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I still can't figure out if I had a gambling addiction or not, but there was a time in my life when I spent every night at a land-based casino near my house. I couldn't imagine life without gambling. I spent almost all my money on booze and gambling. I could only go home when my pockets were empty and I couldn't find any more money to continue gambling. I am more inclined to believe that it was a gambling addiction, but I was able to get rid of it on my own, gradually replacing gambling with other forms of entertainment. Currently, I exercise strict control over myself in the area of gambling, as I do not want to and cannot afford to repeat this experience.
You were clearly a gambling addict in the past, but then gradually recovered. I'm in the same position as you, except there are no legal land-based casinos here. My gambling addiction wasn't long-lasting, and I'd say it wasn't too bad financially. I only lost a lot of money for five to ten months without being able to save any, but at that time my gambling intensity was so high that I couldn't even miss it a day without it.
My gambling intensity decreased over time as I began to discover more important things. This was certainly a major turning point in my life, changing many things. I managed to save money and then focused more on investing, but I still occasionally wanted to spend a few dollars on a particular game. Now that everything is going well, I don't expect to go back to the way it was.