I have an unbelievable of how gambling addiction ruined my life (smoke, addicted)
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I'm a 34 year old male who has been making 150-220K since I was 23. I'm going to file bankruptcy next month due to an absolutely horrible gambling addiction
I was able to somewhat control my gambling addiction until last year. As of last year, I still had a net worth of maybe 400K. I had lost maybe 200K lifetime to it over a 10 year period. Last april, I hit a monster hot streak in gambling and won back everything I ever lost and plus another 300K. Well I Lost the 500K in my account over a month cold streak (I hit a small cold streak and started doing huge parlays to try to chase back what I won). For the last 10 months since then, I've gone through alternating hot streaks to where I would be up 50K then I would lose 100K
I've lost everything. I had 250K equity in my house, I took out a 140K home equity loan. I Had 150K in 401k and lost everything (now barely have 20K. I have 10K savings and have about 90K in personal loans and credit card debt. I'm gonna claim bankruptcy because the interest on the 90K in personal loans and credit card is crazy. I'm not interested in paying 100K interest over a 5 year period.
It's hard to believe the carnage I've caused, especially since I'm a pretty smart guy. The worst thing that happened to me was that monster hot streak in april - I kept trying to find the same hot streak again, thinking I would regain back everything I've lost.
How do I rebuild my life after this complete carnage? I have a good situation with my wife as she loves me to death. Me and her combined will make about 220K this year. I know the math of our situation is not bad. We have our mortgage which is a combined 3300 and one car payment of 670. I'm guessing the bankruptcy for all the unsecured debt is probably gonna be 1400 a month. We can live pretty comfortably on 10K a month and figure we'll make 14K a month after taxes so that's not bad but it's still just absolutely horrifying to think about how much damage I've caused
so you made a bunch of bad decisions and now someone else gets to pick up the pieces? Because you don't like the interest rate YOU agreed to when you took out the loans/used the credit cards?
If it's true you make a good income and can service your debt payments, I'd be surprised if you get approved for a bankruptcy.
First step when you find yourself in a hole, stop digging.
People do stupid things when they think they're smarter than they are. Finances are simple. It's when people throw emotion and faulty decision making into the mix.
so you made a bunch of bad decisions and now someone else gets to pick up the pieces? Because you don't like the interest rate YOU agreed to when you took out the loans/used the credit cards?
This was my thinking as well. Bankruptcy is not a means to wipe the slate clean so you can rid yourself of the debts you selfishly incurred through the years. The tone of your post suggests you're still thinking you can win it back or start over again without the debts.
Gambling addictions are as powerful as drug addictions. Until/unless you seek professional help this problem is not going away through bankruptcy. Get help from a professional and have your wife sit in with you so she can help sort out this mess with you as a team. Good luck.
Last edited by Florida2014; 02-01-2023 at 07:38 AM..
I agree with the above comments.
1) Never gamble again.
2) Seek help (therapist, support group, 12 step program, or all of the above).
The fact that you still make a high income gives you hope. If you live modestly, you can build back up your emergency fund and retirement. Be grateful for what you have. There are a lot of people making $30-40k a year who don't have that luxury of spending $80k a year on gambling; they just know they can't afford to live like that so they don't.
Also, I hope your wife doesn't bear any of the consequences of this. Do your best to make sure that she doesn't have to sacrifice anything. None of her income or savings went into your gambling, right? (If it did, then you need to pay her back).
This was my thinking as well. Bankruptcy is not a means to wipe the slate clean so you can rid yourself of the debts you selfishly incurred through the years. The tone of your post suggests you're still thinking you can win it back or start over again without the debts.
Gambling addictions are as powerful as drug addictions. Until/unless you seek professional help this problem is not going away through bankruptcy. Get help from a professional and have your wife sit in with you so she can help sort out this mess with you as a team. Good luck.
you guys didn't understand the original post. I can't do a chapter 7 due to my very high income. I'm going to do a chapter 13 so I'm not paying interest on my unsecured debt. This will save me about 20K a year. I'm still paying back everything
I agree with the above comments.
1) Never gamble again.
2) Seek help (therapist, support group, 12 step program, or all of the above).
The fact that you still make a high income gives you hope. If you live modestly, you can build back up your emergency fund and retirement. Be grateful for what you have. There are a lot of people making $30-40k a year who don't have that luxury of spending $80k a year on gambling; they just know they can't afford to live like that so they don't.
Also, I hope your wife doesn't bear any of the consequences of this. Do your best to make sure that she doesn't have to sacrifice anything. None of her income or savings went into your gambling, right? (If it did, then you need to pay her back).
my wife is very young (24) and is about to start working her real 1st real job as a nurse. She has never had a real income. I've given her a fantastic lifestyle so at least I can feel good about that. She has a beautiful car, clothes, jewelry. We go to nice restaurants and vacations
and honestly, I don't even need to live modestly. I Just need to not gamble. Our normal lifestyle is about 10K a month with everything (including the debt payment for the bankruptcy) so we can still save 4K a month. In 5 years, I'll have 300-400K back
Sports gambling is just so hard to get out of once you're completely addicted. The act itself is a huge high plus I'm so ashamed of how much I've lost, I'm dying to get it back
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