How To Stop Gambling
How to stop gambling
Author
Tim Hofflander If you prefer a video click here
I have written over 60 articles on quitting gambling and have written two books on the subject.
1: Identify Gambling Traps
It would be great to live in a fantasy world where we could just magically stop gambling. But in life, there is often something we like that keeps drawing us back in.
So we try to understand the gambling addiction trap, which is any activity we do that will bring us back into full-blown gambling or betting. Thus, it helps to be aware of and very afraid of any activity which will bind us and help us to be enslaved by gambling addiction.
What are your traps? Do you love to watch sports shows that talk about the odds. Or love to hang out with Harry, who is obsessed and believes he “will” get the big win. Or, love to watch people win millions at poker (which will keep the gambling addiction alive.)
Write down and memorize your personal gambling “traps.” To quit for good you need to avoid your traps all of the time.
2: How to Plan to avoid your trap
We can be determined not to gamble on Friday night – that’s good. But if a more experienced person is planning to not gamble on Friday and if they have activities planned from A to Z, they have a better chance to succeed.
The Key Point.
We always need to be prepared for every circumstance. For example: The above person #2 has a plan to play ping pong with a supportive friend. Next, they will hang with Mike who likes to support their decision to change. Last, they plan to go to bed at 1 am.
Plan, plan, plan, the power is the plan. Simply following the plan will spring the trap shut for the night.
Learn your gambling traps and trip them before they trap you. Become an expert on tripping traps with my free 50 day program on quitting gambling
3: It’s important to have clean people around you if you are going to quit gambling.
Find friends will help you learn that you can enjoy life without gambling. But be patient because even if your new friends are perfect for you and even if what they are doing is great fun, you may not enjoy it at first. If your mind can only think about your habit it will be hard to make new friends. So since you have to make new friends to stop gambling, you need to make it happen no matter what.
To succeed, work on finding new non-gambling friends every week. If you never give up on finding a new crowd you will find one.
4: Plan Your New Non-Gambling Activities
- Go for a drive or bike ride
- Do some cleaning
- Talk to a friend and talk about their issues (not yours)
- Exercise – a walk, a jog
- Play the guitar or piano
- Any new hobby is a must
- Start a journal
- Play a challenging video game
Be the person who suggests non-gambling activities. Always have a backup plan. If you can’t find something interesting to do, have a plan to do something. But don’t overdo it. When you are tired watch some TV or read or get some sleep. Having a good balance in your life is one key to success.
Plan things that you can learn to like doing every day. I now play the piano and hit plastic golf balls every day (instead of placing a bet).
5: Practice Positive Addictions every Day
I can suggest 100 things for you to do, but you need to pick things that you will do daily until they become positive addictions. And just like with making new friends – don’t expect that hitting plastic golf balls will be as fun as betting $200 on (fill in the blank).
But today for me hitting balls is an awesome positive addiction. And even on days when I slip up – hitting is sometimes the highlight of my day.
Try your new activity every day for at least a week. If it’s not working, find a new one.
Say 10 times every day while doing your new activities: I am getting my life back, my finances back, my _______ back.
6: Gambling Addiction is Slavery
This vice tells you how to act, what to do and places you should go to. To learn how to quit gambling say to yourself 15 times a day, “Gambling is slavery.” This slavery causes destruction at it’s worst and at it’s best it keeps you from fulfilling your life’s purpose.
7: Become an Expert on Overcoming Gambling Addiction
I have a free 50 day program to quit gambling. If you spend 20 minutes per day for 50 straight days learning how to quit gambling, you will be about 80% of the way to freedom.
“It’s not what we do once in a while that shapes our lives. It’s what we do consistently…” Tony Robbins
Study, journal, review old quitting tips daily, apply, succeed.
8: Gambling is Short Term Fun and Long Term Disaster
Coke tastes so sweet but it is so bad for you.
Problem gambling is similar, the first taste is sweet and fun. Then soon we remember we are again on the path to the Law of Diminishing investments. Don’t think about the small wins, instead remember how you feel when you lose (which happens often). Do not self sabotage your life.
When severe temptation hits, pause to think about a couple of things you can do now that will give you your life back.
Make planning two things to do daily a habit because problem gamblers are more likely to commit suicide than any other addicts.
9: Don’t Feed Your Gambling Fire
When we gamble the fire burns stronger. Every day that we fight it off causes the fire to burn weaker.
Say three times daily: “The gambling temptation will go away when I don’t act on it. Giving in, causes it to return and it will be stronger next time. Not giving makes it go away and someday it will be gone for good. My self-control is improving”.
10: Buy Self Help Materials
Robert Perkinson from the Gambling Addiction Client Workbook says things like: “Continuing to gamble will cause me to lose everything”. Say twice every day of your life, “Continuing to gamble will cause me to lose everything.” Buy his book – it’s worth 100 times what you will pay for it.
You can buy my book if you want to quit gambling while you learn to fulfill your life’s purpose and find joy.
Practice humility. Pride is sometimes a key driver to gambling. You know you are better than those bad poker players you play. You always have a new system that is going to break the bank. Then you go broke again. Be humble. Don’t ever tell yourself that you can figure out a system to get rich quick. Remember the quote “pride goeth before a fall.” So those of us who know we will break the bank have been forewarned that we will fall.
Renew a relationship with God
Join an online quitting gambling forum.
To begin my free 50-day program click here