Steven* was just 10 years old when he started gambling online, an addiction that by the age of 15 would see him lose about $2,000 and grappling with embarrassment and despair.
He remembers gambling away $500 in birthday money when he was 12. “I was late to school because I didn’t want to leave my computer,” he says.
Now 24 and living in Melbourne, he says the habit led to drug use, as well as mental health issues that he is “only just starting to recover from”.
A Guardian Australia investigation has revealed an increasing number of young people are entering adulthood with depression and anxiety, alongside debt and relationship breakdowns, because of gambling in their youth.
Data provided by Gambling Help Online revealed a 16%…
