2703-9811 或 183-4633(3)
5313-3011
My Story
Level One: No gambling
- Zero contact with gambling and no interest in any form of gambling
Level Two: Social gambling
- Able to control oneself on gambling
- Feeling free to leave the gambling scene regardless of winning or losing
- Able to restrain oneself on money and time spent on gambling
- Gambling for fun and friendship
Level Three: Problematic gambling
- Life being affecting by gambling: family, career, health, finance, and interpersonal relationships.
- Need to raise stakes in gambling in order to maintain the desired level of excitement
- Feeling irritable when attempting to cut down gambling
- Probably incurring gambling debts and “chasing” one’s losses through persistent gambling
Level Four: Pathological gambling
- Gambling behaviors getting out of control, leading to mental and behavioral disorders
- Drawn into a vicious cycle of gambling in hope of settling gambling debts
- Gambling (or trying to obtain money for gambling) at all costs
- Being hopelessly drawn to gambling, placing it as the top priority and ignoring other matters in life
The Winning Stage
- Winning money and gaining praises
- Considering oneself as smart gambler
- Raising stakes in gambling
The Lose-and-Chase Stage
- Losing money most of the time
- Continuing to gamble in hope of winning back the lost money
- Borrowing money and unable to meet debt repayments
- Lying about gambling
- Deteriorating interpersonal relationships
The Hopeless Stage
- Family breakdown
- Severe depression
- Despair
- Unable to repay debt
- Suicidal
- Scheming to solve problems through illegal means
Gambling-free Workplace
Good for Business
The Security Industry
For workers and their families
Eyes: keeping the property under surveillance
Ears: attentive in all directions
Mouth: warm friendly smile
Limbs: agile
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The Transportation Industry
For workers and their families
Brain: like an elephant
Ears: attentive in all directions
Eyes: all eyes on the road
Heart: cool, calm and collected
The Construction Industry
For workers and their families
Face: with a sunshine smile
Arms: beefy
Body: six-pack
Heart: open and sincere
The Food and Beverage Industry
For workers and their families
Brain: with countless cooking ideas
Tongue: refined taste of a king
Hands: of a Master Cook
Heart: affectionate and loyal
The Financial Services Industry
For workers and their families
Brain: sharp as a razor
Tongue: articulate
Eyes: of an eagle
Heart: meticulous
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Family – Financially
- Helping the gambler repay his/her debts drains and exhausts the financial resources of our family and puts the whole family in jeopardy.
Family – Relationally
- The gambling problem puts emotional distance between the gambler and the rest of our family. If the gambling gets worse, it would eventually break up our family.
Family – Emotionally and Psychologically
- We are being harassed by the debt-collectors. At the same time, we worry a lot about the gambler. We have become nervous and bewildered.
Family – On Child Development
- Our children get caught in the middle of family fights and no longer feel safe at home. Or they may copy the gambler and start gambling and grow up with distorted personal values.
I finally understand…
I feel…
…ambivalent, disappointed, angry, and hurt. However, I really want to gain inner peace and calm so that I can help him/her to deal with the gambling problem…I shall first take care of myself and process my own emotions so that I can find my inner strength to help him/her quit gambling.
I understand…
I feel distressed because of his/her gambling behaviours and not him/her as a person. The way to go is to help him/her quit gambling and not to leave him/her…I understand that I am not the one who owes the debt, and I am not the one who gambles. He/she is the one who owes the debt. It is not my responsibility to repay his/her debt. What I should do is to help him/her tackle the current problems in a constructive manner and find out the origin of his/her gambling problem.
From now on, I should…
While I help him/her tackle the debt problem, he/she should quit gambling at the same time and learn to shoulder his/her responsibility for the consequences of gambling…I shall safeguard my personal space and I shall maintain my own social life and keep my own saving. I shall take good care of myself and my family…I shall have the courage to face the obstacles in his/her long journey of recovery, and I understand that in the process he/she may relapse and gamble again. Hence I shall seek counselling, which will provide me with emotional support and help find out and deal with the causes of his/her gambling problem. My family and I will take a united stance: we shall not leave nor give up on him/her, and we shall let him/her shoulder his/her own responsibilities.
How am I doing?
Try the following test and see if you may be addicted to gambling. Four or more Yeses may indicate gambling addiction.
- I need to gamble with increasing amounts of money in order to achieve the desired excitement.
- I am restless or irritable when attempting to cut down or stop gambling.
- I have made repeated unsuccessful efforts to control, cut back, or stop gambling.
- I am often preoccupied with gambling (e.g., having persistent thoughts of reliving past gambling experiences, handicapping or planning the next venture, thinking of ways to get money with which to gamble).
- I often gamble when feeling distressed (e.g., helpless, guilty, anxious, depressed).
- After losing money gambling, I often return another day to get even (“chasing” one’s losses).
- I lie to conceal the extent of involvement with gambling.
- I have jeopardized or lost a significant relationship, job, or educational or career opportunity because of gambling.
- I rely on others to provide money to relieve desperate financial situations caused by gambling.
Gambling
Losing
Borrowing
Being chased for debts
Under pressure
Cut-off by family and friends
Who would understand me?
Unspeakable…
Now I decide to seek help from Yuk Lai Hin…
To be counselled, does it mean there’s something wrong with me?
If I seek help, does it mean I’m weak?
I have doubts about counselling ….
I’ve tried to stop gambling, but it just doesn’t work.
How would the counsellors see me if I pour my heart out to them?
I feel guilty and ashamed towards my family…
Zion Social Service Yuk Lai Hin Counselling Centre
Being one of the problem gambling counselling centres supported by the ‘Ping Wo Fund’ under the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau, we provide therapeutic counselling services to people in need through hotline, face-to-face counselling, and peer support groups. We also have a Gambling-free Workplace outreach counselling team, which provides outreach counselling and psycho-education services to the community.
Counselling can …
1. Help me understand my own beliefs and mentality about gambling, and reasons for my addiction in gambling2. Help me control my gambling urge effectively with treatments which target at the causes of my gambling problem3. Provide me with emotional support, empowering me to face my gambling problem and to handle its impact4. Provide me with courage to repair my relationships with family and friends5. Help me re-focus on my work and put my life back on track6. Help me learn the proper ways of financial management and re-define success in life7. Help me find the Self and my life meanings8. Accompany me while I learn from my failures, thereby reducing the chance of future falls The Counsellors in our Gambling-free Workplace Team are happy to provide outreach counselling and psycho-education services to corporations in a flexible manner that meets the latter’s needs.
Counsellors/ Receive calls for assistance/ Arrange and provide the following services
- Outreach emotional support and counselling services free of charge
- Psycho-educational talks in small group or seminar formats
- Time and venue can be flexibly arranged
My Beliefs about Gambling
- “By keeping track of previous winning bets, I can figure out the way to win.”
When one gambles, he/she is betting on independent trials of a random process. A run of luck in the past would not influence the odds in the future.
- “Stock speculation is not addictive.”
All forms of gambling, including stock speculation, involve risk taking and may become addictive if done with little moderation.
- “Little bets sooth the soul.”
Gambling does not help relieving stress. Gambling continually would hasten your dependence upon it. Gambling without moderation would lead to dire consequences for you and your family.
- “I can settle my gambling debts through gambling.”
Gambling will aggravate rather than solve your debt problem.
* Research shows that damages caused by addictive gambling adversely affect at least 17 persons around the one who gambles, especially his or her family members.
“Hey, we’d like to get to know you.”
Help Hotline:…
Room 1015, 10/F, Hewlett Centre, 54 Hoi Yuen Road, Kwun Tong, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
The Transportation Industry
For workers and their families
Brain: like an elephant
Ears: attentive in all directions
Eyes: all eyes on the road
Heart: cool, calm and collected
The Construction Industry
For workers and their families
Face: with a sunshine smile
Arms: beefy
Body: six-pack
Heart: open and sincere
The Food and Beverage Industry
For workers and their families
Brain: with countless cooking ideas
Tongue: refined taste of a king
Hands: of a Master Cook
Heart: affectionate and loyal
The Financial Services Industry
For workers and their families
Brain: sharp as a razor
Tongue: articulate
Eyes: of an eagle
Heart: meticulous
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