Doctor urges people to recognize web addiction
Categories: Reviews & Products, Motivation
Compulsive text messaging, urges to get online and surf the web, cravings to play video games... What do all of these activities have in common? They're practices people do on the Internet, and one doctor says psychiatrists should recognize it as a bona fide mental illness.Technology certainly has made things easier to get work done. But it can also be a great distraction to "unplug" from the rest of the world. After all, have you ever looked at your watch and gotten online to check your email, only to realize hours have passed in what seemed like minutes? Making time fly is one thing, but a doctor from the Oregon Health and Science University in Portland says this habit can be taken a step further to addiction.
According to Dr. Block, getting hooked on the web has all the same traits of a typical "offline" addiction: withdrawal and tolerance and requiring more time to get the same satisfaction, for example. He also says that 86 percent of Internet addicts have other mental illnesses -- so I'm wondering if those traits contribute to this computer-aided dependency. Either way, it'll be interesting to see if psychiatrists diagnose "web addiction" in the future.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Murphy Tha dog 3-19-2008 @ 4:42PM
Ironic that I was reading this on the web.
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Judy 3-19-2008 @ 6:06PM
Oh, this is so me.
I've been trying to cut back. I'm a slightly bored SAHM, and the internet is sometimes my only connection to the world out there. LOL!
I've actually considered one of the software programs to limit computer time for myself, so I don't spend too much time on. I know I feel better about the world and myself when I spend less time on the computer.
So, what are the tips for overcoming the addiction? Turning off the computer?
The funny thing is I've never really been addicted to the substances I've used - I used to smoke, and still have one on occasion, but I don't think I was ever physically addicted, and never had trouble quitting. But I'm an internet addict!!!!!!!
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