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The tools to win the battle

I am a gambling (pokies) addict, the outward signs of this addiction were simple; I used every dollar I could spare (and money that I could not spare) to put into the money-hungry pokie machines. This led me to the verge of self destruction, as the bills mounted up and I used the money for them to try to win back money already lost. I had fallen into the pokie trap.

This trap plays on the emotions of people, yes they are only machines, but they are programmed for this very effect. They are programmed to feed you a little of your money back, to entice you to spend more. In the case of addicts, spending more often leads to the place I entered, the road of self-destruction. I seriouslyconsidered suicide, and even went to the point of obtaining a length of rope for the job.

When I contacted a church group for help with my gambling, I was told to pray for their god.  Being a pagan and in serious trouble I found this unacceptable and sought help from one of the non-church organisations, Statewide Gambling Therapy Service. This is a service run by people involved in the medical professions, people whose only interest was my wellbeing. They have supplied me with an understanding of the mental processes involved in my addiction, and the mental tools with which to combat it. I use the word combat because it has been a great battle to even partly overcome this addiction.

I am still fighting this curse, but the Statewide Gambling Therapy Service at least has supplied the tools to win the battle. Three weeks after starting the program all thoughts of self destruction were gone; this was the biggest obstacle to climb over. The rest of the battle although slow will come over time. Time that I now have.
Chase your dreams, not your losses
The Statewide Gambling Therapy Service is provided by the Southern Adelaide Local Network, and is funded through SA Health
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