The First Step Is Admitting You Have A Problem
Seattle is opening the country’s first in-patient center for the treatment of internet addicition.
The center, called ReSTART, is somewhat ironically located near Redmond, headquarters of Microsoft and a world center of the computer industry. It opened in July and for $14,000 offers a 45-day program intended to help people wean themselves from pathological computer use, which can include obsessive use of video games, texting, Facebook, eBay, Twitter and any other time-killers brought courtesy of technology.
“We’ve been doing this for years on an outpatient basis,” said Hilarie Cash, a therapist and executive director of the center. “Up until now, we had no place to send them.”
Internet addiction is not recognized as a separate disorder by the American Psychiatric Association, and treatment is not generally covered by insurance. But there are many such treatment centers in China, South Korea and Taiwan — where Internet addiction is taken very seriously — and many psychiatric experts say it is clear that Internet addiction is real and harmful.
I think some of us could use the help.
Tags: Addiction, The Internets
So what would be pathological use?
I believe pathological use would be use that interferes with your real life. In the story, they used the example of a college student who spent all his time on-line gaming and never went to class, so he flunked out of college.