"My Gambling Addiction Lost Me £12,000 in One Night" - Ellis Platten (Away Days)
Summary
TLDRThe video script narrates a personal account of a young man's journey with gambling, detailing the highs and lows of his experiences. Starting with a life-changing win that quickly turned into a devastating loss, the speaker reflects on the normalization of gambling in youth and the addictive nature of betting on sports. He discusses the allure of virtual football and the rapid pace of virtual horse racing, which caters to gambling addicts. The speaker also shares his attempts to circumvent security measures to continue gambling and the impact it had on his life, including financial struggles and strained relationships. Ultimately, he describes a moment of realization that led him to quit gambling and the 'Rule of Three' strategy that helped him maintain his sobriety. The narrative concludes with advice for others struggling with gambling addiction, emphasizing the importance of understanding one's motivations and the potential for a better life without the destructive habit.
Takeaways
- 🎰 The individual experienced a life-changing moment when they turned £50 into £12,000 to £15,000 through gambling, which led to the idea of going on holiday.
- 🚫 The person expressed concern about gambling advertisements on children's sports jerseys, noting the influence of role models on young fans.
- 📈 The speaker reflects on how gambling became normalized in their life from a young age, leading to a lack of apprehension about betting at 15.
- 🏆 The excitement of winning £60 from a £5 bet on Daniel Sturridge to score first for Liverpool is highlighted, emphasizing the allure of gambling for a young person.
- 🤔 The speaker questions whether losing that initial bet would have deterred them from continuing gambling or if the thrill of winning was too enticing.
- 🏋️♂️ The individual and their friends were so engrossed in virtual football games that they could predict outcomes, showing the depth of their involvement.
- 📉 The speaker describes a moment of realization and regret after winning a bet on an NFL pre-season game, which led to a breakdown and the decision to quit gambling.
- 💔 The emotional and financial toll of gambling is underscored, with the individual sharing how it impacted their relationships and overall well-being.
- 🚫 The person tried to get banned from bookies by writing provocative messages to dealers, highlighting their attempts to stop their gambling habit.
- 🔢 The 'rule of three' strategy is mentioned as a pivotal tool in overcoming addiction, suggesting that if one can abstain for three days, they can extend it to three weeks and beyond.
- ⏳ The individual shares a story of a footballer who also struggled with gambling addiction, losing a significant amount of money and facing severe personal consequences.
Q & A
How did the speaker initially feel about their gambling experience?
-The speaker initially felt that their gambling experience was life-changing and exciting, as they managed to turn £50 into £12,000 to £15,000, which they thought would allow them to go on holiday.
What was the speaker's concern about gambling advertisements on kids' jerseys?
-The speaker was concerned that kids idolize players and by extension, the brands on their shirts. They felt that gambling had become normalized for them at a young age due to such exposure.
What was the speaker's first significant win in gambling?
-The speaker's first significant win was when they bet on Daniel Sturridge to score first for Liverpool and won £60, which was a substantial amount for a 15-year-old.
How did the speaker describe their experience with virtual football betting?
-The speaker described it as an activity they enjoyed with their friends, to the point where they could predict outcomes due to the repetitive nature of the virtual matches.
Why did the speaker eventually decide to stop gambling?
-The speaker decided to stop gambling after realizing the negative impact it had on their life, including financial losses, relationship strains, and personal well-being. They also mentioned the 'rule of three' strategy that helped them quit.
What safety measures did the speaker encounter while trying to increase their deposit limit on a gambling site?
-The speaker encountered a deposit limit set by the gambling site, which required them to manually increase it. However, they found it disturbingly easy to raise their limit to £10,000 instantly.
How did the speaker's relationship with their partner influence their decision to stop gambling?
-The speaker's partner, Jody, made them realize the severity of their gambling problem and supported them through the process. Her awareness and the speaker's recognition of the problem contributed to their decision to quit.
What was the speaker's biggest single win in gambling, and what happened afterward?
-The speaker's biggest single win was turning £50 into £12,000 to £15,000 in a casino. However, they lost it all within a couple of hours and even more, leading to significant financial distress.
What advice would the speaker give to someone struggling with a gambling addiction?
-The speaker suggests the 'rule of three' as a starting point to quit gambling. They emphasize the importance of truly wanting to stop and considering the reasons behind the addiction. They also highlight the negative impact of gambling on life and the benefits of quitting.
How did the speaker's gambling addiction affect their daily life and work?
-The speaker's gambling addiction led to a significant decrease in the quality of their life. It affected their work, as they stopped making content for their channel for about two years, and it also impacted their relationships and mental health.
What was the speaker's perspective on the appeal of virtual horse racing for gamblers?
-The speaker found the appeal of virtual horse racing to be concerning, as it provided a constant stream of gambling opportunities every minute, which they felt was designed to cater to the addictive behaviors of gamblers.
Outlines
🎰 Early Gambling Experiences and Their Impact
The speaker reflects on their early experiences with gambling, highlighting a significant win that transformed a small bet into a substantial sum, leading to life-changing plans. However, they soon lost it all, which was a wake-up call. The paragraph discusses the normalization of gambling in youth, the allure of betting on football, and the speaker's eventual realization of the negative effects of gambling on their life, including the impact on their relationship and financial stability.
🚫 Consequences and the Path to Recovery
This paragraph delves into the depths of the speaker's gambling addiction, the significant financial losses, and the emotional toll it took. It details the speaker's relationship with a partner who helped them realize the severity of their problem. The speaker talks about a massive win that led to an even bigger loss, which was a turning point. They describe the desperation, the chase for a high, and the eventual decision to quit after a particularly distressing loss. The paragraph concludes with the speaker's successful use of the 'rule of three' to overcome their addiction and the positive changes that followed.
📉 The Dangers of Gambling and Advice for Overcoming It
The speaker shares a cautionary tale about a foreign footballer's gambling problem, which led to severe financial and personal consequences. They then offer advice for those struggling with gambling addiction, emphasizing the importance of the 'rule of three' strategy in breaking the cycle of addiction. The speaker encourages individuals to question their motivations for gambling and to consider the potential benefits of quitting. They also discuss the allure of betting on various aspects of a game and how it can detract from the enjoyment of the sport itself.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Gambling
💡Addiction
💡Virtual Football
💡Idolization
💡Dopamine Rush
💡Loan
💡Deposit Limit
💡Rule of Three
💡Intrusive Thoughts
💡Stag Do
💡Casinos
Highlights
The speaker turned £50 into £12,000 to £15,000 through gambling, which initially felt life-changing.
Gambling sponsorships on kids' jerseys are not present, but the normalization of gambling through players' shirts is a concern.
The speaker started gambling at a young age and it became normalized, leading to a lack of concern about the activity.
A memorable early win of £60 from a £5 bet on Daniel Sturridge to score first for Liverpool had a significant impact.
The enjoyment of virtual football betting among the speaker and his friends, despite not actually existing, is highlighted.
The speaker discusses the addictive nature of virtual football betting due to its frequency and the instant gratification it provides.
The ease of access to gambling through PayPal and the lack of effective security measures to prevent underage gambling is mentioned.
The speaker humorously recounts a time when he and a friend tried to convince the world that his friend was a fruitarian.
Getting banned from bookies for writing weird messages to dealers on live chats is a notable incident.
The speaker talks about the safety procedures of gambling platforms, such as deposit limits, and how he managed to increase his limit to £10,000.
A significant loss of £10,000 in a short period of time led to a moment of realization and the beginning of the end for the speaker's gambling habit.
The speaker's relationship with his partner, Jody, played a role in his realization of the negative impact of his gambling.
The 'Rule of Three' strategy was instrumental in helping the speaker quit gambling, suggesting that if one can abstain for three days, they can make it to three weeks, and then three months.
The speaker emphasizes the psychological impact of gambling addiction, including intrusive thoughts and the mind working against the individual.
After a significant win, the speaker had a breakdown and decided to quit gambling, marking a turning point in his life.
The speaker discusses the potential for a return to gambling, such as a potential trip to Vegas for a stag do, but is clear that his addiction was to sports betting, not casinos.
The advice given to those struggling with gambling includes questioning the reasons behind the betting and considering the potential negative outcomes.
The speaker reflects on the importance of knowing one's motivations for gambling and the potential loss of enjoyment in activities when betting is involved.
Transcripts
turned 50 into like it was like 12 15
grand and i was like this is life
changing we're gonna go on holiday
within about an hour or two i lost it
wow
they don't have gambling sponsors on on
kids jerseys do they no but i i think
the issue i find with that is like the
kids idolize the players in the shirts
so like the pla they're watching like
like west ham fans watching declan rice
and idolizing him and they're watching
him they're seeing
we're sorry between yeah on the shirt
and i i think gambling became so
normalized for me when i was young that
when i was 15 doing it i didn't think
hypothetically i didn't think anything
of it yeah what
do you remember when you first sort of i
bet on a fiver on daniel sturridge to
score first for liverpool and it won 60
quid which when you're 15 is like whoa
yeah you're balling and and do you think
had you lost that five or you might not
have sort of gone down that road or do
you think it was the winner i just think
i loved it i really did enjoy it like as
bad as it sounds like i'd be at school
like me and my mates hypothetically
talking about it because they somehow
were doing the same thing and we'd just
be talking about it like we loved the
virtual football like we'd go home we do
like akkas on the virtual games and we
managed to realize we did it so often
that we knew what because of the virtual
football is the thing you can find the
virtual matches don't exist but we'd
know when the highlight starts we're
going to be a goal or not because we've
seen it so many times like and we were
like 15. it's crazy in it what do they
still do the virtual football i think so
yeah i think they've made it a bit more
intuitive now but it's like proper
commentary i think it's like one of the
commentators does it there's like five
highlights a game and you can bet on
like over under 2.5 goals which team
will win that's mad doesn't it yeah
that's why i don't understand i've seen
people going mad like in the bookies
over virtual horse racing and stuff and
it's like i know horse rating horse
racing is literally a pun anyway like
yeah unless you've got like extensive
knowledge of which horse is at a good
season or whatever but
virtual horse racing yeah the appeal to
that is that every every minute so you
do it and then there's another one a
minute later so it's just literally for
addicts like it's horrible sorry if
you're listening to this and you love
virtual football but they want you to do
that because a football match is 90
minutes whereas in 90 minutes there can
be 45 virtual football matches
that's why they do them wow i've never
really heard of like
kids at school gambling either i don't
know
i've never i never knew
that was a that was a thing like i i
think i started gambling i do remember
like i put
an acharon on my 18th birthday and i
also signed up to coral on my 18th
birthday i was waiting to use my id for
that purpose so i was obviously
ingrained in me from from quite a young
age how are kids gambling is there not
there's no way are they was it not
security to stop you from doing this
were there ways around these things i'm
pretty sure back then if you had a
paypal account you could just have an
account i don't this was like
i don't remember it was through like
maybe like you'd say you were someone
else that kind of thing but you could
take the money in and out easily enough
from what i heard alfie and i were doing
this video where we tried to convince
the world he was a fruitarian it was
shocking i don't know what the point was
yeah and um
i i we started like i started writing
some weird stuff to the dealers on live
chats like um [ __ ] which i
uh and um
and i got banned from like every bookies
because i'll just make them freak out
right and um
and the only one i'm still there's one
i'm not banned on and i use that as my
bookies but they're [ __ ]
odds like all the other apps have better
odds and i've like tried to like
redownload them can't download them like
i've even tried under i allegedly i've
even sort of tried hypothetically i've
tried under someone else's name you
can't do it but one thing i did do last
week i put like 100 quid into william
hill and then a couple of days later i
went to put another hundred quid in and
i had a deposit limit on there which is
obviously one of their safety procedures
to make sure you should and like they
they they claim that they encourage to
like to put off addicts right i upped my
deposit limit i'm never gonna put this
into my account but to ten thousand
pounds and it did it instantly yeah it's
mental isn't it yeah it's like there you
have all these things like you can um
it's like oh take a timeout and like one
of the timeout options is like three
hours so well you just you know well
three hours there's nothing yeah but
that was how i stopped gambling in the
end
i mean i touched upon like i was losing
a lot of money but like not a lot but at
the time i had nothing like i worked a
job for
um like minimum wage that was my salary
and i did away days and i didn't really
do the channel for like two years and
like that was around 2018 when theo blew
up that that two years i wasn't
uploading so like he me and him were
like i was on like 20k he was like 35k
yeah and i just had no money so i wasn't
making content and i just saw him go
right i was like if i wasn't gambling
what would have happened at that point i
don't know i think his vlogs were
probably better than mine anyway um back
then um
no
no but a serious note um i was losing a
lot like everything i had would would be
lost like i remember like i was with
jody for like a year and she
made me realize how bad it was because i
was just losing everything and like i
made she stayed with me to be honest
because i had nothing i was just
gambling it all away then i saw well
sorry swinger was she super aware of
what you were gambling was she across it
or would you keep some stuff
like that she just know i gambled a lot
i don't think i've ever spoke about the
figures with her but there was the the
thing that made it worse was i had a
massive win so i deposited 50 quid one
night and i got it up to it must have
been like 12 15 grand i know it sounds
like a lie but it wasn't it wasn't it
was like genuinely i had such a run of
luck it was unbelievable um what were
you betting on that night i was on like
i mean never did casinos even like i
wasn't addicted to casinos i just was
addicted to better on football and the
issue was what i'd win a lot but i'd
never withdraw it so like and that was
the issue like you didn't withdraw so i
just kept betting and then eventually
i'd lose um a casino turned 50 into like
it was like 12 15 grand and i was like
this is life-changing we're gonna go on
holiday than i would drew it
but it was 20 like it wouldn't process
the withdrawals straight away yeah it
takes 24 hours that's how they get yeah
within a couple of hours i cancelled the
withdrawals
and i'd lost it all and then like
another thousand pound and like i
couldn't afford to lose a thousand
pounds like i had like no money at all
[ __ ] um
and then like after i was still chasing
that high to win again for like a couple
of weeks like it got really bad like i
was losing more and more took out a loan
to gamble as well like like the
stereotypical stuff but you hear about
it and you don't would never be me took
out like a payday loan or two to just
gamble and i think one of them won i
managed to pay back the loans but then i
was still down a grand i was just
waiting for my next pay and i wasn't
paid on time ever so i was like
horrible um and then eventually i won
one last bet and i remember what it was
it was like an nfl pre-season game
and i was like why am i gambling on this
and it won but i just burst down and
burst out into tears because it won
because i was like why am i doing this
and i just went for a run and i just i'm
like at this time i never left my room
um i had no money i was like just
depressed pretty much and like my legs
my leg muscle just gone that sounds
mental i was doing like 10 steps a day
pretty much i was going to and from my
room working
working and the gambling staying i'd
gamble's like two in the morning then
i'd wake up at six to bed in the a
league um god i saw some awful games um
and then like it was just like always on
my mind all the time and like to be
honest like my relationship didn't
really take mind my future opportunities
with work all the way days didn't take
my mind or anything and i just went for
a run just like sprinted out the road
just like tears falling down my face and
then just from then i googled it i was
like how can i stop this and i was like
this thing came up called the rule of
three it's like if you can get to three
days you can get to three weeks and then
at three weeks get into three months is
hard because your mind i spoke with you
about this healthy actually before but
you know when what's it what's it called
when your mind works against you like
intrusive thoughts i've got loads of
intrusive thoughts because your mind
doesn't your mind the gambling addict is
horrible because you don't see you
probably do sit on someone but like your
mind works against you and because it
chases that dopamine rush like it can't
it's the only thing that gives you that
instant rush like you're always unlike
that
and my mind didn't have it so like it
was just like working again like some of
the my mind went completely against me
it was awful for like a few months but
then like never have i had the urge to
place a bet really no no i don't think
you ever will that's been like five
years now yeah oh wow well fair plays
here fair plays here do you do you think
um if you did have like if you like put
a bet on now would that then trigger
like a bad spiral again i don't think
i'll ever bet again but i think i've
always said that i want my stag dude to
be in vegas right so like but like i was
never addicted to going to the casino
yeah so like i'd go for like that reason
yeah or like i can play like a tenor of
poker with my mates yeah i know some
people like well you haven't stopped
gambling i was like well i i was
addicted to football like i'm betting on
football and cricket and sports i didn't
care about whereas i've never seen a
casino and been like oh
so like i'd probably go to vegas for one
after my stag do and play poker with my
friends pretty much is about it and then
what happens in vegas stays in vegas
dinner so you can sort of leave it there
and then come back to your sort of
normal life you know you talking about
that big loss yeah so like you're up
over 10 grand yeah how how long did it
take you to lose that was it in the same
night was it so i'd maybe earned it in
about um
maybe made it all about six hours and
then
well just constantly betting for six
hours yeah so like i was just on a hot
you know when you get like hot streaks
it was like what is this on what what
what game you playing it was like
different casino ones like slots um like
it's like a wheels like a wheel game
where you had to bet on what color it
would land on the wheel when it spins
round and like i did really well on that
right and then within about an hour or
two i lost it wow to be honest i think
the bulk of it was like the big ten
grand one i was doing like two grand
spins on this thing and it must have
been five consecutive losses so i was
like wherever how long five spins took
what's going through your head when you
because obviously that's a lot of money
especially to like it's a lot of money
to anyone but especially when you're
like that young
what's going through your head when you
do like the first big bet is there a
part of you going i shouldn't be doing
this yeah you feel awful and then it
wins and you know
and then like when you're losing you
just sort of get numb to it you get
angry or i personally got angry i was
angry i was losing so i was just like
i'll win this next one and you don't and
that's how they get you they want you to
win a couple don't they wow [ __ ] oh
yeah i can see why that would why that
would grip yeah yeah i heard a story
about a i won't name because i don't
know if it's a public in the public
domain a footballer a foreign footballer
um
through a friend and he was addicted to
gambling and
found himself in the middle of night
couldn't sleep
came down and
ended up
just betting on cricket didn't
understand the rules of cricket didn't
know
some kind of spread
thing yeah you could lose more depending
on what happens leave about a certain
number of runs or something and he said
it was at the point where every run he
was losing like a thousand pounds and
having not been asleep in night work in
the morning and he'd lost a quarter of a
million pounds so then he should tell
his wife just left him like sorry
horrific wow he's going i probably need
to get some help now this is not not
going well but yeah [ __ ] you now yeah
what advice would you have people out
there that may be suffering from with
gambling i know when pie face came on he
shared a very similar story to yours and
uh i received so god knows how many he
received but i received a lot of dm's
off the back of that like saying it
helped him so what would you say i think
the rule of three was just the biggest
thing for me like if you can get to
three days then just be like i've done
free you need to set and you need to you
need to want to stop because a lot of
times i'd tell myself i'd stop there's
like i really wanted to bet again i know
that sounds horrible because you're
addicted to it but you need to actually
actively want to stop because like my
life became so much better i had nothing
and then like i had money to do this
channel that i then i'm not saying
obviously me stuff if i was gambling so
i wouldn't be here i wouldn't waited
wouldn't be where it is i wouldn't have
worked with the fa i wouldn't have done
all these other things so
like just just think about what you
could what are you betting for like if
you if you if you're betting to make
because most people don't even know what
they're betting for anymore because it's
not for the profit because you know
you're most likely not going to win it
so what are you actually doing it for
yeah it's not yeah it's like i think
with the like when we like a bit of an
each one again but we i i like you i
like to do the trading card breaks but
like with that you're getting something
right with a bet it's all or nothing
isn't it
you're not yeah i just i just i would
question people what they're doing it
for what their aim is or what their if
you're just doing it because some people
i know can't watch a game of football
without having a bet on it i'm like well
you're not watching for football then
are you you know as a bet on the virtual
horses yes and it's no longer just i
mean it used to be when i was younger
i've bet bits in the back i've never
been particularly into it but if there's
a world cup on i might bet on
who's gonna win the world cup yeah he's
gonna be top scorer a few games i might
bet on
this
maybe score and and things like that but
now it's like is there gonna be a throw
in the next minute it's unbelievable my
worst thing was corners i loved betting
on corners like i'd bet on like over 9.5
corners every game and then you
celebrate every time there's a corner
yeah and you'd be i genuinely would be
fuming if the keeper saved and didn't
tip around the post yeah you idiot but
he's done that he's done the right thing
mug
i was in the murderers once and and
pookie tim crawl and kenny mclean were
on a table the day after they'd just
beat man city 3-2 and they were all
getting on the beers i mean you've
earned it loud she just beat man city
and i think i was in there with you and
alfie and joel and um
i was betting on throw ins and uh
i'd be like it'd be like 34 34th minute
nothing's happened the ball just gone
out for a phone like yes get in and
they're all looking at me like i'm
[ __ ] mental let's go sorry timo i'm
betting on her
you've got a problem
correspondent stopped because he he
threatened me with a defamation lawsuit
if i put the video live telling everyone
what he'd done um which seems mental
considering he had scammed me
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