Escaping Pachinko Addiction

"Oh! Here it comes, here it comes! Is this going to be a consecutive reach?"

"Oh no! It's just a single jackpot again!"

"What should I do? I've already lost 20,000 JPY!"

My name is Kumi Takeshita, I'm 26 years old and I work as a sales representative for a major life insurance company.

Right now, I'm out visiting clients, and I had a little time to spare, so I was playing pachinko.

Actually, I'm a self-proclaimed pachinko addict, and when did this start? Well, my boyfriend when I was in university had a big influence on me.

Because that boyfriend was a pachinko fanatic, and our dates always involved going to play pachinko together.

But I broke up with that boyfriend when we graduated from university, because he found a job in another prefecture, and we decided long-distance relationships wouldn't work.

However, I couldn't stop playing pachinko.

By the way, I still live with my parents, who divorced 20 years ago.

I've been living with my mother in a cheap apartment since I was in the first grade of elementary school, and I somehow managed to graduate from university with a scholarship, but I still have more than 2 million JPY left to repay.

Since I live with my parents, I don't have to pay rent, and since I don't have a boyfriend, I don't spend much on clothes either. As soon as I get my salary, almost all of it goes to pachinko except for the scholarship repayment.

I want to quit, but I can't forget the excitement of winning a big jackpot, and before I know it, I'm playing pachinko again. I'm so addicted to pachinko that I can't help it anymore.

Vroooom ♪

Vroooom ♪

"Oh, I was on silent mode, it's a phone call!"

Who could it be...?

"Oh no, it's the branch manager! I have to get back..."

If I answer the phone right away, the noise from the store will give away that I'm playing pachinko, so I stop playing and go outside to answer the phone.

"Hello, Branch Manager, good evening!"

"Yes, good evening, where are you now?"

"Yes, I'm near the company, I'm on my way back now."

"Okay, it's 5 o'clock, so it's about time to head back."

"Yes, yes!"

(Oh no, is it that time already...)

I hurried back to the company.

Holiday

Of course, my holiday is spent playing pachinko.

"Good morning, Mom!"

"Good morning, Kumi, do you have the day off today? Are you going somewhere?"

"Yes, I have something to do with a friend..."

"I see, be careful..."

"Uh, yeah... see you!"

My mother knows that I'm addicted to pachinko, so she makes a displeased face when I say I'm going to play pachinko.

So, I always lie when I go to play pachinko.

On my days off, I line up in front of the store before it opens, and it's common for me to choose my favorite machine and play for more than 8 hours if I'm on a roll.

Recently, I've also started to find slot machines interesting, and I especially enjoy "meoshi", which involves pressing the buttons in time with the rotations.

Of course, I don't have the ability to intentionally hit a jackpot whenever I want, but I like it because it feels like I'm guiding the jackpot myself.

However, reality was not so sweet...

Three hours have passed since I started playing, and I've already lost about 50,000 JPY.

What should I do...? That's it!

Let's stop after losing another 10,000 JPY. If I lose another 10,000 JPY, I'll stop, otherwise I won't be able to make a living without borrowing more money.

However, that 10,000 JPY disappeared in no time.

I owe 500,000 JPY to a consumer finance company.

As a result of going to pachinko parlors all the time, my debt has swollen.

As everyone knows, consumer finance companies have high interest rates, and no matter how much you repay, the principal doesn't go down much.

But when you borrow, the screening is easy, and even low-income earners like me can get a loan easily.

At first, I thought I'd be able to repay it soon...

But then I kept losing, and I played again to make up for my losses, and then I lost again...

This cycle continued and my debt kept growing.

There won't be any special pay raises in the future, so in order to repay my debt, I have no choice but to win at pachinko.

Thinking this, I started searching for various information using SNS.

I wanted to know how to win, where to go, and basically any way to win.

One day

And then one day...

"Pachinko parlors in Taiwan are hot!"

What is this...?

I got information from a pachinko pro's SNS that pachinko parlors in Taiwan are very popular.

Apparently, the events held during the New Year holidays are amazing.

When I looked into it...

Huh? 30 JPY per medal? 900 JPY per rotation?

This is amazing!

Usually, slot machines lend out medals at 20 JPY per medal, but at the Taiwan event, it seems that the game is played at a high rate of 30 JPY per medal.

It seems that the rate can be increased up to 10 times, with a maximum of 900 JPY per rotation.

This is something you can't even imagine in normal times.

Because the rate is so high, locals rarely go to that store.

It's a store that caters mainly to foreigners.

It's a very high-risk store, but on the other hand, it can also be a high-return store.

Because if you get 1,000 medals, that's 300,000 JPY...

It's a dream, it's the best!

I imagined winning rather than losing.

This may be one of my bad points, but it's also one of my good points.

I know that things don't always go well, but I can't help but think positively.

I really want to try this big gamble!

I started to think this way.

Also, I have a memory of winning big at an event held in the neighboring town last year.

(Okay, wait for me, Taiwan!)

I was psyched, but when I checked the travel expenses to Taiwan...

It's 80,000 JPY for a round trip...

Usually, there are cheap tickets available, but it was impossible because of the New Year holidays.

It's probably not a problem for a regular office lady, but in my case, I have debt and I'm addicted to pachinko.

If I go to Taiwan and fail to win, I'll have no choice but to borrow from a loan shark.

I guess I have no choice but to give up on Taiwan...

I have no choice but to face reality...

I calmed my heart by telling myself this.

However, one day...

I had completely forgotten about it, but I received my year-end bonus.

In the case of sales jobs, the bonus is paid according to the performance of the half-year period, and the amount was 200,000 JPY!

With this, I can go!

It's a gamble, but I'll take the chance!

I'll definitely hit a jackpot!

Arrival in Taiwan

"I've arrived in Taiwan!"

And so, I arrived safely in Taiwan.

In advance, I borrowed the maximum amount from all consumer finance companies and prepared a large sum of money!

With my bonus and debt, I was able to prepare 500,000 JPY.

Now, I'll double or even triple this amount and go home!

First, I checked into a cheap hotel that I had reserved in advance!

After exchanging money and dropping off my luggage, I immediately took a taxi to the pachinko parlor.

(So this is the place...)

When I arrived at the store, my tension rose at once.

From now on, I'm going to play for a long time without stopping.

Thinking so, my heart was pounding and my palms were sweating.

There were many Asians like me in line in front of the store, just as I had heard on SNS.

Well then, let's do this...

I started playing, looking for a machine that seemed likely to pay out.

For the time being, I decided to play at a rate of 30 JPY, but an hour passed without any hits.

As expected, the rate is high.

Because the money disappears at a faster pace than in Japan.

(Damn it! It's not working again!)

I started to panic because I didn't get any hits at all, but I calmed myself down and continued to play...

I still have money and time.

I came to Taiwan to play this slot machine.

I won't give up so easily!

And then a few more hours passed.

"Yes! I got a hit!"

Finally, I got a hit.

With this momentum, I'll keep hitting...

That's what I wanted to say...

(Huh? It's over...?)

Why...?

Even when I hit a jackpot, it doesn't continue and ends with a single jackpot...

(This is bad... If this continues, I'll really lose everything...)

At this point, half of my 500,000 JPY was already gone...

(Anything is fine, God! Please give me strength!)

I finally started praying to God.

I couldn't bear the thought of going back to Japan after losing in Taiwan, and it was at that very moment.

(Yes! It's here! It's here, it's here, it's here!)

Finally, I started to get consecutive jackpots.

After that, I continued to hit jackpots for a while, and I was able to make up for the loss of several hours in just a few minutes.

This is the advantage of high rates! I was able to make up for it with just one consecutive jackpot, so I decided to take the chance and continue playing!

The gambler's blood in me was boiling, so I raised the rate and took the chance.

If I win at a higher rate, I'll raise it even more, win again, and then raise it even more.

That was the cycle.

But...

Uh-oh... I started to lose.

The flow has clearly changed...

The jackpots became single jackpots, and the consecutive jackpots stopped coming...

If I stop now, I can still end with a small profit.

What should I do...?

As I was thinking about this, I casually looked around and saw that there were many people who were winning much more than I was.

There were also Japanese people among them, and I was surprised to see them.

Should I stop here...?

What am I saying!

I came to Taiwan to change my life!

I'll take a gamble with my life!

After that, I played the slot machine with a blank mind.

Before I knew it, the day had changed, and it was the New Year, but I didn't care.

My waist hurts and my eyes are flickering because I've been in the same position for a long time, but I endure it.

At this point, my funds had dropped below 100,000 JPY.

But if I stop here, the money I lost won't come back. In order to achieve great success, you have to take the risk of losing something!

In the end, I played the slot machine for 24 hours straight.

Result

As a result...

"No, it can't be... it's a lie..."

My 500,000 JPY was all gone.

I kept raising the rate to make up for my losses, but in the end, I couldn't get a consecutive jackpot, and my money disappeared miserably.

On the plane back, I was trembling.

There was only a small amount of money left in my wallet, and from next month, I would have to start repaying the consumer finance companies that I had borrowed from at the maximum rate.

If I couldn't repay it, I would have no choice but to declare bankruptcy...

What should I do...

I probably won't be able to play pachinko anymore...

The more I thought about the future, the more scared I became.

Return to Japan

After returning to Japan, my life changed drastically.

I couldn't eat much, and except for work, I started to shut myself in my room...

My anxiety grew and I couldn't sleep at night, and I couldn't concentrate on my work, so my performance deteriorated.

I don't know what to do anymore. If I hadn't gambled then...

One day, my mother, who was probably worried about me, spoke to me gently.

"Kumi, you hardly eat anything these days, your face looks bad... you don't seem to have any energy... you've been acting strange since you came back from your year-end and New Year's trip. Is something wrong?"

"Mom... actually..."

I told my mother everything that had happened up to that point.

About my pachinko addiction, how I played during my sales calls, how my trip to Taiwan was for pachinko, how I now had 1 million JPY in debt, and how I wanted to quit but couldn't and was suffering.

Before I knew it, I couldn't stop my tears.

My mother listened to me seriously and quietly until the end.

"I see... that's tough... just a minute..."

My mother went to the drawer of the chest in the back room and took out a passbook and gave it to me.

"You see, this money is what your mother has been saving little by little for your wedding... if you like, please use it to repay your debt..."

"Mom..."

When I opened the passbook, I saw that 1 million JPY had been saved.

I couldn't stop the tears that came from my mother's kindness.

Apparently, she had been saving little by little every month. I could tell at a glance from the passbook. Sometimes she saved 20,000 JPY a month, sometimes 5,000 JPY. She must have been saving desperately.

This made me wake up.

I decided to stop playing pachinko and slot machines from now on.

And from now on, I will try to be a good daughter to my parents.

Also, I will use this 1 million JPY for debt repayment first, and then I will replenish the money I used and return it to my mother after I have saved 1 million JPY again.

I will never forget what happened that night.

And on the next holiday, my mother took me to a support group for addiction recovery, where I received various programs and slowly but surely overcame my pachinko addiction.

It was hard at first, but I think now is the time to change.

From now on, I am determined to start my life over, so I will do my best!

And so a year passed...

"Mom, I'm home!"

"Oh, welcome back, Kumi."

I completely overcame my addiction.

I no longer felt the irresistible urge to go to the pachinko parlor like I used to.

Now, I enjoy my work and can smile and work hard. I am able to spend my days like this thanks to my mother and the people at the support group.

There will be difficult times in the future, but I will try to consult with someone instead of suffering alone, and if there is someone who is suffering from addiction like I was, I will try to reach out and listen to their story. I will do my best today so that I can become someone who can do that