Have you ever had an addiction that ruined your life?

Simple as the title.

Not limited to drugs, but does not include marijuana.

I was addicted to heroin for 3 years. Never realized I had an addiction till I lost my job and when I stopped making money, I still had an addiction. I was in denial because I could afford my addiction and still carry on with life. However, I am now clean.

So, have any of you had an addiction that ruined your life? What was it? How did you overcome it?

I overcame my drug addiction after I went to jail. Also, with the help of my mom & MUSIC.

 

I was an addict for around 5 years.

One day I realized I wasnt even getting high anymore and hadnt been in a long long time.lost (what may or may not have been) the love of my life and lost several friends to prison and OD's. One day these things that had been happening left and right sunk in and I realized it was luck that had kept me from suffering the same fate for so long and that my luck WILL run out.

Once I realized how far in I was I decided to quit and did. Used suboxone through dt's and for the first week then cold turkey. Had a relapse through a low point in my life but am back and strong. It took a long time to feel "normal", or maybe to accept what "normal" really was after using for so long but it worked out and made me a MUCH stronger person.

Me quitting on my own is one of my proudest accomplishments.

 

I wouldn't say this addiction ruins my life, but I am addicted to staking/gambling/games of chance in online games. I keep losing cash that I earn in game (hundreds of mils) which I could have just sold for like 1k irl, and I always regret it after. This addiction has slightly carried over irl, as I like to play table soccer for money, seeing as I am pretty professional at college level table soccer (fooseball).

 

That's awesome, Nod. Really good to hear there's others out there with the same problem, clean and doing better. I only been clean 34 days, but it gets easier every day.

kiln, it might not be ruining your life at the moment, but it eventually will. I am a gambler still, and when I used to lose big amounts, it made me so mad I would think about suicide and I'm not that type of person. Gambling is worse than heroin IMO. Gambling is what funded my heroin addiction, actually.

 

I drank everyday for around 6 years up until this January =/

Not only was it expensive but it was generally pretty horrible, despite enjoying being drunk it just became routine more than anything else.

 

First two months are the hardest. Feeling "normal" again will take a while but your brain will compensate soon and your moods will be more steady (not saying yours ARENT but mine sure weren't). I hardly think about it anymore, when I do it doesnt seem appealing as I dont even remember the last time I "felt" high. My "highs" the last 3-4 years were more so "normals" as in take a bump in the morning ao you dont puke at work and the like.

Stay strong man, and good luck.

 

@Psycho, we had our chat on TS about mine.

I had a huge problem with Gambling myself growing up. It was mainly in RS but also virtual poker, roulette etc. My mom forced me to seek help and the only "Group" that could cater to my needs was "OA" or Over Eaters Anonymous. Gamers Anonymous had not hit the scene yet so my therapist said it was the only logical choice. After hearing others stories on how the overcame their over/under eating disorders, it really made me think that there were better things in life.

Now I just avoid anything remotely related to gambling. I can't even stand to do the Squeal of Fortune on RS due to the "Chance" or "Luck" to it.

 

Other than my addiction to this site, no.

 

@ ziggily

Hey, good to see I'm not the only one trying to stop rs gambling =s
I've noticed my gambling patterns are like so:
day 1: I make a lot of money from it
day 2: I get cleaned from it (lose my cash) I then swear to stop forever.
I then proceed to last 1-2 months with no urge or impulse to gamble then one day i'll be bored ad go back to it for just ''a little'' I tell myself. I lose that ''little'' and try doubling. I lose that double. Before I know it, Im down like a ton of game cash. anyone else have similar patterns?

 

@zigs, yes I remember.

@nods, yeah the first 2 days outta jail we're extremely hard. It's definitely getting easier. I maybe think about it 3-4 times out of a whole week, and it's not even a deep thought like it used to be. It goes as quick as it comes.

Awesome to hear other's storys. Keep them coming.

 

The biggest addiction I have is frankly an addiction to computers, as I'm never sure what to do in real life and I'm incredibly indecisive when it comes to real life things.

Apart from that, I'm a caffeine addict (badly so. I drink coffee like water) but I wouldn't say either of these things ruin my life. Caffeine addiction should probably be cut down to avoid health issues, but computers basically define who I am so I'm not bothered by that one.

 

nothing to "ruin" my life but i was so addicted to my ex ex girlfriend that i almost broke with every girl at the time due to her being so insecure lol

 

Weed, but I quit in time, I basically lost motivation to do anything and got anxious really often. I'm really glad to be away from it

 

Why do you not included marijuana. I see people spend every cent they get on it and sell everything they have just to get it. Among many other negative effects.

 

Those kids that are spending every penny on marijuana most likely don't work and use every penny their moms give them. Even with a minimum wage job, you can pay your bills and afford a smoking habit.

I was a pothead for several years, and the effects of other addictions were nothing near what I experienced while smoking. For example, when you lose big amounts gambling, your body literally quivers till you get your next $20 to gamble with, or you want to commit suicide. As for heroin, you withdrawal and want to go out and rob the nearest bank.

Marijuana is more of a mental addiction. I like riding roller coasters, but doesn't mean I'm going to go insane if I don't get on one. Now, it could be a different story if that person works a minimum wage job and spends all his money on high grade marijuana and is homeless. However, if that's the case, I really could careless to hear that person's sob story. It's called manage your money and buy reg. As for other addictions, it's not always that easy.

 

I've smoked dope, snorted cocaine and dropped pills but never became addicted to an illegal drug. None of those are 'one off's' either, I used to smash gram after gram of cocaine over the course of a weekend, which normally turned into a week, and drop and double drop at the same time to keep the buzz alive.. But, I never became addicted, and just stopped.

Something I can't stop, and I've tried so hard, is nicotine, smoking. I can't shift it. I hate it because I know the damage it's doing to my body, but, at the same time, I love it.

I also used to have a semi-serious gambling problem, but I cured that by actually getting a job in a bookmakers (UK). Seeing people put thousands through the Roulette/Slot machines, showed me how much they actually take. They're in the houses favor. Always. In the long run, you'll never beat the house. They are put in here to make us money, not the punter.

 

Same, weekends was a major party and it got silly like I would dabble at work when bored etc, but then I simply stopped.

And same with the gambling haha! But I used to play online roulette black and red, I would always blow my money thinking "omg its been 5 reds" so I put down £1000 and its another red.

But It didn't grow into a problem, I just spent a shit ton of money over a week haha

 

Yeah, weekends were mad for me back then haha, more then once I'd end up taking days of off work to just continue it! >_< Looking back on it, I don't actually regret it, the whole time I believe I was in control, there was no peer pressure, I enjoyed it all, and stopped on my own accord when I wanted to.

 

Haha yeah, I was stupid enough to do it while at work though lol. Crashed the forklift into stack of pallets... woops haha.

My only regret was when my parents caught me, Stupid really I was meant to meet them for Sunday dinner but I didn't because I was with this girl at her house partying all Saturday night and Sunday morning lol. They found out by facebook haha!

I got picked up and yeah they could tell haha, but after that I never bothered to do it, then I settled down and now have a family haha, weird how times change ey!

 

wouldnt say im totally addicted but i always bet online on football matches, if i lose ill just chuck more money on straight away for the next game