Taking a "break" from online gambling

[Darem1]

After I posted a reply to someone about being ready to "take a break" from online gambling if I don't hit something pretty soon, I just wondered - has anyone else taken a "break" and if so, how long did it last? Was it a complete "break" or just a severe decline in the time or money spent?
Did the "break" extend to land based casinos or the boats, if they are in your area? Guess I am wondering how long I can expect my "break" to last, on average. Hoping I hit something soon and can try some of the Microgaming casinos and don't have to test my willpower.

 

[soflat]

I lost interest and quit for about three weeks. Then my trip to Las Vegas happened and I got interested again.

 

[Oebro]

I once won a royal flush of $2000. It was my biggest win ever (still is) and I got afraid I would no longer be satisfied winning smaller amounts so I took a break. It lasted a little more than a year.

 

[jenn1381]

I very often take breaks when my luck has been down. Longest one from online gaming lasted around 6 months. During that time I did visit our land based casino once or twice, but never with more than $40 to blow. I was amazed at the $$ I had (and realized just how much $ I was gambling away each month!), and even though I have since returned to online gambling, I have also set far more strict guidelines. Lesson learned. Still have many more to go. lol

 

[CasinoForumu]

I take break everyday,when I am sleeping.

 

[Mallorca]

Me too!!!

 

[KasinoKing]

I take break everyday,when I am sleeping.

Good one!

 

[silkprint]

When I notice that losing pattern and haven't had a cashout in a few weeks I stop for 2 to 3 weeks at a time . I rarely go to landbased anyway but won't even buy a scratch ticket during my 'break time' . I think it helps and that way I am able to avoid that dreaded chase to recoup .

 

[pacers31]

I'm with you Darem, I too have not won anything in so long it is hard to remember the last "win". I just deposited around $800 in the last three days between two MG and RTG sites and I got the ever loving shit kicked out of me!! Rarely got ahead and spent most of the time trying just to get back to even. Never happened. I like to play the video slots and the free spins were dismal at all the games I played. Switched to VP and got terrible results as well. Now I realize that I could be the unluckiest person on the planet, but I'm really convincing myself that there is something more sinister afoot. I no longer feel that there is any chance to win at any of the sites anymore, so I am going to retire. Hate to say it, but I also think some of the great stories posted here about someones "big win", are probably fabricated. If all these "winners" abound out there, you would think that someone like me who plays all the time would eventually be one of the winners. Not so. Time to fade away from this racket and get into something more legitimate. Good luck to you Darem and everyone else, you will need it.

 

[johnsteed]

***

Darem1

After I posted a reply to someone about being ready to "take a break" from online gambling if I don't hit something pretty soon, I just wondered - has anyone else taken a "break" and if so, how long did it last? Was it a complete "break" or just a severe decline in the time or money spent?

With all my crappola luck pretty much starting in '04, and running through until the end of '05, I took a much needed time-out from online gambling for about 3 months. The end of '05 had to be the worst time, with everything combining MG & "luck" (say for the late Capital Casino... ) going frozen on me. With little choice, I had to take two GIANT steps back at the beginning of this year.


In retrospect, it was the best thing I could have ever done. I took the time to finally start addressing other things in life, got away from constantly dreaming of slots (because slots is the worst game to get into because of it's expected return), and although this will sound korny, started being me again. Having taken a couple steps back, I realize that it's important to NOT compromise too much for the sake of a game with so many highs and lows (although lows is what I'd gotten used to).


My new outlook on gaming, is to not and try to force things (like I routinely did in the past). It's risky and illogical to be constantly chasing what's not there, and something that may very well never come (slots spring to mind on this one). I'm sincerely happy for everyone here who gets that big hit to set things straight, but these hits don't happen for everyone. I've played tons since '01, and the best I'd done was on BJ play (sometimes on VP), and for the most part, that was back in '02-03 where I was on fire. Although MG is the people's choice at this forum, after all of my deposits/bonuses/credits, I've yet to exceed the $1,800 mark at any MG casino. While I used to deposit a lot on a monthly basis, I'll admit that most of my deposits have been in the $50-100 range (so that may have something to do with it). But... that's all I'd ever deposited over at PlayTech's, and I can't tell you the amount of times I've exceeded that amount playing on their casinos.


Although the "WINNER SCREENSHOTS" thread is a favorite of mine and everyone else's, when you're down overall, it's not the best thread to be scrolling through. Once I started focusing on landing one of those big hits, and quit being content with the more realistic smaller ones (depending on your bankroll that is), then I probably was lost-at-sea by that point. This isn't a "plug" for PlayTech's, just my stupid luck that it CAN'T ideally be at one of the better MG operations.


I can't speak for anyone else here, but a few months off did wonders for me.


Steed

***

 

[venetian]

Johnsteed I love reading anything you post...just great! I am in the middle of my second week 'off', and it's killing me! I too have won most of my money at Playtechs in 2000-2002. Royal Flushes would come in every week, my best were three $4000 Royals in three days. Then I started having trouble, Dice, Carnival, Black Widow to name a few. I switched to MG sites and the most I have won in one hit was $3000 at 32Red on Treasure Nile. It has been nickle and dime wins since then (which has been well over a year). No Royals since July '05. How I long for the good 'ol days. My normal deposits have always been $50-100 and bets in the medium range and I increase depending on how the game is going. I exclusivly was VP and then got interested in slots. I have been disenchanted since the first of the year and am taking a break. Well...maybe not. I might just have to play a little tonight! For five years I played somewhere every day. So this break is very hard. But I play to win and when the wins aren't forthcoming I gotta slow down. Have you all noticed a general feeling of frustration in the posts in the last few months. So many becomming unhappy and taking either a short break or maybe trying to quit altogether. Hmmm it does make one think that the tide is turning in the online gaming business.

 

[johnsteed]

***

Thank you kindly "venetian".


venetian

I too have won most of my money at Playtechs in 2000-2002. Royal Flushes would come in every week, my best were three $4000 Royals in three days. Then I started having trouble, Dice, Carnival, Black Widow to name a few.

Wow! That must have been an awesome week. :notworthy


In the span of only a few months, I was able to land a number of Straight Flushes and Royal Flushes over at PlayTech's. My biggest single hit at any casino was for $4,000 over at Royal Dice Casino. I stopped going to PlayTech's, because everything started getting cold by the 4th quarter of '03. The PlayTech's that I did well at were:


- Royal Dice (by far the greatest I've ever done at any online casino... I once ran a $50 deposit up into the mid-5-figure range... all on BJ over the course of a VERY hot week that I'll never see again... no joke!!! )

- Club Dice (I made it over $10,000 thrice in the summer of '03 on meager $50 deposits... unreal)

- New York Casino (I made over the $1,000 mark countless times)

- Casino Las Vegas (I also make it over the $1,000 mark countless times)

Most of those were built-up playing multi-hand BJ. I played BJ exclusively (or at least 98% of the time) back then.

It's absolutely mind-boggling, but I had enormously GREAT luck at PlayTech's. And for the life of me, I can't touch the $2,000 mark at any MG casino (and I've rarely reached the $1,000 mark).

Up until early '05, I had played at every PlayTech casino. Even BLACKWIDOW (ditto Grand Banks), although I had claimed a no deposit bonus (at least that's what I recall) from them. Back in those days, I never knew about their bad reputations, I just didn't like the layout of their sites (one of those times where judging a book by it's cover was a great thing ). There were almost a fair number of PlayTech's that didn't leave the "win" button "on" for me, and they would include:


- Carnival (urggghhh... instant losses on EACH deposit)

- Swiss Casino

- Magic Box Casino

- Las Vegas US

- Sunny Group (Mapau and others...)


I only mention these ones, because I made substantial deposits at these casinos, and they all had no highs and ALL lows compared to the former group mentioned.


My records show that I've done quite well on increased bets when playing at PlayTech casinos. I can't say the same for my play on MG casinos. I've played probably 10 times the amount of VP at MG casinos as I have with PlayTech, and I haven't done ANYTHING, except land 3 Straight Flushes. That's nice, but that hardly makes up for not getting anything massive to keep me going.

Have you all noticed a general feeling of frustration in the posts in the last few months. So many becoming unhappy and taking either a short break or maybe trying to quit altogether. Hmmm it does make one think that the tide is turning in the online gaming business.

I'd agree with you on this point, but that probably has a lot to do with own game-play. I do get the sense though that there have been a fair number of people who've decided lay-low from the online gambling scene. I have no concrete proof on that though... just a general feeling. I wonder though, if that has a lot to do with so many forum members playing slots these days. That's just speculation though, probably as a direct result from what the majority of posts in the "Winners Screenshots" thread would suggest.


Steed

***

 

[lydia]

I take a break everytime I am broke. Unfortunately after recovering I never learn from my mistakes (not cashing out in time, for example and so on) I start all over again, the same procedure...:sniper:

Sometimes, I take a break (relativ short) even if I am not broke, but very frustrated if I only lose, lose, lose... so as lately...

 

[KasinoKing]

I'm with you Darem, I too have not won anything in so long it is hard to remember the last "win". I just deposited around $800 in the last three days between two MG and RTG sites and I got the ever loving shit kicked out of me!! Rarely got ahead and spent most of the time trying just to get back to even. Never happened. I like to play the video slots and the free spins were dismal at all the games I played. Switched to VP and got terrible results as well. Now I realize that I could be the unluckiest person on the planet, but I'm really convincing myself that there is something more sinister afoot. I no longer feel that there is any chance to win at any of the sites anymore, so I am going to retire. Hate to say it, but I also think some of the great stories posted here about someones "big win", are probably fabricated. If all these "winners" abound out there, you would think that someone like me who plays all the time would eventually be one of the winners. Not so. Time to fade away from this racket and get into something more legitimate. Good luck to you Darem and everyone else, you will need it.

It is my (conspiracy) theory that softwares run hot & cold across the board. i.e. if one MG casinos slots are cold so are all the other ones. Ive seen definite streakiness like this when you cant buy a decent feature hit!
Right now both MG & RTG seem pretty icy.

Rather than give up, my suggestion is try a different software like Crypto or WagerWorks for example.
Maybe your luck will change with a different platform!
If Id lost $400 at one casino, rather than chase my losses with another $200 deposit at the same one Id try a different one. If I managed to double my money I would feel much happier saying I lost $400 at casino A, but at least I won $200 at casino B than just I lost $200 at casino A

Whatever you do good luck!

 

[Darem1]

Taking a break

Thanks to everyone for the replies! Maybe our luck will change, and ALSO our attitudes about cashing out in time!

 

[HateMG]

How to take a break from online gambling

I used to gamble a lot. I remember having a 2.5k line of credit in Neteller instacash which sometimes I had no problem losing all of it in one day and even couple times I did not have enough money in my bank to cover everything so later on I had to pay $30 for each bounced transaction to my bank and another $25 to Neteller. I even got a 20K loan from Citibank which I still pay around $460 a month. One day I realized I can not continue like that so I closed my Neteller account and just to make sure I'm not going to gamble anymore I disconnect my monitor from computer and gave it to my sister. It was more than a year ago. I only played on my cousin's computer when some casinos threw $15-$20 into my accounts which did not last long. The first time I gamble after that it was in AC one and a half month ago where I won $300 playing BJ and earn something like $750 in comps and used some of it on a great lunch. Shortly after that I got a cd from Captain's Cook and made $2100 playing BJ from $50 ND bonus again on my cousin's computer. It took around 10 days, had to fax some documents but I got the money deposited into my bank account. After that my gambling started again, I got the monitor back but now I have only $300 a week Instadebit account and nothing else. So after losing 2 week in a row my weekly gambling allowance which I can afford I got monthly loyalty points worth $120 into my Vegas7 account. Beleive it or not I ran it to more than 15K mostly playing BJ and some double double videopoker. Some of mine BJ hands at the end where at $400-$600 range. I made 2 withdrawal one for $8500 which already hit my bank account the second withdrawal I unfortunately reversed several times until I lost it all. I also accumulated more that $2000 in loyalty points but lost it as well (for VIP they can credit it upon your request not just on 10-15 of each month as a regular procedure).
Although my comeback to gambling started on a good note I understand it not going to last long but at least I know I can not lose more than my weekly Instadebit limit which was increased to $400 now.

 

[vinylweatherman]

Longest Break

My longest break from gambling was around 2 years, but this was land based on Fruit Machines. My longest break from online gambling has been until the next bonus offer expired
If I have done well, I play with or without bonuses, usually in tournament promotions. If I have done badly I only play where a bonus improves my chances.
I would certainly not want to turn down a bonus that was a steal, such as the VIP Tuesday bonus at Jackpot Factory, even if it took all the funds in Neteller at the time. I am about, break even there.
If I do too badly at a particular casino, it gets uninstalled and another put back in its place. I often find that switching casinos is better than plugging away when all games are cold.

 

[ballysdb]

My situation is very similar to HateMg. I blew up all my accounts a year ago. I paid off Instadebit and they started me with a $250 weekly limit. Of course they have upped it twice. Now it is $400. After I gamble I always say " Ill call them and ask them to lower it to $50 a week." Of course I ALWAYS end up playing just ONE more time! My biggest problem now is using Nexum. The only casino I have found to use them is Casino of Fortune. I called Nexum and asked them to exclude me from purchasing. They said they dont consider me as a "customer" with an account. They are just the middle man. So I have to ask Casino of Fortune if I can self exclude myself. Funny thing is...it seems everytime I try to help myself to curtail my gambling, something gets in the way. Either an email doesnt go through or the phone # I have doesnt work. Once I tried to cash out $5000 and Casino of Fortune would not send me a check without a utility bill. (I think it was Casino Fortune I dont want to say anything about them that might not be true) Anyway I have an apartment and my landlord has everthing in his name. So I had to wait a week until I could make my first deposit at the casino using Instadebit and they would let me cash out to Instadebit. As I waited I of course gave all the money back. I guess sometimes you just have to be stronger than your urge to gamble.

 

[pacers31]

You're right about that Bally's, but what a strong urge it is!!! I am going to make an effort to stay away for awhile, but the lure of easy money has such a strong appeal. I'm thinking that I can do it because even in years past when I lost, I was able to say that I still got some enjoyment from it. With the current losses I am incurring it is no fun at all. It has gotten so bad, that at some point in each gaming session I am able to correctly state to myself "that's it, it's going to suck it all away now". The terrible thing is that this is even when I have $100 or more dollars and only make small bets!!! The entire online gaming thing is based on blind trust. All the sites assure me that their games are beyond reproach and so fair, but we really do not know do we? In fact we are putting blind faith in someones word that we have never and never will meet! It's like a used car salesman or politician saying "Trust Me". I've just had so many bad experiences that it is time to take a well needed break and let my feelings and attitude perhaps soften somewhat before trying again. I am just afraid that since I really don't want to quit, that I won't. We all know the slot junkie's mantra, ONE MORE SPIN!!! Have a great day all.

 

[dabruin2]

My longest sabbatical from gambling was about three months. And the reason why was because I took a bad beat in Las Vegas. I started gambling again online and the reality was that I would lose more online than I could ever in a land based casino--maybe it's because you don't realize how much you're betting, or quite frankly don't care.

I remember losing like 3K online and I took about three weeks off and vowed never again. Then I tried again with a 1K deposit, only to lose it in 15 time. I felt like a complete scumbag at the time. This was April of this year and I've got to pay a huge tax bill, had to contribute to my retirement account as a stipulation of my tax return, and had to pay off a credit card who's 0% deal was expiring. All in total, it was about 20K in outflow, and here I am blowing about 4K in three weeks.

It's not like I didn't have the money, but you just feel like a dirtbag being so irresponsible. Now I was looking at having to cash out CDs and Bonds just to cover the deficit.

Well, long story short, I tried once more with a 2K deposit. In short time, I found myself winning the 1K back, then I won the 3K that I lost, then I came up ahead several K.

So the story ends on a positive note. And right now, I'm thinking about taking a couple days to rest and let it all sink in.

 

[dabruin2]

You're right about that Bally's, but what a strong urge it is!!! I am going to make an effort to stay away for awhile, but the lure of easy money has such a strong appeal. I'm thinking that I can do it because even in years past when I lost, I was able to say that I still got some enjoyment from it. With the current losses I am incurring it is no fun at all. It has gotten so bad, that at some point in each gaming session I am able to correctly state to myself "that's it, it's going to suck it all away now". The terrible thing is that this is even when I have $100 or more dollars and only make small bets!!! The entire online gaming thing is based on blind trust. All the sites assure me that their games are beyond reproach and so fair, but we really do not know do we? In fact we are putting blind faith in someones word that we have never and never will meet! It's like a used car salesman or politician saying "Trust Me". I've just had so many bad experiences that it is time to take a well needed break and let my feelings and attitude perhaps soften somewhat before trying again. I am just afraid that since I really don't want to quit, that I won't. We all know the slot junkie's mantra, ONE MORE SPIN!!! Have a great day all.

I just make it a rule not to play at video interfaced casinos anymore. I just gamble at live dealer type casinos. My rationale is (and I know there's people that claim that live dealer type casinos can cheat too) if I lose, at least I want to see with my own eyes how it goes down. We've all been beat in the most unusual ways in land based casinos, and I figure if I can see a live feed and see that I lost to my face and it doesn't look fishy at all, I can live with it.

Take for example a couple days ago, I took the worst beat ever. I lost with a pair of 19s (2/8/9 and 2/8/9, respectively--split from a pair of 2s--). The dealer was holding a 4. Lo and behold, my 1K bet inflated to a 4K bet. The dealer pulls 4/A/9/6. But you know what, I lost fair and square and I saw the cards dealt right from the shoe. Had this scenario been played out in a video interface type casino, you better believe I would've been crying bloody murder. Hehehe.

 

[Darem1]

Thanks to all

Thanks to all for their "war stories", I am going to see how it turns out with my comp points. I played a long time last night for very little. I too always say "one more time" but I have curtailed the large deposits. Now I just try to make a little off a little, other than going for the Millionaire's Club with that $30 last night and my comps. It is just too tempting!

 

[ballysdb]

Pacers: It definitely is soooo strong! Last night I was going to purchase at Casino of Fortune and I actually made myself go to bed instead. I felt so good in the morning. Of course it is only one small step but maybe it can snowball in the right direction. And talk about blind trust! I have worked for used car dealers for 15 years! lol And Dabruin (is that a hockey reference?) I know exactly what you mean when you say you feel like a scumbag and very irresponsible. I feel the same way.

 

[pacers31]

Hang in there Bally, the odds are against us staying away, but then again, the odds are really against us when we play! I don't know about you, but I sure don't want to go over the cliff again like this last few weeks. I would like to know how many of us at this forum are actual average players with nothing at stake but our own money, and how many are shills for the casino sites. Especially some of those folks who seem to be able to post huge wins at regular intervals. I guess screenshots of beautiful hits are a powerful marketing tool for the "affiliates" that congregate at sites like these to cash in on our misfortune. Bye from TRYING TO STAY "SOBER" IN ILLINOIS"

 

[NoMouthToScream]

I believe most of us can be winners one way or another, as long as we don't confuse lady luck with the cursed leprechaun. As long as you stay within your bankroll and find entertainment in the low bettings. Then everybody's a winner.

P.S. I would love to be a shill for casino group.

 

[pacers31]

Yeah No Mouth, that would be an ideal way to go. Unfortunately there is very little entertainment value even in low rolling these days. It doesn't matter whether I bet $1 or .30 a spin, the results are the same. Very few hits of any significance, very few free spin bonuses and then even when hit, very little return. I actually got the mermaid bonus to respin twice in a feature and got excited until my whopping 3X return was a paltry $9 and change!!! For thirty freaking free spins!!!!!!!! Can't find alot of value in that. The casinos seem to all be so tight these days that it seems they may know something we don't about online gaming's legal future in the states. Maybe, and I am just speculating, maybe they know that the games are going to be outlawed and they are sucking in as much cash as possible before it happens?? I really cannot come up with any other good reason that all the play at microgaming and RTG sucks so terribly recently. Oh they will tell you "darn, bad luck" but I do wonder. All the more reason to say goodbye and good riddance for awhile. Law of averages would indicate that I would at least win or be up at least once in awhile. Never happens, EVER!!

 

[dabruin2]

The truth is, when it comes to gambling, you need to put up big money in order to win big money. If you bet small, chances are you'll win small--unless you get on this lucky streak and accumulate a good amount of winnings from the small betting.

 

[NoMouthToScream]

Yes, you win small, but if you have a decent sized bankroll like 200 or so, and bet small, you can still win let's say, 225 - 250. That's a 12.5% - 25% positive win. Ok, you can say I'm crazy, that's crap. But a win in the positive is a win. Plus you can prolong your entertainment value.

 

[silkprint]

I remember when I used to bet .27 or .36 a spin on Thunderstruck ..it's the only time I got all 5 scatters of course. Now I have to start at .54 and even that is betting low . I guess it's all relative .

 

[Dewberry]

I've also noticed that some of the bigger wins like 5 in a row come when I'm playing .45 per spin - never see them betting over $1. These good ones seem to appear on regular spins, not on bonus rounds. The bonus rounds have produced the lowest payouts per spin for me.
If there's a retrigger in the bonus spins, the most money comes from the retrigger itself and a couple of spins after. The last ten give very little.

I'm less excited when I get free spins; more wondering how little I'll get this time. Something's wrong with that

 

[pacers31]

I know what you mean Dewberry, just the fact that most everyone responding to this thread seems to be having the same type of experience makes me wonder even more about the fairness of the games. Both of the sites I was regularly playing (one RTG, one MG) are both on the CM accredited list. I'm beginning to wonder if they are accredited because they never have to pay anyone, thus no payment issues involved. Perhaps we are all suckers and like the saying goes, "never give a sucker an even break". The breaks are no where near even these days.

 

[Darem1]

I guess the casino gods want me back....

After playing my comp points on Millionaire to no avail, I deposited $50 and decided to play another favorite, Coral Cash. At 45 cents a spin I was just hoping to hit the feature, maybe a respin or two, and get at least another ten or twenty dollars to have another go at Millionaire's Club. The rapid fire jackpot was almost twelve hundred dollars, AND I GOT IT! I have played the rapid fire jackpots a LOT and have NEVER gotten the jackpot on any less than a $2.25 spin, and mostly on the $9 spins. I found that cashout button real fast and sent $900 to Neteller. It may not stay there, at least not all of it, but at least I didn't play it all back the same night. Now, Casinomeister told me through this forum about a neat site called GoneGambling. I have signed up, and the first thing I did was to claim my "high roller" (at least $300 a month deposited) bonus with Intercasino that let me play with their money for an hour or so.
I am still trying to figure out a lot of that site, but it is FREE, fun, and did I mention FREE!!!! So when I am on "break" from the casino, I can always play there. By the way, I signed up with 32Red on some of you good peoples' recommendations, and so I can try a Microgaming casino.

 

[Slotmachine]

two sides to every coin

Good thread. I was hesitating to post this, but what the hell, here goes. I've gambled online and offline for 2 years and last New Year's I realized it's taking up too much of my time. I've found that my work and social life have been suffering. I've got a fairly well paying job and still somehow I'm always nearly broke. I didn't quite realize how much money I've spent on gambling until I did a serious review of my accounts. So I took about 1 month off gambling, then started again with smaller bets, thinking maybe I should quit altogether, but I didn't really want to - I loved gambling too much.

Well as some of you might know I was then blessed with some incredible luck at Cherry. Vowing I'd never gamble my winnings again, I soon realized that the money was going back to the casinos, and fast. I had the good sense to pay off my biggest debts, buy a car and a new computer, but I gambled the rest of the winnings, not even realizing it until the money was gone. It's happened to me before: It's like not knowing what hit you and then the money is gone. All rational thinking is thrown to the wind. It's like waking up from the dream and saying, I can't possibly have done that! There's got to be some mistake..

But it was all too true, and in a way it's good because I finally awakened from this 2-year dream. I quit. I realized it's the only way for me to go because I only got one life and it seems I've got a problem gambler inside me and there's just no way I can enjoy gambling in moderation. I still didn't want to quit because it's such a big rush. But it's just something I can't have in this life and I've got to give it up whether I want it or not.

The most important realization: There is no "exit" win. I'll always come back for more, for bigger wins. The only way for me to quit is while losing. It was impossible to quit when winning. Sure, I hit 50K, and it helped a lot with the debts and such, but I was well on my way back to zero. In fact, I was back to zero, again waiting for next month's paycheck.

So that's what I did. I wrote to all the casinos and had myself excluded forever, and shut down my Neteller account. Some casinos seemed to be hell bent on getting just a few more deposits out of me and wouldn't close my account permanently, others complied immediately. 32Red was again the exemplary casino - I got a courteous letter from management assuring that they have banned me forever at my request and offered to help me out in any way they could. I also had myself excluded forever from the local brick-n-mortar.

Well, I'm off it now, and what a summer it's turning out to be. It only took about a month but now I'm thinking of gambling less and less frequently. Almost never now. During this month I've had a massive increase in social life, work efficiency, and I've even started a small internet business for the fun of it, which has started off pretty well and already earning a little bit of extra money, and I'm directing my addictive potential to doing creative and productive things now.

I'm not saying everyone's a problem gambler and wish happy gambling for those who can do it in moderation, but while I' consider myself generally a fairly strong person, this is my weakness and cold turkey is the only way for me.

Wishing everybody here all the best, I'll log in now and then to see what's going on with you guys.

If there's anybody here who needs to talk to someone or has found himself in a similar situation, or needs help in any way, please feel free to PM me, I'll be more than happy to share and to offer whatever support I can. I've thought and read about this so much that I've gained some insight regarding strategies to regain control, financial recovery, and so on and I'm willing to share. I'll always make time to help out a fellow gambler. For the rest of you, good luck at the tables, stay smart!

Cheers,
SM

 

[Pinababy69]

Top points for honesty SlotMachine. I wish you all the best. I think there are a few who read this forum who could and should take a page out of your book. I've always said gambling addiction is about more than just the money, and I was glad to see you mention the social and work ramifications. They can be just as harmful as the financial aspect. I hope that anyone else in your situation will really take that post to heart, and give it some good long thought.

 

[KasinoKing]

Ditto to above and good luck to all trying to 'go straight'.

Regarding the posts higher up - I agree!
MG & RTG slots are just no fun any more - someone somewhere has flicked the switch.
Even I, a committed low-roller and controlled gambler have been really struggling to make anything over the last two months and I am also considering taking a break.

Darem1: WTG on the RF jackpot! :notworthy (No screenshot?)

 

[lydia]

again waiting for next month's paycheck.

SM

Great post, Slotmashine !

You are talking from the deep of my soul.
I am going to take a loooong break from gambling online - you can not win no matter what you do. I was very impressed by 'scary Costa Rica thread'. You are throwing your hard- earned money in the hope for Lady Luck and some (I wanted to write criminals but better not) laugh at you in the 'back office' seeing your pathetic attempts to win and then decide if they switch a 'win-mode' for you... or not.
The most dissapointing for me, that even so-called 'reputable' casinos don't let you win after big (sometimes even small) cashout untill you pay back or they let you win of small fraction of your deposit..
I didn'pay attention at first but with more experience I've started to analyse ...

 

[Mousey]

Best of luck to ya, Slotmachine!

KK -- I totally agree. Something is wrong, seriously wrong with the casinos. OK. Maybe I'm just having a bad, bad, year long losing streak. I know that in the long run, the casinos will win. However, I also know that's it really weird to play as much as we all do and see so few decent hits. I'm not talking about jackpots, I mean, I haven't hit anything better than $25 on a single spin in so long I don't remember what it's like.

I've been taking a semi-break from gambling for the last month or so. Playing bonuses when they come in, or maybe depositing $25 for a promo here and there. And the play is not getting any better for me at the casinos.

Last night I downloaded, signed up and deposited $50 at All Jackpots. Received a $225 bonus. WR= $5500 slots only. The reasons I took the bonus was: (1) I thought maybe I'd be able to play longer than 2 minutes before busting out; (2) I also assumed I'd bust out quickly anyway if I didn't take the bonus; (3) I wanted to see if feeding more than my usual $25 or $50 through the slots would let me see some better payouts.

Results: I busted out in about 30 minutes playing various slots no more than $2 per spin (other than a couple of spins on Cash Splash), hitting nothing bigger than $30 at any one time. I saw no bonus rounds on Ladies Nite, Twister, or Thunderstruck. I managed to get above my starting balance (up to $325) only briefly, early on.

I struggled to eek out around $700 in wagers. Ridiculous!! That's something like 2.5 times the starting balance. Even on slots, that is bad... very bad!

This is not meant as a slap to All Jackpots. No doubt the results would have been similar at any MG casinos where I play. Or even at INetBet. Haven't seen a RF or decent bonus round at an RTG casino in forever, either.

So, I continue monitoring the boards, and playing only on occasion, waiting to see if things begin to improve.

 

[ballysdb]

Slotmachine: Thank you for your honesty. I hope nobody takes this the wrong way, but I feel a little better when I find out there are others who are going through the same thing as me. What amazing courage and strength it must have taken to ban yourself forever from the casinos. I have thought about doing it for a few months and I cant even do that. I'm so glad to see that it can be done. God bless you and good luck with everything in your life!

 

[soflat]

I think you all were just lucky before because I never won anything from slot machines in 15 years.

Anyways, I took a few weeks break then the poker sites started depositing cash into my accounts.

And now I got hooked on All Aces video poker. I could fill the Screenshots That Suck thread from this quest. If I could just hit those darn Aces....

 

[dominique]

Slotmachine, more power to you!

Many of us are susceptible to one addiction or another.

My mother smoked exactly one cigarette a day, after dinner. Every day, all her adult life.

I started smoking and soon smoked 3+ packs a day and after 20 years of that I decided to quit. It took me 3 years and 17 serious attempts to actually quit and stay quit.

I was terribly hooked and caughing and my lungs have not recovered even after staying quit for 10 years.

Luckily I do not have a gambling addiction, I set a money limit, a time limit and a cashout goal and have no trouble sticking to these. But from my experience with nicotine I totally understand what you may be going through.

I congratulate you on quitting and on staying quit, and if you have any trouble with it at all, I will be happy to help you stay quit as best I can.

 

[tennis_balls]

yes.....the gambling is starting to take up too much of my time so I'm going to start drinking more

 

[MissDevil]

so what would be harder to give up? Gambling, sex, alcohol or cigarettes?

 

[venetian]

Gambling would be the hardest to give up. Then cigarettes. When I gamble I smoke like a freight train. So I guess I could kill two birds with one stone. If I quit gambling I would all but quit smoking. Recently I gave up drinking when gambling because it made me stupid. But wait...no gambing, drinking or smoking might make me smarter. Hmmm...but I am blond so I don't think any of that would help me. Guess I'll just keep on doing what I'm doing. Oh and the sex thing, well ya'll know blonds have more fun!

 

[Darem1]

A special thank you to Slotmachine

Slotmachine, thanks for your honesty and I wish you all the best in sticking to your forever break from the gambling. I hope that if necessary, I can make the same decision about the online gambling. I don't have the same problem the few times we go to an actual casino. Thanks again!

 

[pacers31]

Keep on truckin' Slotmachine, hopefully it will get easier and easier to stay away. I have nothing more to add to this thread that hasn't already been brought up except that I find it kind of disconcerting that none of the casino reps or even the meister have chimed in on this EVERYONE LOSING ALL THE TIME ISSUE. Any thoughts or explanations from you guys would be helpful. Unfortunately I'm afraid all they could give us is the standard "sorry about your recent bad luck, our games are fair" line!

 

[Mousey]

so what would be harder to give up? Gambling, sex, alcohol or cigarettes?

Hmmm... Sex would be the most difficult to give up. Then cigarettes. Then gambling. Then alchohol.

When in a B&M casino, I smoke like a chimney when gambling.

I love casinos. The atmosphere, the smell, the sounds, the free suites, the free food, free drinks, gift of the month, free money.... Oh, and the VP machines and penny vid slots. Guess it's a good thing I don't live closer to them. At least when I play there, whether I win or lose, I feel as if they appreciate me (re:my money) and want me to come back.

Online casinos don't give a $hit.

 

[amatrine]

Re

smoking for sure. When I gamble I HAVE to smoke at the same time, or I go nuts. A few times I forgot to take my smokes with me and I hate paying the casino price for cigarettes( yet I will bet $3.00 a spin, what logic is that,lol)

I stopped smoking for two years, and darn it started again. Gambling Im kinda on a year off a year. It gets boring after a year, then when time passes,
its fun again . I havnt had much luck latley and getting to that boring stage again, so I may stop for a while and I think its been about a year.Im too predicatable.

Ama

 

[ballysdb]

Gambling is the hardest to give up! I also smoke alot when I gamble so that would be second. Third would be drinking. I don't drink much. As for sex... someone will have to explain what that is. Oh wait, It's coming back to me now...

 

[Pinababy69]

so what would be harder to give up? Gambling, sex, alcohol or cigarettes?

I plead the fifth, you know....self-incrimination and all that jazz.

 

[dabruin2]

Right now I'm on a break from online gambling. I'd say I'm good for another 12 hours or so. I took a pretty bad loss today so I decided I must take a break.

Other than that, I find myself feeling withdrawal. It's rather depressing. There was a distinct thought in my head that registered and it was..."if not gambling, then what?" It was rather unsettling to realize that I had no interest in anything else.

So I went to sleep. And I slept and slept. I wake up now thinking, this must be what withdrawal is like. I need a girlfriend or something to occupy my time.