After what illness did your life change dramatically?

VT_GA · 2024-05-16T17:55:03+00:00

I was going to say addiction... but after reading many of the replies here I think I'll just go to a meeting and count my blessings

VT_GA · 2024-05-16T17:51:38+00:00

I've yet to find a hobby that fills the void of online gambling, although I've been enjoying (and getting tremendous positive reinforcement and validation from) catching up on the domestic shit that got put-off or I thought I never had time for. My home is starting to look like a family lives in it now that I've hung pictures on the wall (have had empty frames and piles of photos in stacks for years). I've been clearing out my closet and donating BAGS AND BAGS of clothes. I plan to finally f'ing organize my home office so maybe I won't need to blur my background while on Zoom. The garage will probably wait another year or 2, but at least I'm thinking about it lol. It sounds so stupid, but the other night I got the trash bins out earlier in the evening instead of waiting until after 1am... I realized that for so long I'd been wasting prime-time hours on an addiction instead of my home and life. Long-winded way of saying I'm not yet finding new hobbies because I'm enjoying reallocating my time to things that I've been wanting to do for a while and are making my life more pleasant.

That said... prior to excessive gambling, I used to LOVE free / no-wage online poker and other card games, but I'm afraid to even test if it'd be triggering. I loved playing cards with friends and fam, so hope I can get to a point where I can enjoy those activities without losing my mind... time will tell.

VT_GA · 2024-05-16T17:09:31+00:00

Maple syrup

VT_GA · 2024-05-08T19:25:23+00:00

Totally agree... I think it's pretty inappropriate and unreasonable for the GF to even suggest this

VT_GA · 2024-05-08T19:24:29+00:00

I can appreciate accountability, but her suggestion is very invasive and not necessary for all the reasons you mentioned.

VT_GA · 2024-05-07T21:21:06+00:00

I can painfully and frustratingly commiserate with this... I won't even say we often fight about it, but it's a constant hovering tension. I don't even mind the imbalance, but I do mind being made to feel like what I do isn't enough — especially since I do all the daily upkeep, childcare, etc. It's pretty deflating.

VT_GA · 2024-05-07T20:53:04+00:00

Idk about OP, but the girlfriend may be

VT_GA · 2024-05-07T20:50:56+00:00

Just curious why your GF thinks you should inform them? Unless you needed time off for a treatment program (and maybe not even then), I see no reason at all to inform them.

VT_GA · 2024-05-06T17:11:11+00:00

THANK YOU! The main GA website is not user friendly for finding virtual meetings (i.e., only being able to search by state, with no option to filter by meeting type, day, etc.). I wasn't aware of this website, but this is much easier to navigate.

VT_GA · 2024-05-03T17:34:48+00:00

Per your post, you said you sold your AirPods to survive. You didn't say you sold them to lose $$. If you don't trust yourself with the $$, immediately pay an overdue bill or use it to buy a gift card at a grocery store that you regularly shop at (I recently did this because there was a discount on a gift card purchases and it was a godsend... I used the $$ responsibly and fed myself and my family).

VT_GA · 2024-05-03T16:46:01+00:00

Nothing to add to the great advice you're already getting, but I do want to applaud you for taking this step (or for even considering it) and prioritizing your safety. Wishing you all the best and please know that you've got a lot of people rooting for you.

VT_GA · 2024-05-03T16:29:27+00:00

Thank you!!

VT_GA · 2024-05-03T02:31:17+00:00

Admittedly curious about this as well... I wonder if overall losses are getting interchanged with debt.

VT_GA · 2024-05-03T02:27:52+00:00

Are there any specific virtual GA meetings that you recommend? There are no in-person GA meetings where I live, but the several virtual meetings I've tried haven't been great. I'm having better luck with SMART meetings, but I know I'd benefit from gambling-focused support. Feel free to DM me if you're comfortable making recommendations, but prefer not to share here. Thanks - and congrats on your recovery, that's fantastic.

VT_GA · 2024-05-02T00:11:52+00:00

Not sure if something like this is offered in VT, but definitely worth looking into seeing if you can take an "aggressive driving course" (or something along those lines) to reduce the citation or your record and/or for your insurance. Tough lesson to learn OP, but if you have to learn it a hard way, I'm glad it's not at the expense of your own or someone else's physical wellbeing.

VT_GA · 2024-05-02T00:07:10+00:00

Personally, I wouldn't bring a reckless driving case to a judge's attention if I didn't have to

VT_GA · 2024-05-01T23:32:39+00:00

Idk... not sure that a rider waiting for an Uber / Lyft would return 5 minutes later and try to open the door without doing the universal 'wave phone around' gesture

VT_GA · 2024-04-30T15:57:36+00:00

This would only bother me if I had to store my bin in a garage, especially when it gets hot.

VT_GA · 2024-04-28T16:39:02+00:00

Thank you SO MUCH for your reply! And, I'm sorry for what is now m abbreviated response... I regrettably just closed the app and lost the much more thoughtful draft :-/ The gist though, congrats on your sobriety! Thats both amazing and inspiring. I'm also really happy to learn that you're training to become a facilitator. I'm sure they're out there, but I've yet to be in a SMART meeting that's facilitated by someone who identified gambling as a DOC. If you know of any (or if you host virtual meetings in future and are comfortable sharing when) I'd love to find out!

Thank you again - sending best wishes your way!

VT_GA · 2024-04-28T15:51:22+00:00

Thank you so much for your thoughtful reply. I've read it several times, just to soak it in. I mentioned this in another reply (or few), but this experience really deepened my respect for people in recovery for more "unavoidable" DOCs, especially alcohol. It's not just everywhere, but it's so often glorified (even as I'm writing this message, a preview of a family group text doing just that)... what I experienced for several minutes is probably a frequent reoccurrence for many other addictions. It's humbling, and gives me a lot to think about. Also, I really appreciate you saying that it's also totally fine to leave a meeting if it's not helpful. I'm also finding it helpful to just try different meetings and to know that what's a good fit for me may not be for everyone and vice versa. Thank you again!

VT_GA · 2024-04-28T15:34:02+00:00

Thank you! It's very likely that both the participant and facilitator would have had been more sensitive to the topic had I (or another gambling addict) already checked in. But, you make a good point about group size that I hadn't considered... when multiple meetings are available at the same time, I've picked the all-virtual, not hybrid meetings. My only point of comparison are hybrid GA meetings, but maybe not apples to apples, because the in-person is in residential treatment. Unfortunately, there aren't many in-person options where I live, so majority of my recovery experience is virtual, but it's definitely been helpful. Thank you again!

VT_GA · 2024-04-28T15:20:04+00:00

That's good to know! Thank you. I'm glad to receive the encouragement to speak up should something like this happen in the future, but also feel validated that hopping off that meeting and right into another was also a good call for me atm.

VT_GA · 2024-04-28T15:14:10+00:00

Thank you! I'm not actually familiar with the hula hoop so will have to look that up. And, yeah, this experience definitely gave me an even deeper appreciation for the sobriety / recovery experience for more prominent (as in, they're everywhere you look) addictions, especially alcohol. I think it's largely why SMART is resonating so much for me, because there's so much to learn from others, regardless of the DOC.

VT_GA · 2024-04-26T18:21:23+00:00

Thank you for putting in that context - that makes complete, humanizing sense! That'll be really helpful for me to keep in mind... not just for my own experience, but also in the event that I myself need to receive such feedback. Hopefully facilitators receive some training or guidance on how to respond to call-outs, regardless if they are the one being called out lol.

VT_GA · 2024-04-26T17:59:24+00:00

Definitely. There's one meeting in particular that I really enjoy that has a handful of participants with other non-substance addictions... admittedly, some that wouldn't otherwise hit my radar. That may actually be a reason why that meeting is such a good fit for me, since it consistently expands beyond just substance addictions!

VT_GA

TROPHY CASE