“The morning, after I wrote the above paragraphs on gambling withdrawal, I was on my walk when, unexpectedly, out of nowhere, Mr. Addiction suddenly wedged his foot in the door of my brain. A minute later he burst through, opened his arms, smiled, and in his best Jack Nicholson voice announced: I'm Back! Let's go! It had been many months since I had gambled and at that moment my defenses were dormant. The guards were asleep. Without even offering a show of resistance, I immediately got in the car and drove south to where my favorite slot machine lived. I played for over eight hours at my usual furious pace until my available money was all gone and my brain was fried. I'm writing about this relapse story now, six days after that episode, having just gone through all of the ugly phases of a serious relapse, immediately after writing about it! Ironic, I guess. Kind of circular. I'm not sure what to make of it. I'm not making this up. Though in retrospect, I've realized that I should have expected Mr. Addiction to show up and test me during this process.”
Quote by Kurt Dahl
“Love isn’t supposed to keep you guessing,
it’s supposed to keep you growing.”
Source: WOMAN! And Twelve Shades of Blades
“Writing this book is an intense experience. I'm writing about an addiction that I suffer from, I'm doing the research, I'm reading about it for hours, writing about it for hours, I should have expected that that extreme daily exposure to my addiction would eventually lead to strong urges to gamble. I should have been prepared! But I wasn't.”
Source: Gambling Addiction: The complete guide to survival, treatment, and recovery from gambling addiction.
“I've been in treatment with people who have robbed banks, who have stolen disability checks from vulnerable relatives, who have embezzled large amounts of money, who have taken valuable items from their parents to pawn. At some point in their recovery, most gambling addicts will finally have to pay the price for their destructive actions.”
Source: Gambling Addiction: The complete guide to survival, treatment, and recovery from gambling addiction.
“Once you stop gambling, you can start to feel and think like a normal person (assuming there is such a thing). Your immediate financial situation will improve because you will no longer be stuffing $100 bills into those evil machines.”
Source: Gambling Addiction: The complete guide to survival, treatment, and recovery from gambling addiction.
“The recovery process will take time, it will take sacrifices, it will take determination, and it will take very hard work. You can do it. Know that you can rebuild your life – many have.”
Source: Gambling Addiction: The complete guide to survival, treatment, and recovery from gambling addiction.
“But why?" you ask, "Why should I see a therapist? Do they have the secret to curing my gambling addiction?" No, they don't. There is no secret, no magic pill that will overcome your addiction. But let me ask you this: Who are you able to talk to about your gambling? I already know the answer for 99% of you. The answer is no one. Am I right? Of course I'm right; gambling addiction is without any doubt the most secretive mental disorder that exists. Gamblers have so much shame and guilt that they cannot discuss their fears, the consequences, or even their suicidal thoughts with anyone. They are certain that no one they know will ever understand it, because they don't understand it themselves.”
Source: Gambling Addiction: The complete guide to survival, treatment, and recovery from gambling addiction.
“Not only do [gambling addicts] avoid letting anyone know about their addiction, they can also easily get away with this extreme secrecy. They don't pass out, they don't smell bad, there are no urine tests that show they have recently gambled and for the most part they don't miss work. They gamble alone.”
Source: Gambling Addiction: The complete guide to survival, treatment, and recovery from gambling addiction.
“Slot machine addiction is a solitary undertaking. It is not a social event like drinking or drug use. Slot machine addicts can gamble compulsively for years without family or friends even suspecting.”
Source: Gambling Addiction: The complete guide to survival, treatment, and recovery from gambling addiction.
“In their solitude, the gambling addict lives a life completely alone with their fears, consequences, dark thoughts, and often, depression. They have no one to help, no one who will listen, no support at all. They are alone in this secret place - unless they seek help. I know. I've lived there for many years. This is why gambling addicts need to get into therapy. They desperately need someone to talk to, someone who will not judge them, someone who is trained to listen to them share their pain and confusion. The fundamental benefit of therapy for a compulsive gambler is simply that - someone to talk to.”
Source: Gambling Addiction: The complete guide to survival, treatment, and recovery from gambling addiction.
“Most gambling addicts have other addictions, or suffer from depression, or are dealing with PTSD, or something else that is causing them difficulty. This, of course, is another important reason to seek treatment. You may well have other problems that you need to deal with.”
Source: Gambling Addiction: The complete guide to survival, treatment, and recovery from gambling addiction.