Her enthusiasm for competitions has landed Rebecca Beesley prizes worth tens of thousands of pounds and a string of money-can't-buy experiences.

But the mum-of-three says a dark spell saw the hobby turn into an addiction which took over her life...

Like most mums, Rebecca Beesley was desperate to give her children a holiday to remember.

Strapped for cash, she took the difficult decision to sell gold jewellery left to her by her late mum so she could take her young family on a much-needed break to Shorefield Park in the New Forest.

At the end of their stay, she scribbled down a review on a questionnaire left in their room.

She was delighted and utterly surprised when an envelope landed on her doormat months later, thanking her for her survey, and informing her she had won a free family stay.

Little did she know it then, but a decade later, Rebecca would be winning thousands of pounds worth of prizes, including holidays to Mexico and Dubai, through entering free competitions.

But “comping” would also turn into an addiction, leaving her skipping meals and showers as she sought the buzz of winning.

“I didn’t have many opportunities growing up - I’m from a single-parent household and quite a poor background,” said the 41-year-old. “As a child I’d see things advertised on food wrappers and think ‘wow, people can win cars and things’.

“My comping started when my daughter was born in 2012. I needed a stroller, so was entering every competition for buggies I could find - then I won one!

“I was home-schooling my boys then, and in the evenings I started entering competitions as a way of unwinding.”

Between 2012 and 2015, Rebecca won a staggering £50,000 worth of prizes - including about £30,000 of holidays, along with smaller items like baby equipment, books, and cosmetics.

"I was actually skipping showers, skipping meals, just to get in a few more competitions..."

But with her success, the hobby began to grow out of hand.

“It becomes a vicious circle,” she said. “If you start getting wins, it can be hard to see a competition and not enter.

“I had a bad spell when I’d enter everything I could find on Facebook. The next night, I’d spend about five hours just going through the previous day’s competitions to check there was nothing I’d won and missed.”

At one point during her early comping years, Rebecca was winning a prize every day, on average. “But I was probably the unhappiest I’ve ever been in my life,” she said.

“I was actually skipping showers, skipping meals, just to get in a few more competitions.

“It had become like a proper addiction. It feels wrong to compare it to alcohol or drug addiction because there aren’t the same physical consequences. But in terms of my mental health, it was my way of getting through the day.

“I was living for those little buzzes of those emails pinging in saying ‘you’ve won, you’ve won’. “It was a really difficult time for me.”

Since then, Rebecca has cut down on the hours she spends comping, but still loves the hobby and regularly wins prizes.

“I’m probably now doing half-an-hour to an hour a day,” she said. “But it varies.”

Rebecca finds contests run by brands she follows on social media, and uses competition listing site The Prize Finder.

She says her favourite competitions are creative ones, which take time and thought to enter.

“The stand-out one for me was winning a Black Tower wine competition, to create a new bottle design,” she said. “I just did a quick hand drawing, and it won. I loved seeing the bottles in supermarkets.

“I was so surprised to win - it shows it’s always worth having a go. But creative entries like videos or building something out of cardboard can take days. When life’s busy I’ll just do form-fill entries, or ones where you tag friends.

“Some competitions are pure luck. At the beginning of this year I won a random draw for a £500 cheque from White Stuff. "There’s something for everyone in this hobby.”

Rebecca and her family have enjoyed countless money-can’t-buy experiences, thanks to comping.

“Last November we won an all-inclusive holiday to Mexico,” she recalls. “It was just a lovely break. Back in 2016 my husband won us a holiday to Dubai. It was so special.”

They’ve also won trips to places including Alton Towers, Center Parcs, and Wales.

Before the pandemic, they had two stays in Cornwall and a holiday in Milan lined up - all competition prizes.

“It just kind of brings hope to your life,” said Rebecca.

Her family have been shielding at home in Tonbridge due to Covid-19.

“There are days I’ve got really down about it. But when you get those little wins it just brightens up your day - it gives you that little spark of hope,” she said. “I love the mystery of not knowing what’s around the corner.”

Rebecca recalls incorporating comping into her sons’ learning, during home-schooling.

“I’d find competitions for them to enter - like story-writing,” she said. “My son loved to cook, and won a cookery competition where we got to have afternoon tea with Mary Berry.”

Rebecca dislikes the term “professional comper”, instead describing herself as a “competition enthusiast”.

“You couldn’t earn a living out of it because you can’t guarantee what’s coming,” she said. “I know some people sell their prizes, but I only enter for things I need, or if I know someone who needs it.

“Some people see comping as a very materialistic, grabby-grabby hobby where people are out to get what they can.

“Actually, most compers are really nice sharing people. And if I win something from a company and enjoy their product, I become a customer.”

Rebecca has suffered from arthritis since the age of 10, recently undergoing a hip operation.

She says that comping is an accessible hobby for people who, like her, struggle to engage in more active pastimes.

The mum-of-three has written two books about comping - Overcoming the Odds and The Happy Comper Journal. Rebecca and her husband Richard founded Juvenile Arthritis Research after their daughter was also diagnosed with the condition, and the proceeds from both books go to the charity.

“Overcoming the Odds isn’t a how-to guide,” she said. “It’s just my story, and I hope people will be encouraged and inspired by it.

“More than anything, I hope it will make anyone who’s feeling in a bit of a hopeless situation think ‘wow there is something I can do. If she can do it, and she’s just a mum-of-three with no special skills or talents, then why can’t I?’

“Just have a go,” she advises. “Have fun with it. And if you’re not enjoying enjoying the process any more, take a break.”

You can buy Overcoming The Odds on Amazon here. The Happy Comper Journal is available here and to visit Rebecca's blog The Beesley Buzz click here.

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