I have been an online gambler for over 10 years spending over £1000 a week with William hill mostly on live roulette it is so addictive ive lost every week and when I do win an odd grand I repay them within a couple of days I have now excluded myself I am 65 and just retired due to ill health I have told them to close my account on many occations but they compensated me with a hundred pounds and kept my site open is there no law against them not checking on people who loose such large amounts

I tried my luck and won. Then I tried my luck again and won again. Then I was hooked. 6 months later, 25,000 pounds later and all of my savings are gone and – if it wasn’t for some help from my family – I would have lost the house I wanted to buy too. I still might.

But it’s not just about the money, it’s about the addiction I didn’t understand, the guilt, the self blame and the depression that followed. Now I understand what other people went through and I sympathize with them rather than blame them the way I used to.

I am in my early thirties, I’m a Doctor, I’m in a loving happy relationship and I have a supportive family. So, why has this happened? How has this happened?!

I’m writing about everything here: https://myonlinegamblingaddiction.wordpress.com/
I’m here to talk to you if you need to. I know I wished I had someone to talk to.

Hi , I have never really spoke in length about my addiction, although I been to GA numerous times, it has never worked for me, I am impulsive and get bored easily, I got not only bored but frustrated with GA, what all addicts need is a quick fix, and sadly there is no such thing when you are a gambling addict, I applaud the the limited organisations, but for the the majority it's like pissing in the wind, gambling has ruined my life, I have lost everything, yet ask any addict would you still love to set everything straight, the answer would be yes, there lies the problem, we all need a pound or a grand on the next 33/1 to one shot, nothing comes close to eliminating that feeling, you know it, but if the medical profession comes up with an answer I will grab with both hands, until then we are helpless cause all the GA meetings in the world ,won't for some, change the way they see the world, that's a fact, I'm 52 and really fucked, as the great John Lennon said "nobody told me it would be like this", I hope every addict does find that inner peace,

Imagine your grandmother sitting in the back of a patrol car in handcuffs. I was that woman and the gambling addiction destroyed my heart and soul, was the most humiliating moment of my life. Some people asked the question, “Why didn’t you just stop.” Compulsive gambling is cunning, baffling, and powerful and it’s difficult to understand the addiction because no chemicals or substances are ingested into the body.

Almost every day the newspaper, TV, radio and magazines carry stories about the compulsive gambler who is sent to prison for a crime to support their habit, committed suicide because of the shame, or they are being locked up in a psyche ward.

Drugs and alcohol are not the only two addictions that destroy lives. While you are reading this paragraph, someone you know may be embezzling money to support their gambling problem. High school students and senior citizens are becoming addicted and seniors are spending their life savings. At their age there is no chance of returning to the work place to supplement their income. Addictions are the most untreated treatable mental illnesses and there is help.

I have an on-line Newsletter to help the female gamblers and the link is: http://www.femalegamblers.info I have also written three books which detail my becoming addicted to gambling and alcohol, the devastation, and my recovery. The titles are, Gripped by Gambling, Switching Addictions, and Detour.

Sincerely,
Marilyn Lancelot