Nearly everyone has “that friend” in their circle: the one who has to look at their phone every two minutes and who reacts to forgetting their phone at home as a tragedy equal to the sinking of the Titanic. Most of us find this behavior mildly irritating, even a bit amusing. However, could a pathological attachment to a cell phone or computer qualify as an addiction?
Many therapists treating internet addiction answer that question with a resounding, “yes!” Across the U.S., mental health professionals have initiated treatment programs for those who cannot break free from technology on their own. Recovering from internet addiction, like recovering from any addiction, takes time, as does learning how to use the technology abundant in our society in a responsible manner.
What Is Internet Addiction?
Internet addiction refers to the inability to refrain from constant internet connectivity and the development of feelings of panic or anxiety when life prevents the addicted person from going online. While internet addiction remains unlisted in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) and the World Health Organization fails to yet list it as a separate condition, many therapists have undergone training to help those who simply can’t shut down. In the meantime, public health officials still debate whether internet addiction should qualify as a separate disorder or a subsection of other obsessive disorders.
Internet addiction doesn’t limit itself to individuals living in western nations. In several Asian nations, compulsive players of online games go so far as to defecate in their pants rather than interrupt a game they may have been playing for hours, even days.
Like other addictions, internet addiction takes a heavy toll on interpersonal relationships, workplace success and overall life satisfaction. Internet addiction can ruin relationships and careers when the need to be connected constantly supersedes paying attention to a partner’s needs or focusing on work responsibilities requiring intense concentration.
Complications with Treating Internet Addiction
Treating internet addiction in our ever-connected world poses unique challenges. Unlike treating those addicted to drugs or alcohol, which requires refraining from the addictive substance altogether, those addicted to the internet cannot simply unplug for good without significantly impacting their ability to navigate today’s technologically-reliant society.
Because of our modern-day reliance on gadgets, treatment plans for internet addiction mirror the protocols used to treat those with eating disorders. Those suffering from either an eating disorder or an internet addiction face the additional challenge of learning new behavior on top of ceasing negative behavior. Just as humans cannot survive without food, most people in developed nations cannot refrain from internet use altogether.
Furthermore, not everyone who goes online for several hours each day suffers from internet addiction. The technological revolution ushered in a new era of telecommuting where many adults work from home at least part of the time. Even those who still work in traditional office spaces utilize the internet for everything from research to bookkeeping.
If you fear that you or someone you love suffers from internet addiction, ask yourself the following questions. Do you or your loved one grow irritable or anxious when you cannot get online? Has going online too often led to neglecting family, home or work obligations? Have you or they tried to cut down on internet use unsuccessfully and/or has either party experienced negative consequences of excessive online behavior such as receiving a ticket or causing an accident due to internet use while driving? These are just a few of the common signs of addiction. If you answered yes to any of the preceding questions, it may be time to have a discussion.
Can It Be Helped?
Fortunately, internet addiction need not lead to the loss of your job or relationship. With proper treatment, internet addicts can learn to manage time online wisely and attain balance between their online and real-life selves.
Because many internet addicts find complete abstinence from gadget use impossible, cognitive-behavioral therapy can help internet addicts realize which of their online behaviors leads to trouble and which represent appropriate web use. Patients learn to recognize the internal and external clues that suggest they should get off their phone or computer for a bit and heed them.
Even though many respected organizations have yet to identify internet addiction as a unique disorder, the toll internet addiction is truly starting to take on individuals, their careers and their families can’t be understated. With support and treatment, those suffering from internet addiction can learn to use technology in a healthy way and to understand when the time comes to power down.
Kate is a health and political journalist. You can subscribe to her blog, So Well, So Woman, to read more of her work and receive a free subscriber gift! https://sowellsowoman.com/about/subscribe/