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Internet Addiction Disorder: Inability to get offline

If you are an active web user, I strongly recommend a recent journal by Dr Diane M. Wieland on Computer Addiction that discusses issues and treatment related to overuse of technology and neglect of others and self as a result of computer addiction.

The study suggests that spending between 40 and 78 hours a week online would constitute an addiction, given that that is time "not used to perform mandatory work or home activities."

From the journal, here are some indicators to prove if someone is suffering from net addiction:

» The individual spends many hours alone on the computer, thereby decreasing physical activities and socialization. Obsession with and craving time on the computer results in neglect of real-life personal relationships to the point of divorce.

» Cyber shakes (psychomotor agitation and typing motions of the fingers), dry eyes, carpal tunnel syndrome, repetitive motion injuries in the hands, wrists, neck, back and shoulders, migraine headaches, and numbness and pain in the thumb, index, and middle fingers are physical symptoms.

» A focus on the computer and lack of attention to daily reality is indicative of poor judgment and results in lowered grades in school, job loss, and indebtedness

Source: Perspectives in Psychiatric Care journal - Computer Addiction [pdf]

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