[scotty19791]

I have been a gambler on and off for years. Each relapse has seen the stakes get higher. I have a beautiful partner and 2 beautiful daughters so I do not know why i feel the need to return to gambling. My current situation is that I confessed to my line manager that i owe the company £9000. I effectively stole the money, one bit at a time, to gamble. I feel i could have got the money back by gambling a little more, but near the end, all I wanted was to spend my days off with my family, enjoying my time with them, and not worry about a football result. That is what i wanted at the time.
The result of those actions seen me owing 9k with no other option but to confess about the shortfall in company banking. I gave my resignation immediately, however I have been given 2 weeks to pay the money back or face prosecution. Which I expected. My partner knows nothing of my latest relapse or that fact I have lost my job. I really do not know how to handle getting through the day at the moment. I swing from despair to blanking it all out to slight hope to formulating a plan that realistically is not achievable. Has anyone ever been in a similar situation? I would truly appreciate any replies. Thank you in advance.

[charles]

Hello and thanks for starting a thread in the Gambling Therapy forums. By posting to the forums you’re allowing the diverse and caring Gambling Therapy community to help support you through the difficulties you’re facing.

This may well be a tough time for you – particularly if you’re new to recovery, so we encourage you to post here as often as you need to, as well as making use of the online groups and the live advice helpline if you’d like some one-to-one support. We’re all in this together! If you’re a new member, you are warmly invited to join Charles in one of the New Members Practical Advice groups (Mondays at 21:00 UK Time and Thursdays at 19:00 UK Time).

The forum is a great place to share your experiences in a safe, supportive and accepting environment. By writing it all down you can start to build a record of your progress that you can look back on – particularly useful if you’re ever feeling stuck. Share as much or as little as you like – but you’re encouraged to stick to keeping to just one thread in this forum – so people know where to find you to check in on your progress or to share something with you.

The Gambling Therapy staff team don’t generally post to the forums as it is a peer support area of the site – so we’ll hand you over to the community from here.

Take care,

The Gambling Therapy Team

PS. Please take a moment to review our privacy policy and terms and conditions so you know how it all works.

[charles]

Hi Scotty, well done on looking for help.

From what you say it sounds like your partner is going to find out anyway. Better to come clean and tell them yourself.

Don’t just tell them about the problem though, show them what you are gong to DO about it. You are taling in £ so i am assuming that you are in the UK. You have lots of support available. You are welcovme here of course but also check out Gamcare and Gamblers Anonymous meetings in your area.

Using support will help you address the adiction, show your partner that you are taking positive actions to adress thigns and also, if it comes to any prosecuston, might be looked on kindly by the police/courts. If you aren’t going to be able to pay back the money in 2 weeks talk to your employer, you MIGHT be able to come to a different arrangement and again showing them you are using support for your addiction might help with that.

Forget “I feel i could have got the money back by gambling a little more” it wouldn’t have happened. And if it did the addiction would have just carried on and dug the hole again.

Read the other stories here, you will read a lot that you will relate to, at GA you will meet others who have done exactly the same as you have. You can stop gambling and you can move on from this. It is just important to use support.

Keep posting and maybe see you in a group here soon.

[Author]

Posts