I was hooked at 14... and spent £5,000 on my dad’s credit card

JACK was just 14 when he found himself in the grip of a serious gambling addiction.

The Edinburgh schoolboy would stay awake all night gaming on casino websites, searching for a rush of excitement when he won – and desperately chasing his growing losses.

He stopped eating properly, instead bingeing on takeaways in the small window between rounds of betting.

It was only when his father received a bank statement showing a £5,000 bill on his credit card that he realised his son had developed a problem.

Before Jack’s gambling addiction took hold, he had been a bright and capable student.

He had achieved good grades and took part in after-school sports clubs.

Like many children, Jack would also play video games. In one session, he used his father’s credit card to buy a £12 ‘add-on’.

Armed with his father’s credit card details, he went on to try online gambling on his smartphone. Although there are age checks on online

‘He will have this problem for the rest of his life’

gambling websites, Jack pressed a button to confirm that he was 18 and no further verification was made.

When he first started gambling, he revelled in the excitement of it all.

But as he continued to play, staying up most nights as his parents slept, he could not bring himself to leave the website. Soon, Jack needed more wins and more money to reach the same feeling of euphoria he felt when he first started.

When his father saw his credit card bill, he immediately turned to an addiction specialist to help his son.

Jack, now 16, goes to Gamblers Anonymous and youth support groups.

Although he has not gambled since he started his recovery programme, addiction therapist Tony Marini, of Castle Craig Hospital, in Peeblesshire, warned Jack will never be able to gamble again.

He said: ‘He will have this problem for the rest of his life.

‘Once you cross the line into addiction, it can never be cured.’