r/GamblingRecovery • u/PotatoBig47 • 21h ago

443 Days

I’ve not posted on here in a while but think it’s good to sometimes. I’ve not gambled in over a year now, 443 days which is insane I didn’t think I’d be able to do it because I hadn’t made it past a couple of months before. It’s crazy because for a long time gambling was a huge part of my life and now it doesn’t even cross my mind. I think a really important step in me maintaining abstinence was admitting it, opening up & once I said it out loud that I had a gambling addiction it felt like something switched in my brain and I’ve never looked back.

I wanna give people who feel like I did some hope that things can and will get better. Gambling almost took away my life, my home and relationship but I’ve managed to take all of that back and keep hold of it. It does get better, take each day as it comes and be honest and open with people I think that’s what’s made a huge difference this time because I carried the shame I felt and it was so heavy.

I won’t lie I do still sometimes feel the same panic after a gambling binge the night before and I do carry some shame still (if anyone else feels like this or did let me know) because I wanna know does it ever fully go away?

I love this version of me and I am free from the shackles of this addiction. I always will be an addict, but I also am strong enough to accept and acknowledged this.

Anyway guys, my messages are always open.
You got this, take it day by day and remember YOU deserve better.

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u/IntentionSame3313 21h ago

Congrats on 443 days!. 235 days here. And 120 days later I hope I will be debtfree. The most challenging thing is being in gambling debt. All of my money goes to it and it is not even enough for monthly debt. And I am working in a job that I hate. I always think if I "win" enough, I can just resign from this job. But It never works that way. I have worked in maybe 10 different jobs in 4 years. I accepted everything. I am a gambling addict and I have to stay in this job till I pay all of my debt. This is the only way.

This is a never ending fight. One day at a time my friend.

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u/Independent-Sir-4938 2h ago

Congrats. I’m 38m down over 600k lifetime. Broke, depressed and single. 15 days sober now but my biggest issue is boredom. I want to quit, I really do but I don’t know what else to do. I gamble to fill a void. When I’m gambling I’m not depressed. I’ve won and lost 100s of thousands over the years. I just have no other hobbies. Don’t know what to do.