Simon's compulsive gambling story

Simon Bent is a successful playwright who lives in London. Here he tells us about his experiences of compulsive gambling.

Research has shown that around 17% of people taking dopamine agonists, a group of drugs used to treat Parkinson's, will experience some form of impulsive or compulsive behaviour.

It can also affect people taking other Parkinson's drugs, in particular levodopa.

A desire to gamble

"I started taking cabergoline for my Parkinson's in August 2000. As the dosage level increased, I grew more and more paranoid.

"I also developed a desire to gamble, started to eat a great deal of chocolate, and spent a large amount of time fixing computers.

"My gambling problems started with scratchcards and then I discovered internet gambling. I spent night after night on the computer while my wife was asleep.

"I was also gambling from work when no one was looking. I was spending thousands and thousands of pounds.

"It was horrific when I realised what I had gambled away. I nearly lost everything and my house nearly got repossessed.

Behaviour linked to medication

"I was admitted to a neuropsychiatric ward for 2 months after I started to have suicidal tendencies. It was at this point that they thought my behaviour might be linked to the dopamine agonist.

"They took me off the medication and put me on levodopa. The impulse to gamble then stopped and I have not gambled since.

"My life is now back on track, but due to the emotional and financial impact that taking cabergoline has had on me and my family, I have made the decision to take legal action.

"For now, levodopa is keeping my symptoms under control. I am enjoying my family and am working on a film for the BBC."

More stories

• Patricia's pathological gambling story
• Liz's compulsive shopping story
• Simon's compulsive gambling story

Return to Parkinson's drugs and impulsive and compulsive behaviour

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