X Factor winner Myles Stephenson, a member from R&B group Rak-Su, has opened up about his gambling issues and has now teamed up with charity GamCare.
According to the BBC, Stephenson said he went to a "really dark place" after starting to lose "hundreds of pounds" gambling.
Stephenson said his addiction started before he was in Rak-Su. The 32-year-old said the habit started small by playing with friends but then grew. The singer said he had problems between the ages of 18 and 21 and would visit betting shops at 7am on his way to work.
Stephenson has now teamed up with charity GamCare and said no one should have to suffer alone.
Speaking to BBC presenter Angelle Joseph, he stated how his addiction came about and why it ended up spiralling: "When I started working it would be on the way to work on my phone and online slots and that's when it started to become an issue and it progressed more into an addiction. You can do it anywhere, on a bus or a toilet, you can do it anywhere in the world."
The singer says he was able to turn his life back around by blocking gambling websites from his phone and having the excuse of dropping a work colleague off at their home to prevent himself from going into betting shops.
He added: "They're the things I put in place to get my addiction off gambling and until this day, I haven't been back inside a bookmaker, and I am still blocked on all gambling websites."
Speaking on his partnership with GamCare, Stephenson stated: "When they approached me and my management and proposed this campaign it got me asking questions of what I can do.
"They gave me a platform to speak on and give people with gambling issues a way to seek help."
