(Straits Times Report 24 Apr 2010)
Not all gambling addicts can stay away from gambling always ... . But there are some who manage to kick the habit, with lots of help and support.
One recovering gambling addict in his late 40s, who gave his name as Ah Soon, told The Straits Times his fascination with gambling started when he was six. His father would invite friends home for day-long mahjong sessions, and Ah Soon was designated to serve them drinks. When his father needed to visit the toilet, Ah Soon stood in for him.
His impression then was that “gambling and winning money make people happy”. He also came away with the idea that gambling was a good way to make money, and soon began dabbling in it.
In school, every outcome that was in doubt was fair game. He bet with friends on the sex of that next spider they would catch, or who would win an arcade game. As he grew older, the gambling extended to buying 4-D.
But it was not until 1995, when he got married and took his wife to Genting Highlands for a honeymoon, that he first stepped into a casino. For someone like Ah Soon, a roomful of games to bet on was too good to be true. He won RM2, 000 at first, but lost it all by the end of his trip, Despite the losses, he was bitten hard by gambling bug.
He said: “Singapore had no casino then, but I kept thinking about how to gamble after I got back.” He started visiting the jackpot room at a club next to the factory where he was working as a storeman. At lunchtime each day, without fail, he made his way to the room.Three years later, his company folded and he was retrenched. Then, he found a job as a karaoke jockey. Clients and friends took him to play at illegal gambling dens in Geylang. He gambled, lost and borrowed from loan sharks.
His wife knew he had a gambling problem and made him hand over his pay cheques. But he began stealing from her, and from their joint bank account, to feed his habit. He even stole her jewellery and pawned it.
The last straw came in early 2008, when he took his wife’s pay cheques and gambled it away. She informed their families of his gambling addiction, and said wanted a divorce. But she could not bring herself to do it. So she issued him an ultimatum: “Go seek help or I will report your thefts to the police.”
In September 2008, he turned to the NAMS (National Addiction Management Service) at the IMH (Institute of Mental Health) for help. After One and half years and countless Therapy sessions with counsellors and Psychiatrists, he said his addiction is under control. But he added: “I am not fully recovered, maybe 70 per cent. It will be a long time yet before I am in the clear.
He confessed to getting the urge to gamble from time to time, but tries to suppress it by taking up new hobbies. Turning to Buddhism has also helped him, he said. To ward off further temptation, he agreed to a family exclusion order last December which bars him from entering the two casinos here.
His advice to those battling similar gambling demons?
"The most important thing is to seek help. And never give up even if there is a relapse" he said.
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