From CS:GO skins to $100k in the hole: What I’ve learned 1 year clean.

Hi Everyone, I am Sam.

I’ve been a lurker/occasional poster here for a long time, and this community honestly saved me during my darkest nights. I started gambling at 14 through CS:GO skins, which spiraled into a decade-long addiction to sports betting and pokies. By 23, I was $100,000 AUD down.

I’m now over a year clean. I’m not a counselor, just a guy who survived the 'Australian epidemic' of aggressive betting ads and pub pokies.

I’ve realized that for many of us, especially in Australia, the environment is rigged to make us fail. I’ve been working on a 'Methodology' that helped me stop the 'willpower' struggle and start actually living again (using things like the Allen Carr method, financial lockdowns, and dopamine resets).

I’ve started documenting these specific tactics and local Aussie resources over at r/EscapeGambling .

I’m not trying to take away from the amazing support here, I just wanted to create a focused space to share the specific tactics and resources I used to get my life back, especially for those of us fighting the massive betting culture in Australia.

If you’re struggling today, just know escaping this awful problem is possible, trust me.

Stay strong.