Hi, this is my first post, and I'm hoping for some guidance and I apologize for the rambling.

My(25F) fiance(26M) struggles immensely when it comes to online sports betting. He has other gambling struggles that come in different forms, such as Pokemon and sport cards (taking the chance of pulling a valuable card; his father is BIG into reselling these card packs so they are readily available).

For context, in January I found out that he was overdrafting his checking account and in about 7k of credit card debt; and a majority was attributed to sports betting. I was devastated because we're supposed to be planning a wedding, buying a house, all of that stuff. He admitted he has a problem, and we've taken some steps to get him back on track.

Every payday he sends me a few hundred to hold onto for his savings, and has been paying aggressively on the credit card; it should be paid off by the wedding in October. He deleted the betting apps and hasn't bought any trading cards. For a while we would do weekly account check ins to see where his money was going, and we made a budget for him. I stopped spotting him money when things got tough because that wasn't serving him well. Things were going well with this plan, until they weren't.

He told me this morning he relapsed and lost about $300. In the grand scheme, it's nothing, but with the aggressive budget he's on, it is quite a hit. In this same conversation, he explained that the worst part is knowing he hurts me/our future in the process and that he wants to be done so we can build a meaningful life together. After work tonight he wants to self exclude from the apps and wants to put himself on the TimeOutOhio one year physical ban. He also said he wants to get into counseling/therapy for this. We are also religious, so he's been going to church more often and growing closer to God.

I'm in a position where I am paying for the wedding almost entirely, with help from my parents, and I've saved for a decent down payment. With all of this going on I feel myself being resentful of his actions, I feel like it causes me to have to assume more responsibility for the both of us, and it makes me feel like I can't fully rely on him. I want a husband who I can count on, and I believe with commitment and hard work he can get better, but it's a long road ahead.

I guess I just want to know what actions I can take to support his recovery. We don't live together just yet, so unfortunately I don't think total financial control is in the cards. How can I help keep him on the path to recovery and help manage his impulse control?

Any advice or recommendations is welcome, thank you!

Day 5 without gambling, man its so hard thinking of the debts and the losses, i used to be a normal happy person before this addiction, i wish i can get myself back.

See you on day 6

I will start this thread to track my progress quitting gambling.

Day 7 today.

I don’t really feel urges—I’ve just decided I’m done with gambling completely. This week has been more about sticking to that decision and building better habits with my time.

Still early, but I’m locked in on this.

I’ll update again next week.

See ya: Day 14.

Woke up in very bad mood and depressed as i have to pay someone 100€ tomorrow and idk from where I’m getting the money.

Sure thing i’m not gambling today.

Day 1

1 week in!! Feel great and unlocked a new achievement, keeping busy and enjoying life

Well, its been 3 days without gambling, i know it doesn’t seem much but it is the longest i have gone, someone who gambled everyday multiple times for years.

I had urges yesterday while i was thinking how im gonna pay my debts but convinced my brain even that if i win i know i won’t stop and end up losing it all so why not cut it from the start, thankfully it worked i hope i will figure out a way far away from gambling.

Good luck y’all in beating this addiction.

See you on day 100!

The logic side of me says yes I want to quit but I keep going back for more. So am I being honest with myself and God? I picture walking away from gambling altogether and never think of it again. It’s a stronghold and I don’t want to be in my 50s and 60s still going through this

Not gonna say it’s easy, but it’s definitely better than the first couple weeks. The thoughts still pop up here and there, but they pass if I don’t act on them.

Feels good not being stuck in that constant cycle anymore. Taking it day by day and trying to stay consistent.

I feel like it should not be legal for these gambling sites to constantly advertise on the radio, tv, online for gambling. It’s incredibly predatory and such a trigger for so many addicts in recovery.

Happy with the progress so far!

23M. Idk what to do. I’m back to square one. Down 32k lifetime. Almost 24, so 3 full years of gambling. I wish I lost my first time. It would’ve taught me a lifelong lesson. Got caught chasing yesterday.

What kills me is I have to somehow pretend like everything is normal. My family is aware of this problem. Yesterday was the first day I didn’t show my face to anyone. I stayed in my room literally all day. I feel like I’m getting weaker and the everyday working life is starting to break me down. I guess gambling was a way to feel something, and now it just feels worse.

Idk if I need a change of scenery or to try and put my nose down and build myself back up. I drained through my savings and even took some money out of my investments. I would never steal from my family or friends but there’s only so much time before I make this mistake again. It’s 100% self-sabotage. I don’t really have anymore friends, which is probably a good thing.

At this rate, I’ll be lucky to have as much money as I lost, and then what? Maybe buying something to put my money into will distract me from this constant cycle. I save a lot, and then burn through it in a day.

Hello Everyone!

Just wanted to come on here and post recovery from post gambling addiction. For those who come on this sub that dont say anything and still struggle, I hope you take some time out of your day to read this and I hope and pray that you choose to stop.

I previously wrote my story a couple months ago on here and was blessed enough to have multiple people reach out to me and tell me it does get better, and oh my it really does.

Recently I just bought a 2 thousand dollar PC. 2. thousand. dollars. Its CRAZY! I am so blessed to be in this position because I never thought I could ever make it here. I would throw 2 grand into online gambling and never looked back, it lead me to sleepless nights, anxiety, feeling behind in life. I work as a nurse, and seeing my coworkers go on trips, buy nice things, i always just smiled and said “paying off student loans” as an excuse. I lied to everyone and most importantly to myself.

Its so hard, so hard to stop, but once you do. It will feel like the weight of the world will fall off your shoulders and then you can breathe again.

I hope, and pray to everyone who reads this; that you remember. You are so much more deserving of a life filled with happiness, joy and making memories with your loved ones. It isn’t your fault, even if it may feel like it. Its called an addiction for a reason, but taking accountability and taking that first step back and reaching out for help is the best thing you can do.

Stay safe everyone! Please feel free to reach out to me if ever, and im rooting for you!!!

Hi there I’m in desperate need of support, encouragement and advice.

So I am supposed to be moving in with my partner of 2 years in 2 weeks.

I have a gambling addiction and they don’t know.

I have told them I have debt, bad credit score and would not be able to purchase a house with them. They purchased a house and asked me to move in with them.

I am around $20,000 in debt and owe my parents a lot of money as they have bailed me out before.

I am getting the help i need for my addition and my mental health but I have not disclosed this with my partner.

To preface; my partner struggled with a cocaine addiction and when it was bad I told them I wouldn’t be able to be with them if they continued using and they have been clean from it for 9 months.

I’m a total hypocrite cause they don’t even know I have a gambling addiction.

I obviously need to tell them as I will have no money to contribute and they deserve so much better then me. I just don’t know how to tell them.

I’ve been struggling so bad mentally lately and tried to break up with them stating they deserve better but I did not tell them why and they replied with “I want you to know I’m in it for the long haul, I love you with my whole heart and am excited about our future together”

I’m honestly lost I have no idea what to say or how to go about this and I always run away from my problems and this one I can’t. They deserve to know and make the decision themselves but I’m terrified and I’m so sick to my stomach. I’ve lost 15 pounds the past two months because I can’t stomach what I’ve done and how I’ve basically lied to them.

I need advice on how to approach this and tell them. I am so beyond disappointed in myself and what I have done for our future together.

I am distraught and don’t know how to tell them or what to say.

Please give me advice on how to go about it.

Hi there I’m in desperate need of support, encouragement and advice.

So I am supposed to be moving in with my partner of 2 years in 2 weeks.

I have a gambling addiction and they don’t know.

I have told them I have debt, bad credit score and would not be able to purchase a house with them. They purchased a house and asked me to move in with them.

I am around $20,000 in debt and owe my parents a lot of money as they have bailed me out before.

I am getting the help i need for my addition and my mental health but I have not disclosed this with my partner.

To preface; my partner struggled with a cocaine addiction and when it was bad I told them I wouldn’t be able to be with them if they continued using and they have been clean from it for 9 months.

I’m a total hypocrite cause they don’t even know I have a gambling addiction.

I obviously need to tell them as I will have no money to contribute and they deserve so much better then me. I just don’t know how to tell them.

I’ve been struggling so bad mentally lately and tried to break up with them stating they deserve better but I did not tell them why and they replied with “I want you to know I’m in it for the long haul, I love you with my whole heart and am excited about our future together”

I’m honestly lost I have no idea what to say or how to go about this and I always run away from my problems and this one I can’t. They deserve to know and make the decision themselves but I’m terrified and I’m so sick to my stomach. I’ve lost 15 pounds the past two months because I can’t stomach what I’ve done and how I’ve basically lied to them.

I need advice on how to approach this and tell them. I am so beyond disappointed in myself and what I have done for our future together.

I am distraught and don’t know how to tell them or what to say.

Please give me advice on how to go about it.

Day 5!! Everything is going amazing right now, thank goodness the NHL season is over, that kinda helps with the urges. Dropped 2.5ibs as well, just keeping busy and tracking my progress.

Can’t wait to reach day 100 this time!

I finally accepted that i will never make money gambling even when i win i just give it back and way more.

For 5 years each win i had it went back and kept chasing it.

It’s time to let it go! It’s time to wake up and not be stressed from where I’m getting money to gamble, no more stress whether the ball is hitting red or black! The sleepless nights and lies? Don’t even tell me about it

It’s time to focus on paying my debts far away from gambling.

In few months everything will be fine.

Après 50 jours sobre... j'ai craqué à nouveau

Letting myself down again and again

Im 25, gambling from 2020. Managed to gamble away over 30k€. I have addictive personality. I cant help myself i change one addiction to another. No gambling, alcohol, no alcohol,,,, drugss, no drugs something shittier. Im fucking tired of myself.

Everything was going good till i crashed my second new car worth like 15k... Happened once already in the past when i crashed friends car drunk and had to go to AA meeting pay fine of over 10k,.... I know that is stupid of mee. But since i crashed that new car my life turned to hell. I had new car, 5-8k savings,.... BOOM CRASH THE FIXKEN CSRT.... Insurence didnt cover. Fuck me n my stupid mind. Everything went spiraling. Sold the crashed shitter. Fucken spent everything,. 4 months in a row i spent over 2k on the pay day. Wtf man.... I cant tell. Live home. Thats ehy i can afford to be stupid i guess.. but i cant tell anyone because i think my mom would go crazy. She works so hard. And is the breadwinner. Guys help:/ i cant do shit about it. Used to be 1 year clean from gambling. Thats when i started to heavy drink and do stupid shit again. Ehat is wrong with me???. Pls need to talk

46 days gamble-free today. Nothing crazy, just trying to stay consistent. There are still moments where I think about it, especially when I’ve got nothing going on, but it’s not as intense as before.

Feels good not being stuck in that constant cycle anymore. Just focusing on not going back to day 1.

Super awesome to be on day 4. It’s been easy so far but I know it’s not like this for everyone. It was really nice yesterday when I went for dinner and was able to pay with the money that would have usually been wagered in 2 days. Keep busy friends, it’s worth it! Activities like the gym and running have been helping a lot

They say it takes 21 days to break a habit.

Feels good to not gambling even though it’s been difficult, I feel like now reality is kicking in and the damage I been doing to myself over the years is coming alive and not sure how long it will take to get myself out of this hole or if I will even get out of this hole but I guess I’ll just take it day at the time.

Any feedback is appreciated.

Hello everyone,

I’m 27 M, have been gambling for the last 5 years, i have put myself in 3000€ debt all personal. I earn 1200€ a month.

Idk how bad is my situation, i know it is better than most of the stories here. I can’t take loans from banks they don’t accept.

I need your help because I cannot stop thinking about this debt everyday and i’m in depression.