Online Casino (The Loss)

Lost $12,000 gambling in a week. Distressed, to put it lightly.

Money values are in USD.

28 year old male. Gross income per year of 80k to 90k. Independent contractor.

The past 7 days have been the worst of my financial life.

Before this past week, I was only an occasional gambler. I'd buy 5 to 10 dollars in scratch off tickets every couple of months at convenience stores. Last week I discovered online casinos. I wish I never had. I started off with a mere 100 dollar deposit. Lost it. Then another 100. Lost it. Distressed about losing 200 dollars, I was determined to get it back. I threw down $500 on a deposit. I managed to hit a high on the roulette wheel of over $6,000. I thought the game was broken. How was I doing so well? Naturally, I lost all of that. I didn't think I could lose. I was wrong.

$2,000+ in the hole later, and I am DESPERATELY chasing my losses, trying to get my money back by depositing more money into my casino accounts. This is no longer about fun or "striking it big," but about getting my money back. This has had DISASTROUS consequences. I have now maxed out a credit card of $6,000, in addition to thousands lost in my checking account.

$10,000 to $12,000 later, and here I am, wondering what the hell happened.

I have not told anybody about this. The shame and guilt is too great. I cannot believe I was so stupid.

My financial situation:

I have just $400 in my bank account. It was $2,400 this morning. It would have been $0 if the casinos didn't have weekly deposit limits.

I have 2 checks for contract work coming in soon with a combined total of $12,200. This is enough money to last me 3 months, but here's the problem: All of this was meant for taxes for 2017. I didn't set any aside. I already owe the IRS $10k and am on an installment agreement with them.

I have ~$24,000 in credit card debt, and $2,300 in available credit. Looking at 90% utilization. It was $18,000 before my gambling disaster. My father suggested paying $1,000/month on the highest interest card. This would eliminate all of my credit card debt in less than 30 months.

Here's my plan:

Plead with the IRS to let them add my 2017 tax debt to the previous installment agreement so I don't become homeless. This will bring the total I owe them to $20,000. I'll be paying off my car soon, so that will free up $380/month. The cost and interest rate for the IRS is comparable to a car, so I'll just pretend I'm leasing a car.

Save money wherever possible. No more eating out. Halve my monthly food budget by buying groceries. Use the extra money to pay down debts.

Hustle my ass off to get more work and increase my income (I'm a freelance designer).

Join gambling addition online communities for accountability and keep a gambling addiction hotline on speed-dial.

Never fucking gamble again.

Thoughts on my plan? Words of encouragement? Criticism? This all feels like a bad dream that I'm just waiting to wake up from. The only thing that comforts me is that I only lost 12k before I wised up. Some people have lost way more to gambling.