A man who would empty his bank account just hours after getting paid every month has revealed he’s lost over £250,000 to fund his betting addiction.
Colin Brown, 42, has opened up on his battle with betting after it was confirmed earlier this week bookmakers and casinos will be forced to fund NHS-provided support to tackle problem gambling. Under the new measure, online stakes – which are currently unlimited – will be set at £5 per spin for those aged over 25 and £2 for 18 to 24-year-olds.
A cap of £2 will also be introduced on sums that can be staked on online slot machines. The government will use the new statutory levy – with proceeds expected to be around £100m a year – to fund research, prevention and treatment of harms associated with gambling.
For Colin, his troubles with addiction began at the age of 15, when he won £4.80 on a slot machine from 50p at his local amusements. The dopamine hit was so fulfilling that he returned to the arcade with the wages from his paper round and spent the full amount.
From there, the distillery worker’s addiction spiralled out of control. By 18, he found himself taking out dozens of loans, credit cards and even stole from his mother’s purse to fund his habit.
Colin, from Leven in Fife, told the Record: “That first win at 15 wired my brain into gambling. After that, I was constantly chasing the dopamine hit.
“I’d go down to the amusements with my pals and lose my paper round wages. They ended up getting full-time jobs so they wanted to go to the amusements more often. I didn’t have the money for the bets so I started stealing to make sure I could get that buzz.”
Colin would stay up day and night to place and research bets. He started Gamblers Anonymous by the age of 20, but would place bets while attending the meetings.
He continued: “It was relentless – it kept me up day and night. I’d only get two hours sleep some nights because I was wired to bets. I started Gamblers Anonymous because there was no other option available to me for help. Over the years, I went back five or six times but it didn’t help. I was still gambling on my phone on breaks and in the toilet.”
Colin admitted that his addiction had been bad from the offset, but when he won £12,000 at 22, it got significantly worse.
He said: “After that big win, I started chasing bigger bets. They changed from £20 to £500. Putting £20 to win £500 wasn’t going to give me the buzz that I needed. I was immune to the dopamine buzz that £20 would give me and I needed to chase the higher one to win the bigger amount, it was like my tolerance got higher.
“That’s when it got out of control. I was giving into gambling every day, I couldn’t defeat it. If I got paid on the Friday, my wages would be gone before I even got to work that day. I’d leave myself with nothing for the rest of the month.
“I was suicidal every day, I thought that dying would be the only way out for me. I didn’t think recovery was possible because I had tried to stop at least 200 times.
“Over the years, I probably lost over £250,000.”
Colin eventually had to sell the home he shared with his ex-partner to clear him of his debts. His mum also helped him on several occasions, by paying off his loans of between £5,000 and £10,000 each time.
He said: “The guilt consumed me but at that time, gambling was more important. I confided in my family and promised them I’d stop and then I’d get a payday loan. I loved gambling more than I loved anything else so it was the people closest to me that took the brunt of it. It overpowered me every single time.”
The final straw for Colin was last year after he finished a backshift at work and lost £1,500 in three minutes on virtual cricket.
He said: “It was literally a cartoon. There was no other betting on because it was so late at night. I lost the money within three minutes and I honestly just thought, enough is enough. I knew I needed to tackle this differently so I started educating myself about the brain and started listening to podcasts from people who had managed to turn their lives around. I knew I had to rewire my brain so I started to work on myself.
“I opened up to more people and released my own podcast where I told my story to the world. The more people I shared with, the more barriers it built for me. More people supported me. I couldn’t hide away from it after that.”
Now, Colin has set up his own business, Gambling Leap, to help free other gamblers from the addiction. He believes that by helping people through his own lived experiences and by focusing on education and prevention, he can encourage them to quit.
While he believes the new statutory levy on the profits of gambling operators is a “step in the right direction”, he insisted that there is still a long way to go.
He said: “It’s a step in the right direction but there are still many, many more to go. It’s great that more NHS clinics and services will be formed to help people who are already addicted, but it won’t get to the root of the problem.
“The profits must go to the right services that provide education on prevention in order for this problem to be fully stamped out. I am, however, glad the government is taking it seriously. It destroyed my life and the relationships I have so I have no doubt it will be doing the same to millions of others across the UK.”
More information about Gambling Leap can be foundhere.
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