to quit!
i have been gambling for about three years now..only on the pokies..what a devil in disguise they are! I started to gamble after a marriage separation and thought that i got the raw deal in the settlement. The pokies were paying out ok to start with and then i started to chase the losses and sometimes even pull out a big winner around 500 to 600 dollars... but the reality was that i was losing twice that to get the next big win. I am still gambling but have realised that i do have a problem and am looking for a way out of this hell. Reading the stories here and hearing what the addicted are saying rings true in my head right from the feeling of elation after a win and feeling bullet proof the next day only to give it all back and more that very night and walk out with nothing in my wallet at 4am and think about being at work and functioning by 8.30am ... very scary and i hate myself for losing and staying until i have lost everything...sometimes i think about ending the problem and that scares me too. often i walk away promising myself that i will never do that again ... but i am lost and i cant help it. good luck to you all who are facing this battle ... i hope i can win the ultimate jackpot and live free of this problem.
Aside from not gambling at all, I think the best thing people can do is make sure you pay ALL your bills (this includes going grocery shopping) BEFORE you even THINK ABOUT having a bet. Once you've paid all your bills and have food in the cupboard, there's probably not that much left over to lose anyway. When I stick to this I don't seem to have any trouble, but I find myself in strife when I gamble on pay day BEFORE having taken care of bills. It's very easy to get behind by $50 or $100 and become fixated on winning it back. Once it's gone, it's gone. It's not really yours to 'win back' anyway. This might sound a bit harsh but the fact that gambling is legal and so accessible....shows that we are quite an uncivilised society. A society that cared about its people wouldn't allow this to continue. A bit sad I know but I believe this to be spot on.
For some reason the times I bet too much on these damn pokies is when I can least afford to... I lost $500 last night which was meant to pay for my car insurance, and now I am broke.
I keep going back to the ATM, which for some reason are always conveniently placed. I think that they should ban ATM's from pubs and clubs. This is because if you are like me and hate losing, you get to a point where it feels like you have lost so much money already it appears to have no value. That is of course until you leave the building and drive home, contemplating what you have done, again!!!
... People like me are hurting and need to be saved from ourselves.
I am hooked on the pokies, it started about 20 years ago when I was playing the machines in tabaret, I turned a 20cent bet into $100.
Today I have 20 cents in my purse and lost a lot more than a $100.
It is so hard to stop [at the casino]. If you have a signature card and play enough you get free pokie credits for your next visit. So you get $10 in free pokie credits and will spend over $500 chasing that big win. Every day is difficult if you dont visit for a month the casino will try to lure you with free bingo, so you have 1500 people trying to win $200 to $2500 jackpots, do the maths, how many winners? (10 winners out of 1500)...
It is hard, every day is a struggle, but with the support of my good friends and family I will achieve my goal and be gamble free. I will start to take baby steps to reduce my debts and achieve my sanity back.
Why oh why do I do it.....I ask myself this when I walk out of the Pokies with 20 cents left in my purse.
I so want to stop and I try but I still go back and lose more money.
My gambling has made me lose all myself esteem and I feel like a loser because I am.
I also avoid friends and family.....with all the lame reasons of why I can't join them just for a coffee...no money real reason.
Now I need to tell my husband that I am in debt again !!
I hope I will survive the look of hurt and disgust that I have caused him yet again.
My mind is like a tumbler drier churning away day and night telling me how useless I am.
For me it seem as though my gambling addiction has both crept up on me and smacked me all at once. It started in 2005. I was getting divorced and I had not been out of the house much...the local indian casino provided place to interact with people with out saying a word and offered the hope of endless riches. A quick $20 turned into $100, now 5 years later I spend $300-$500 a month probably more and have taken up bingo in addition to the slots. I find my find that my uncontrolable urge to gamble is preventing me from saving money to buy a house and causing me to avoid friends and family. It seems so simple...just dont go! I can not believe it has taken me so long to realize what I have become. I will be attending my first gamblers anonymous meeting today. The strange thing is, that finally accepting that my gambling is out of control is somewhat empowering, I need help understanding this and I am going to seek it!!
For me it was all about being a winner. After talking to a minister, I learnt to savour small wins in life. I had worked for bookies, race clubs and had several betting accounts - it was 6 days a week for me (no sunday betting in those days). Laugh at me if you will, but I thank God for getting me away from this curse 22 years ago.
Hello, Im 27 years old and I have been playing online poker for the last 4 years or so. Even though I have managed to win quite a lot at times, I now feel that it's a 'mugs game' (to be blunt). I keep thinking that I can actually win consistently because it is poker and it has been proven to work for some, long term. After signing up on prob about 20 odd sites, i have realised that i'm actually down overall at every one! I think this comes as a reality check to voice this on here. These sites just want to rake you of your money. I strongly believe now that these online poker sites are also fixed to some degree so that the bad players can gain some 'luck' and hopefully in the sites' eyes, become hooked.there is huge luck involved as it is.
I realise that I have used it as a form of escape from my problems just like many other people. I have basically become addicted to the point that I play everyday and sit at home staring at my screen instead of seeing family and friends. Even right now, I can feel the pull to log on and have another game. I have just thrown away another $300.
My only saviour is that I feel I am strong willed enough to quit. I dont even know how much i have lost, but id say its just under $10,000. Its time to cut my losses. If this continues, I have no doubt that my losses could go into the tens of thousands.
I plan to post on here with my progress....Thank you
I have been gambling on and off all of my adult life, i'm now 33.
Ever since i was young and my father would stay out late at the casino i would wonder where this magical place was that he was going to and wonder what it was like. As soon as i hit 18 i was there, and ever since i have been hooked on pokies in particular and have gone through every concievable emotion associated with losing my pay, my spare money, my dignity, my mind, my health, my sanity, and even at stages thought about ending my life.
I was comming home one night after staying out gambling after work and was involved in a car accident which nearly killed me also. I woke up from my problem for a few months, swearing i would give it up, but ALWAYS it seems to lure me back and i cant figure out why and how i end up back in the pu and casino. Its secuctive, and although most times if i try hard i can stay away, eventually it drags me back in and because i have not been for a while i seem to gamble more.
Gambling should be illegal. It's a vindictive, treacherous thing and the venues love it because it secures their income to be rich on our suffering, it's disgusting.
everyone needs to WAKE UP and never step foot near them again.
How many people have killed themselves over this?
how many lose their families?
how many lose everything they love?
how many cant put food on the table?
How many precious things in our life do we have to lose before we find the strength enough to give them up for good?
I think this goes to show that even if people want to give them up, sometimes they cant so obviously the pokies are too addictive. We have to unite in our tragedies and uninte with strength to support each other in abstaning from them for good!
I gambled again last night, and from today onwards im never doing it again.
Ive said this before but come hell or high water i have had enough, this time i am going to call gamblers help, and get counseilling, it makes me sick that these companies live like kings of my misery.
I cant keep letting myself down and i cant keep letting others down around me just to make someone else rich.
Beating yourself up wont help either, so just cut your loses and move forward with determination in your heart to beat this social disease.
please dont give up, you can do it.
hold on tight to what you love and try your heart out to look the other way when your driving past the pokie sign.
God bless, im not religious but im willing to draw on any faith and hope that's out there because there is always HOPE.
Dont kill yourself or kill your life for the pokies. Dont give it to them. Give it to yourself.
My mother has lost over $100k in pokies and she is denial about her problem.
I am 24 years old and I gamble. Mainly horses,but sometimes on wheel of fortune on the machine at my local bookies.
I think for me personally. its more about the buzz of winning than the actual money won. I have noticed that many gamblers even if regularly successful do not spend money on the trappings of wealth ie clothes, cars, jewellery when they can. Its more about your judgement being validated by the bookie/friend/guy you beat at something etc.
I was introduced in a harmless way when my stepdad would take me and my sister to the bookies at about 12noon on saturdays. we would stand in the corner quietly and they didnt seem to mind. My mum would let us pick a horse each from the form guide in the paper on big racedays like the Grand National and put a small amount on for us. I do not see my gambling as a problem because I discipline myself to only put what I can afford each day. I usually do placepot bets on horses most days for £1-2 because you can get a big payout. I walk out of the shop when i've picked my horses and check results on teletext later that evening.
I'm not without fault and at times have bet more than I should have and do like a few $5 EW bets on the horses on a Saturday.
My Lady has been overspending at pokies for a long time now, sure she wins on occassion sometimes even large amounts, but she then mostly puts it all back in because she says it's free money.
How can it be free money when I've had to bail her out for morgage payments and at times get told to wait in the car while she finishes playing.
It's even at the stage now where she makes a fight to use as an excuse to leave the house and go to the pokies. It somehow even gets twisted around and she claims it's my fault, if I try to stop or moderate her habit I'm accused of being a control freak.
At first it was occasionnal now it seems to be almost every night of the week.
I love the lady I first meet but fear I may have already lost her! Even if it stopped today it has perminently scared our relationship and affected the way I think about her. She is at the pokies again as I write this and I am home alone after midnight!
Interesting to see some peoples points of view. Its not that hard hey. Take up boxing or something. This is a great way to get out aggression and negative energy which i think is one very strong reason some 'compulsive gamblers' do it. Almost like a vent for frustrations/dissapointments etc. You just need to replace it with something positive really-i guess in some ways similar to quitting smoking, although this is largely a physical addiction also.
It's surprising to me, the method of gambling some folks choose. If it's because of boredom or for a release, why wouldnt the individual learn how to play poker. It's pretty much proven that poker is the only 'real possible' way of winning long term anyway!! And thats if you know what you're doing.
Understandably, we are only human and the pressures of day to day life can be difficult to deal with at times. I think we all have some kind of weakness. I am convinced that the way to deal with addictions is to exercise, exercise, exercise. Not only does it release natural feel good chemicals and increase seratonin levels(which many compulsive gamblers have shown to have decreased levels), it is completely good for you and releases stress big time!
Anyway, thx for my 10cents worth. Good luck all!
With lots of help and support I have managed to take control of my life again, but not until things got very, very bad and there was a real risk of losing EVERYTHING, including having thoughts of ending my life as a way of putting an end to all the pain I was feeling and causing others.
There is a light at the end of the tunnel for anyone who feels like they are caught in a never ending spiral of gambling addiction.
Gamblers Help was of great assistance to me (thank you for all your help, guidance and understanding)
I have been bacarrat for 15 years since casinos were introduced in all cities. The gambling got real bad in the last 10 years. I earn $90k/yr gross and would blow $2k a week playing bacarrat. I would lose interest in my public service job (20 years in same job) and skip work just to play. I would have lost $200k-$300k over the last 10 years. I inherited a lot of money and have blown most of it gambling. I have stopped playing now for 2 years after a lot of counselling and now realise that gambling is never recreational. I am getting back on my feet and feel so much better without gambling. Thanks to all campaigns against gambling, i am now no longer addicted.
I am in my late 20s and have always had an interest in gambling since I was young. I would always be keen to have a punt at the horses or go down to the casino and play roulette. Recently I moved into an area where there are pokies in nearly ever pub. I have always had an addicitie personality (heavy drinker, former smoker) and so it really is no surpsie I have become addicted to pokies. I had a couple of decent wins early on, but I have had so many more loses that I don't even expect to win anymore. It is just about the thrill of hitting the 3 feature icons to trigger those free games that does it. I have hidden my gambling from my girlfriend, and only recently let her know of a loss. I am now blowing $500+ a week on pokies and, although I am not broke, I feel sick knowing what that money could have been spent on. I have put withdrawal limits on my cards of $200 a day, but I keep finding ways to get more out. I wish I had the strength to be honest with my girlfriend about what is going on, get help and fix myself. But I am too proud and feel I need to fight this battle alone. Anyone out there - don't gamble on pokies unless you do it once in a blue moon for a small amount. They are a sickness that is spreading in society and ruining lives.
Well, Ive just blown £1700 knowing full well a. I cant afford it b. I knew I was going to lose before I put it on (as i always lose!)
Ive gambled over 20 years, lost tens of 1000's yet keep going! its madness - Is it really that exciting - no!
Its pure running away - its a drug! when i lose the money, im forced to stop, and guess what, suddenly things start improving!
WE ALL NEED TO WAKE UP - DO EVERYTHING IN OUR POWERS TO PREVENT GETTING MONEY!
OTHERWISE WE'LL BE OLD AND JUST EXAMPLES OF WASTED LIVES!
xxxx
I too am a regular gambler. Like many others it was first the odd $50 but after a while it turned into alot more. I wish I was never introduced to gambling or the casino as I remember the days when I never felt the urge to gamble and how happy I use to be. I know gambling has made me a lonely, greedy and selfish person who is looked down upon by my peers. Its truely a curse and has cost me more than just a lot of money and self respect. I advise anyone that has never gamble to never try or anyone currently gambling to think of the consequences. Like another poster pointed out theres no such thing as easy money.
It starts out with playing pokies because of loneliness issues due to separation then it gets to the point where losses starts happening and despite advertising saying ' Do not chase losses" then it goes to sports betting and the occasional horse betting then more losses -hard to stop because the losses are always in the back of your mind - it is the first thing you think of when you wake up - the final result is more tears
- keep a diary - is good advise - in my case too many small bets to write them down and you lose track of your losses - I know i will stop soon and cut my losses which happen to be in many tens of thousands of dollars- I think of my kids who live with their mother and who work for $15 hour it is really a shakesperian tragedy -
I started gambling with intent at the age of 18. My mate and I would take $20 to the casino and put it on black or red on the roulette wheel. We would leave if we won or lost. That progressed swiftly to the black jack table where i would stake $200. I would leave if i doubled my money but invaribley i would lose. Then came the pokies. They are the mose corruptable, temptabele evil machines that will rip every penny off you. I remember getting the 5 hearts one day and that was it. A $200 winner has turned me inot a $50,000 loser. I've been gambling solidly for the last 15 years and have nothing but debt to show for it. I am delusional and lie to myself and others about gambling and money. I have worked the entire time with nothing to show for it. I will only bet $50 on the way home and that's it. Why I why do I listen to myself. I've progressed to $5 presses whenever because anything less doesn't give me a buzz but boy does the money fly out the door. Credit card transfers and a daily $2000 limit and i can easily lose $1000 $2000 at a sitting. Sometimes it only takes an hour or two to blow that much cash. Most of the time you hate even betting the last $100 or $200. It makes you sick to put anymore money through but your resent everything and wack it in, you're thinking to yourself F everything. I really want to stop but don't know how. I can go through phases where I don't go for a while but I always end up back there.
I am a big pokie addict and its getting to the point where i will have to declare bankrupt soon. I just keep getting myself furthur into dept every week. I have lied to my partner and my family and have come up with every excuse to get hold of money. I gamble easily $1000 everytime I play. I would put in more money if the bank would allow me to draw more. I have capped out credit cards and even over drawn my account by $2500. I win sometimes but always put it back in. Its like I can,t leave the pokies until my wallet is empty. I hate myself for what I am doing and always say I will never play them again but I am weak. I have added up my depts so far and I owe over 30,000 dollars to family, friends, credit cards and overdrafts. I don,t even earn that much money in a year. I am seriosly going to try and stop playing them and my first step is to tell my family of my problem. They know I play the pokies but don,t know how bad. I have recently lost my partner because of my addiction and I don,t blame him for leaving. I would blow all his pay as well when he gave it me to pay bills.
Im an international student studyin in Aus, being in a city where casino is easily accessible i became addicted 2 the game blackjck in a local casino. ive only been playin 4 few months yt i certainly am sure im addicted to it as it has cost me one semester course fee, which is alot, n i had to cheat 4 my parents 2 send another large sum of money to cover my living n sch expenses. it was scary lookin at how much i cud bet in one hand. tho i hvent been gng there for a while bt couple of days back i tried my luck again becoz it was mah birthday, i knw it was stupid n again i lost few hundred bucks there. nw im so upset, thinkin of so much thng i can do with d money i lost, bt ive come to realise tat d money has bought me a huge lesson. im so ready to quit n nt being stupid anymore. i presume most ppl gamble or turn into compulsive gambler becoz they think they can make quick n easy money. it really will nvr happen. life's nt that easy. i knw there's alot of oversea students like me get stuck between study n gamble becoz we're newly exposed 2 this entertainmen. today i hope any1 like me who's studyin oversea shud nvr try gamblin, and stop. even if u did n it already has done certain damages to u financially, dnt worry coz money is nt everythin, just b smart from today, study n work hard for future, rmb we're still young. keep safe beings. ur winner when not gamblin.
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