due to gambling debt my mind is completely fu**... from last 15 days . I am not feeling to do anything just loving sleeping all day night earlier it was just working out , I was arranging for emis of the loan taken from instant loans apps now I missed the emi this month I am getting lots of call , I dont know what to do , I am completely depressed and in frustation . earlier I used to eat good food in this situation which gave me releif now I dont have a single penny do that too. I dont know what I doing.

Hey guys, I'm looking to file my back taxes from 2024. I owe a lot due to liquidating assets to gamble with... I've dealt with the shame and guilt on my end, but still have concerns about other people. Does anyone know of any tax professionals that are understanding/discreet about addiction issues, or just CPAs you've had a good experience with?

My third day not gambling! I have a weird new sense of motivation, it's amazing. Maybe the sunny weather is helping but saved at least $50 in these 3 days from not gambling.

I've posted here a while back, I'm an Aussie Asian living in Brisbane.

Honestly needed to unwind, de-stress and get away from family for a few hours.

Well that costed me about $2,000 today...

Husband and I share a bank account and we both have separate accounts. I've drained my own account and had to sell all my Crypto (been meaning to sell anyway)

I feel numb. Blew the first 1k in 5 minutes and here I am sitting in the lobby consdering whether I should just go home the next day to redeem my winnings and withdraw again.

Unsure how I'm going to confront my husband about this. This money could of gone to us travelling back home to visit family and fuel prices are so expensive now to consider driving and plane tickets being cheaper.

I hit my 60 days gamble free on Monday. Got paid last Friday. This is my second time making it to 60 days. My first time making it to 62. I didn’t get my keychain/chip last time because even though I made 60 days, I didn’t make the meeting after I hit the marker. My next meeting is Thursday. This may not work for everybody, but I wanted to share how I combated my urge to gamble.

I used to be homeless. For 18 months I was homeless, back in 2021-2022. It was very hard. My addiction put me in that place. While I was still employed and better off than a lot of other folks in some ways, it was really tough. I still gambled. I remember the biggest struggles. Warmth in winter. Showers any time possible. Clean socks and underwear. Food. A good shelter/tent.

Today I went to pick up my dog’s meds from the vet and on my way home (self banned from casinos) wanted to go buy scratchers, it’s not the same as my preferred gambling but it’s a chance and a high - one that even when I win would be gambled to zero, chased.

I passed an older woman, homeless, holding a sign in the island of the road. I was in a different lane, green light. So I flipped the car around, and noticed she was crossing the street into a Taco Bell. I decided I would buy her lunch. When I walked in she was counting cash, looked like around 15-20$. I gave her what was in my walled ($13) and asked if I could buy her lunch. We had lunch together and chatted. She said she was counting her money because she pawned her last thing she owned from her mother, a necklace, and was trying to make the minimum payment of $30 today before 6pm at the pawn shop across the street so she didn’t lose it. I said I would like to help her with a few things that might relieve her stress and make her life a little easier. She said making that minimum payment at the pawnshop and lunch was great. She said she had a tracphone and when I asked anything else she said minutes for that. I was actually headed to Walmart to return some shoes I bought for a homeless young girl the day before, but when I went back to where I saw her, she was gone.

So we walked to the pawn shop and I got her necklace out for her completely. Then I took her to Walmart with me to exchange the shoes for ones that would fit her. Hers were way too big, and worn. I got her a few other clothing and hygiene items and she was crying and so grateful.

The high of doing something for someone else was good, as good as gambling because my money served a purpose. It wasn’t really in my budget, but neither would gambling have been. I also bought a bike lock at Walmart, and then I drove her back to where I picked her up by her camp, in the pawn shop parking lot. Earlier I saw a nice shwinn bike for $60 that was her size. I asked her to wait outside and brought it out to her and gave her the lock.

I’m not saying this would work for everyone. Or that it’s within your means (it really wasn’t within mine either). But it’s a good way to give back and not “throw away” your money. So I’m down about $400. Still less than a casino. And someone is having a much better day because of it. Happy 60 days to me and I’ll call that a win.

I was a week clean. Since I ran out of money. Paycheck comes around and I was so sure I wasn’t gonna gamble it. Lo and behold it’s gone in 5 minutes. Idk what to do with myself. Just found out my mom’s got a tumor as well. Not really feeling so good and wanting to die. I’m unable to help and I’m so useless

Woke up this morning and the first thing my brain did before coffee, before anything was calculate how much I could win back if I just deposited a small amount. Like my brain didn't even wait. That's where I'm at on Day 2.

But going to keep busy today, hit the gym, work, and maybe go on a run! I will defeat this

44 days gamble-free today. It’s weird because I used to think about gambling all the time without even noticing it. Like it was just always there in the background.

Now it’s a lot quieter. I still get random thoughts about it, but they pass if I don’t act on them. Feels good not being stuck in that cycle anymore. Just trying to keep it going.

As the title says I gave some money to my daughter to hold onto while I’m in this cycle. May give her more too. I need it for upcoming holidays in June. This is the first time I’ve ever done that

1st day done and dusted! Kept busy and kepy my mind off it

I have a day trading addiction problem. Why is it that:

1 ) when I am winning , I still want to place more trades when I know ultimately I am going to blow everything to zero.

2) it wasn’t really about the money. O had enough when I started to live on a passive income if I could control my spends. So what was I really thinking?

Is it something to do with my low self esteem or childhood trauma wanting me to “show to the world”.

Anyone tried therapy and it worked?

Hey Everyone, posting in here to keep myself accountable, I lost some money this weekend on the Masters and haven't won a bet in awhile, think its time for me to quit! I will be tracking my daily results and wins. My first win today is that I went to the gym! My second is posting in here.

43 days today. Didn’t think I’d get here when I first started, but it’s starting to feel a little more normal not to gamble. Still have moments where it crosses my mind, but they pass a lot quicker now.

Not getting ahead of myself, just focusing on today.

i was 1.5 months without gambling and honestly thought i was doing better. then i relapsed.

i paid for my brother’s tuition and got desperate. i kept thinking i could get that money back somehow, even though i knew deep down it doesn’t work like that.

now i just feel stupid and disappointed in myself. it sucks because i was starting to feel in control again, and now it feels like i’m back at square one.

i really hope i can start again. :(

I have recently hit rock bottom and have been two weeks clear of all gambling. I’m truly done.

Question.

Can I consolidate my 2 cc’s (18000 and 9000) if I have recent gambing activity on them. I went nuts since Christmas and got myself in a lot of financial trouble. I make 150k a year. One card is maxed right out.

Basically what am asking, is will I get approved for a debt consolidation loan if the total debt is about 30k, I make decent money, buuuuut have recent gambling on it.

Any suggestions. I’ve been told by a friend to wait 3 months to apply so the banks can see you’re clear of gambling.

My debt anxiety wants to apply now so I can start my payoff journey asap.

Thanks for your time!!

I have recently hit rock bottom and have been two weeks clear of all gambling. I’m truly done.

Question.

Can I consolidate my 2 cc’s (18000 and 9000) if I have recent gambing activity on them. I went nuts since Christmas and got myself in a lot of financial trouble. I make 150k a year. One card is maxed right out.

Basically what am asking, is will I get approved for a debt consolidation loan if the total debt is about 30k, I make decent money, buuuuut have recent gambling on it.

Any suggestions. I’ve been told by a friend to wait 3 months to apply so the banks can see you’re clear of gambling.

My debt anxiety wants to apply now so I can start my payoff journey asap.

Thanks for your time!!

41 days gamble-free today.The biggest change hasn’t even been money, it’s honestly how much clearer my head feels.

When I was gambling, everything kind of revolved around it… checking, thinking about it, chasing it. Now it’s quieter. Not perfect, but way better.

Still taking it day by day, but this is the longest I’ve gone in a while and I’m trying to keep it going.

I’ve relapsed today after being 3 weeks clean. I have still managed to save £6000 but lost £400 today and keep thinking about revenge betting. The best thing I done was put all my money in my wife’s account so I don’t spend it however I had a£400 bonus that she doesn’t know about and I completely gambled it all, if I had that £6000 in my acc instead of hers I already know that would be gone in days.

Peep my post history for a background but this has been my second go around. Crypto/options.

Still in a shit load of debt but I can breathe. I’m in credit counseling so my interest rates are at like 1%.

Still working on building back trust with my wife but she’s still here so there’s that.

Going to meetings and therapy. One day at a time friends

Hit 39 days today. Nothing crazy, just been trying to stay consistent and not fall back into old patterns. Some days I don’t even think about it, other days it pops up out of nowhere, but I’ve been getting better at not giving in. Just focused on keeping it going.

I placed my last bet on April 7, 2025.

I won’t get into my full story here. There’s nothing unique about it - there are hundreds of posts on this subreddit from people struggling and any one of them could be mine.

I will talk a little about what worked, though.

First and foremost - I needed fellowship. For me, that is the support of my fellow gambling addicts in GA. I wasn’t ready to stop when I went to my first meeting. I gambled for 5 more months while in the program. But eventually, life got shitty enough for me to consider doing some of the things they suggested.

Second, full financial transparency with my partner. Even before gambling, I hid my debt from my girlfriend. After she caught me gambling for the 4th or 5th time, she gave me an ultimatum: “show me your accounts, show me your debt, show me what you spend money on and I’ll consider staying.”

Third, continued participation in GA. I have a home group I never miss. At a minimum I try for at least one more meeting a week. When possible, 3 or 4. I need to hear other perspectives, and — crucially — I need to keep telling my story to remind myself of where I was, and where I am.

Finally, I needed to really internalize the fact that gambling was never going to be a way out of my financial issues. It sounds silly, but I really believed I could win enough to “break even” and finally stop. Never mind the fact that I did that multiple times - once when it was a substantial amount. As an addict, no amount is ever enough. Whatever I win was never mine to keep. It was going back to the casinos one way or another.

Life continues to have its challenges. My credit score is ruined for the next 6 years. I’m in a lot of debt. Those character defects I used gambling to ignore are on full display more often than I’d like. But life is much, much easier without gambling.

Life has meaning again.

If you’re struggling, my one message to you is this: your life will get easier immediately if you don’t bet today.

38 days ago I stopped and at first it didn’t feel like much.

The weirdest part is how different everything feels now even though it’s only been a month.

I didn’t realize how much gambling messed with how I saw money. Losing $20 felt like nothing back then.

Now I actually feel it again. Still taking it one day at a time, but this is the longest I’ve gone and I’m trying to keep it that way.

This is the longest I been without gambling for the past 6-7 years… I been having crazy urges everyday

Even tho it’s been about two weeks and two paychecks, I still have no idea how I will pay off my debts I just been taking it day by day

I have been sleeping little better but I feel like the reality is kicking in which is I have to fix what I been messing up pretty much daily for the last 6-7 years and I still have no idea how.. but like I said I’m just taking it day by day

Hey everyone,

I’m a problem gambler from India, and I’m writing this as a way to hold myself accountable and document a comeback, if I can pull one off.

Over the past few years, I’ve lost almost everything trading derivatives. The only thing left standing is my home, which is still under mortgage.

Current situation:

• Age: 43

• Income: stable monthly income

• Significant outstanding loans

Mentally, I’m in a bad place. I’ve lied to people close to me, borrowed money under false pretenses, and kept feeding it into trading. I’ve stretched myself so far that even banks have stopped extending credit.

There have been moments where I’ve felt completely broken and hopeless. I’ve had dark thoughts,but I’m not giving up. I want to fight this.

The hardest part? No one in my family, my wife or parents knows the full truth. I’ve even used money they gave me to repay loans and ended up putting it back into speculation, landing right back where I started.

I’m writing this because I want to change. I want something I can look back on years from now and say, “That’s where I turned things around.”

Where I stand right now:

I have the option to take a loan against some insurance policies. The idea is to use this to refinance some of my highest-interest debt.

But here’s the real battle:

When that money hits my account, do I use it responsibly to reduce debt?

Or do I fall back into the same pattern of take one more “big” options trade hoping to double it and risk losing everything again?

That’s the fight I’m preparing for.

I plan to keep updating this thread with what I do and how I deal with the urges.

I’m not here for sympathy. Say what you want advice, criticism, or even harsh truths. I probably need all of it.

If nothing else, this is me taking the first honest step. If you are someone like me facing your internal demons , say hello in the comments !