We
take
you
through
the
first
week
that
Arlene
made
the
conscious
decision
to
stop
gambling.
This
was
a
very
emotional
period
where
Arlene’s
self
esteem
was
at
the
lowest
in
her
life.
She’s
a
single
woman
who
was
just
about
to
turn
thirty-six
years
old
and
her
life
was
crumbling
around
her.
Arlene
decided
to
share
her
story
of
how
she
made
it
through
her
first
week
as a
non
gambler.
Her
goal
was
to
reach
out
to
others
who
also
have
a
compulsive
gambling
addiction
because
she
remembers
the
pain
she
went
through.
From
the
first
day
until
the
seventh
day,
Arlene
went
through
various
emotional
revelations
that
helped
her
to
achieve
her
goals.
She
was
a
special
person
with
a
good
sense
of
humor.
Even
through
her
self
destructive
period
she
always
had
a
smile
on
her
face.
For
this
reason
alone
people
close
to
her
never
realized
she
had
a
problem
gambling.
Arlene
easily
made
it
through
her
first
day
because
she
had
already
depleted
her
checking
and
savings
accounts.
She
had
also
maxed
out
her
credit
cards.
She
fortunately
would
have
to
wait
three
more
days
till
pay
day
before
she
could
gamble
again.
In
the
past
she
borrowed
from
friends
and
then
would
have
to
give
them
half
her
pay
check
to
pay
them
back.
She
remembers
the
pain
she
was
in
with
no
one
she
could
tell
or
talked
to.
She
was
afraid
her
family
and
friends
would
not
understand.
She
didn’t
even
understand
how
this
happened
to
her.
She
decided
to
go
online
and
find
help.
She
tried
a
year
earlier
Gamblers
Anonymous,
but
it
was
something
that
she
could
not
relate
to.
She
found
a
website
called
I
Stopped
Gambling
So
Can
You.
She
liked
the
name
of
the
site
and
decided
to
give
it a
try.
She
purchased
a
self
help
manual
and
a
year
membership
to
the
chat
room.
Her
first
thought
was
“How
can
something
under
fifty
dollars
really
help
a
person
who
has
lost
thousands
of
dollars
gambling
in
one
year?”
Then
she
thought
maybe
she
shouldn’t
spend
any
money
right
now.
Her
mind
was
playing
tricks
with
her.
During
this
time
she
was
confused,
had
major
amounts
of
guilt
for
losing
so
much
money
and
her
self
esteem
was
at
her
lowest.
She
decided
to
make
the
investment
in
herself.
This
was
her
justification
for
the
purchase.
She
eagerly
read
the
manual
and
joined
in
the
I
Stop
Gambling
chat
room.
A
whole
new
world
opened
up
for
her.
In
the
chat
room
she
met
others
who
could
relate
to
her
and
help
her
understand
what
she
was
going
through.
Each
and
every
day
she
would
follow
the
manual
and
pop
in
and
out
of
the
chat
room.
There
were
times
where
the
chat
room
was
quiet,
so
she
left
messages
on
the
tag
board
of
when
she
would
be
chatting
and
other
members
joined
in.
As
each
day
passed
during
Arlene’s
first
week,
she
noticed
changes
in
your
behavior.
For
the
first
time
she
was
taking
it
one
day
at a
time.
She
was
planning
for
her
future
and
starting
to
realize
she
could
live
with
out
gambling.
She
admitted
to
people
that
she
was
contemplating
suicide
because
she
felt
there
was
no
way
out.
She
once
told
me
she
wouldn’t
mind
living
in a
cave
as
long
as
her
life
was
peaceful.
Her
self
destructive
behavior
and
low
self
esteem
was
taking
its
toll
on
Arlene.
The
one
other
thing
that
kept
Arlene
from
going
back
to
gambling
was
the
pain
she
was
in
and
finally
realized
she
can
now
move
forward
with
an
anticipated
positive
future.
Some
people
have
close
friends
they
can
talk
to.
What
ever
it
takes
to
share
what
you
are
feeling
will
speed
your
recovery.
It’s
going
to
take
time
to
talk
about
how
you
feel.
Listening
to
others
that
have
walked
in
your
shoes
will
help
you
start
the
healing
process.
