It's firstly important to take a self decision to want to curb it and then we can start from there, this will then lead to you taking conscious steps such as reducing your capital and there rest of it in oder to keep your gambling habit in check, then also keeping away from friends or environment that encourage you to gamble for a while too will go a long way to help.
Setting priority on things that should be prioritized firstly such as your necessities and basic amenities and not using the money ment for them to gamble, above all it's very important to make a self and conscious decision because if there is no will to want to curb it then it's definitely not to work as this effort are necessary and need to be made consciously and gradually.
You're absolutely right that we can't just ignore the ads; instead, we need to adapte our responses to them. Cutting gambling money, avoiding gambling temptations, and prioritizing what are important are practical ways to gain control. Each journey starts with a single, decisive step. Change doesn’t happen overnight. Slowly but surely, with strong willpower and perseverance, one can overcome this impulse and take back control of their lives. It's all about making decisions and acting on them, isn't it?
Making a decision I think is not a difficult thing, but what is difficult is when you actually carry out the plan that you have made, and of course to stop completely in an instant it seems impossible, so like you said everything must go slowly. Limiting your budget is always the best way to reduce your losses and it's definitely better to prioritize the real needs of your life than to keep looking for vague results.