9 posts shown.
Mark Martinez4 said:🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏
one of my biggest commitments
And man... they really ought to open a college program for bettors here in the States... you know, stuff like systems, tactics, inside tips, the math behind it all, trying to tempt fate, that rush, the massive swings where you lose big on a single play... even old school score updates... there's honestly enough material there to fill a whole degree...🤣
Mark Martinez4 said:I think I've found plenty to keep me busy here—enough to stay out of trouble! Much appreciated. 😉
BetMGM is basically your biggest responsibility at this point!🤣
I mean, I totally agree—betting on the NBA just isn't the move.
I’m much more into sports where you don't have to worry about those zero scores... even if the payouts aren't huge.
Mostly I stick to tennis or volleyball... though I do love basketball too, since there's way less chance of a shutout.
When it comes to soccer, I steer clear of the big rivalry games... I usually just play the lower divisions—like the USL or something—to keep things chill.👍
@incursoriSince he spends so much time hanging out at the casino, he’s definitely a gambler... just like me, I guess...
For me, the hardest part was actually admitting I had a problem—that I was hooked on gambling... because when you’ve got money, you're happy with your job, you're young, you've got a car, and a great girlfriend... you aren't going to want to admit it... until one day... until the gambling just completely floors you, like a massive knockout punch...
I look at it this way... it's a sickness that you have to heal yourself, and the patient is entirely on their own, since we're the only ones who can really fix ourselves... there's nobody else coming to save us...
Kyle Cooper53 said:Greetings, I am glad you found the strength to share your struggle.
I wanted to ask you: by how much have you actually reduced your activity? Are you hiding your trips to the sportsbook from your new partner?
And in all honesty, can you truly envision a life without gambling, or are you merely hoping to maintain control while still visiting the bookie indefinitely??
how much did you actually cut back? Way more than before... I don't even gamble monthly anymore, whereas I used to go every single week...
Are you hiding your trips to the sportsbook from your new girl? NOPE! (She knows I gamble, but I don't exactly need to give her a full report on whether I hit up the bookie today or not)
can you imagine life without the gambling? Heck yeah, absolutely! 👍
Honestly, thank God I don't really struggle with gambling in other areas of my life.
Growing up, I had family members who were obsessed with poker and cards until the crack of dawn—it totally turned me off from that stuff early on.
I got hooked on sports betting through athletics, which I've been into my whole life... especially football... what started as a little hobby ended up pulling me way too deep into gambling. I've actually cut back a ton over the last six months... went from $50 down to $27 a week... which is honestly pretty decent for ME... though obviously, that doesn't mean it's "normal"... far from it...
For someone like me who's working on recovery, it’s huge progress...
The hardest part was just admitting to myself that I'm a gambler—a bettor... if I hadn't met my girlfriend, I don't know if I ever would've owned up to it even today...
It's a sickness, for sure, but thank God it's something you can overcome... you can get past it, you just have to stay persistent...
I definitely don't plan on being this way once I start my own family one day... I've already made that vow to myself... we'll see if I can stick to it...
With faith in God, anything is possible! 👍
@silverrider52Man, you’ve got quite the story there... since we're mostly talking about betting here anyway—come on, spill the tea on your strategy... I see how carefully you map everything out... if it's not a secret or anything...👍
What kind of systems do you usually play? 😁
Scott Moore69 said:Man, seriously, you gotta quit that stuff right now. That’s straight-up addiction territory. Any money you pull in from betting? It’s just gonna vanish because you didn't actually work for it. You're the one hurting, and honestly, your family and parents are feeling the hit too. Just tell yourself once and for all: no more. If it were actually that easy, everyone would be a multimillionaire by now. Trust me, there's no such thing as fast cash.
Wow, thanks for all the help... super easy to say, but getting over an addiction isn't exactly simple...
It's a pretty heavy thing once you're deep in it... and when you're right there in the middle...👎
Man, I’m really struggling with this addiction too... It all kicked off back in 2000 when I hit a $9,000 $0.00 jackpot at a sportsbook... and honestly, that was the start of my downward spiral.
I had a decent car, an amazing girlfriend... played soccer... just a regular 22-year-old guy. Up until 2004, things actually looked pretty good, until those massive sums of money started piling up... you know how it is—you always have that voice in the back of your head telling you one more big win is coming... you just *have* to... feeling like you're on top of the world...
Then the girl I was crazy about left me, because she saw exactly where I was headed... so I ended up selling the car and quitting soccer altogether.
By 2006, I actually took out a loan just so I could keep betting. Sounds insane, I know, but it’s true—gambling just completely took over my life... it became my drug.
By 2007, I was drowning in debt and finally realized there was no way out... I was totally stuck.
Luckily, I met this girl whose family has a psychologist, which helped a ton—though, I guess, that urge to gamble was still simmering under the surface.
I cut back a lot, but man, I just couldn't seem to shake that demon for good.
In 2008, I finally got a job and took out another loan just so I could pay people back... and I did. It'll take me about two years just to break even.
So yeah, that's what gambling does to you—just a quick look at how a guy who once had it all can lose everything.