What Causes Video Game Addictions
Researchers are not certain what causes video game addiction however, some experts believe that elevated dopamine levels contribute heavily to the problem. The neurotransmitter dopamine works in the brains reward center. It is released during activities most people find pleasurable, including eating and consuming certain drugs.
Therapists view all addictions as functioning essentially the same way. In the case of non-substance addictions, such as those to sex, gambling and gaming, the behavior takes the place of a substance. The action of playing generates a feeling of pleasure, which ensures the addict will repeat the action as often as possible.
In a report published by CBC News in April 2013, a gaming addiction expert said those with certain personality disorders or disabilities are at greater risk than others. She noted that people who suffer from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and Aspergers are particularly susceptible to gaming addiction.
Those who study video game addiction also believe that the problem has a psychological component. They contend that compulsive gamers retreat to a fantasy world to escape their real-life troubles and unpleasant emotions. According to a recent report, 41 percent of those who play online video games indicated they game to escape from reality.
What Is Addiction Anyway
There is still a major divide between the public understanding of addiction and the expert view. Its common to hear people casually call an activity addictive just because its fun. Some people continue to see addiction not as a medical condition but as a moral failure, contrary to what major public health and medical organizations have said for decades now. There are still misconceptions that addiction requires some sort of physical component for example, physical dependence that causes withdrawal or that physical dependence is conclusive proof of addiction.
Experts, however, have long moved away from these old views of addiction, if they ever held such beliefs at all. Under the expert view, addiction doesnt even require a physical dependence component.
We long ago moved away from thinking about addiction as a physical or physiological need for a drug, Robert West, editor in chief for the scientific journal Addiction, told me. In most cases, its not the physiological thats causing the problem, because you can quite easily get people over that through, say, supervised detoxification. Its a behavioral problem. Where the problem lies is that certain drugs and behaviors in certain people lead to such powerful motivation to engage in the behavior that its damaging or could be damaging.
Games Addiction Know The Ways To Get Rid Of It
Games we usually play out of love. It is very good to do what we naturally feel comfortable doing. But is that an unusual way to waste time? When will you realize that it has become an addiction? Is it possible to overcome this problem?
Addiction to video games is a kind of human problem. The World Health Organization, in its medical reference book International Classification of Diseases, described game addiction as a gaming disorder.
How to detect addiction?
DSM-5 can detect a persons addiction to games. If you see five signs of DSM-5 in your child, sibling, friend, then he/she is suffering from game addiction.
1. Thinking about games all the time or most of the day.
2. Feeling bad if you cant play.
3. Stay playing for a long time for love.
4. Less play or not being able to stop the game.
5. Not wanting to do anything else.
6. Games create a lot of problems at work, school, or home.
7. Keep playing despite the various problems.
8. Lying to relatives about playing time.
9. Playing games even when under stress or feeling bad.
10. When you stop playing the game, you get very angry or upset.
How to get rid of game addiction?
First of all, it requires human preparation to get out of this addiction that wastes time and a beautiful future.
At one time I also had a strong game addiction.
Doing any healthy hobby. So that the brain is busy during leisure time.
You can spend time using Kora or any such information-rich site.
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Why Do People Fail When They Try To Quit Video Games
What happens if you try to quit video games? You can maybe take a day or two of no gaming. However, eventually, you want to get back to playing again. That is because video games change your brain in a few fundamental ways. It is crucial to understand how video games affect your brain if you want to control your gaming habit.
The Benefits Of Residential Video Game Addiction Treatments
Residential, or inpatient, video game treatment centers offer the patient ample time to recover from the addiction. Some people only require a 30-day stay, while others benefit from a minimum of 60 days at such a center.
In addition, residential treatment centers protect each patients privacy while helping them to become equipped for an addiction-free life. Many centers offer flexible payment plans, while most accept insurance.
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Willpower Doesnt Workfix The Cause Instead
One bad habit doesnt seem like a big deal. Its not going to make a big difference from day to day. But think about the damage its doing long-term. Think about how your life will be different 10 years from now.
If you get rid of the addiction now, how much better could your health be in 10 years? How would your relationship change long-term? How would your financial life change?
If youve been trying to break the bad habit with willpower, its time to stop. That approach hasnt been working for you in the past and wont work in the future.
Try something different.
Its time to take a hard look at why youre doing it in the first place and change the underlying cause.
Now you have a simple formula for finding out the underlying cause and start working on a real solution. But just knowing about the formula is not enough. Its all about taking action.
Take the first step today and your future self will thank you for it.
Hand Over Control Of Your Money
Ask a close family member to handle your money. If you do not have money on your person, you will be less apt to impulsively gamble money away. It will be hard, but it is an important step in your recovery. Also, do not allow yourself access to ATM or credit cards. Just keep a small amount of cash with you, so you cannot spend the money gambling.
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Video Games Can Do A Lot Of Good Too
Part of the concern here is that stifling video games could substantively harm people. Games are now used in education all the time. Some places, like Radboud Universitys Games for Emotional and Mental Health Lab in the Netherlands, are now studying the use of video games for therapy. Theres even some early research into prescription video games, trying to see how games especially with the advent of virtual reality could be used to help treat mental health conditions.
But beyond a medical setting, video games entertain people. They can let people relax after a hard day. They can provide an escape. All of these are real benefits that help people on a daily basis.
With the news of the WHOs designation earlier this year, I began to think about my own gaming, particularly back when I was in high school. I spent a lot of time playing World of Warcraft 40 hours a week, if not more.
I did not have the problems that Scott did. I got mostly As in high school, went to college and studied journalism, went to parties, hung out with friends on weekends, and spent time with my family.
In fact, looking back, I still think World of Warcraft was good for me. As a closeted gay teen, it was the one space where I found a group of friends I could be totally open with. I came out to them long before I came out to anyone I knew in my real life. Having a safe space online made my early gay life a lot more bearable.
Do Addicted Teens Want Help
Parents may be worried that their kid is in a deep hole, but do you think these kids care as much as their parents? Surprisingly, most of them dont.
In an interview with a teen whos addicted to gaming, its discovered that he doesnt even want to be free from gaming addiction.
In Dereks words:
Its my mom who has a problem, not me.
Gaming-obsessed teenagers often live in denial, as do teens suffering from substance abuse. Its also one of the signs and symptoms you should look out for.
Youll often notice that some kids think that everything is fine. They dont care if their world is crashing down like the Titanic. Dereks mom, Melanie thinks that his son is ruining is life. But the guy thinks otherwise.
In a Brain Imaging study, it was discovered that gaming addiction is capable is hijacking a teens mind and giving them a different mindset.
This can cause teens to be fully-engrossed in digital devices, neglect everything about their personal goals and relationships, and yet not realize theyve problems that need an urgent solution.
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Mistake #: Creating Easy Access
Four out of five children over eight years old own a video-game system. The risk of video-game addiction increases dramatically when your child owns a system, because then it is much harder to control the amount of time spent playing. As with any other behavioural addiction, easy access to the object of obsession makes it difficult to avoid pitfalls.
Gaming Disorder: Why Video Games Can Be Addictive
Even without an officially diagnosed disorder, some people sacrifice their jobs and marriages to spend 60 hours every week playing on the computer. Some children and teenagers become so attached to video games that they threaten their parents when theyre told to put down the controller.
Many people have read about such cases or have had experiences which show that video games have addictive power. While anecdotal evidence is not scientific research, real-world experience and the growing awareness of other behavioral addictions explain why the concept of video game addiction is becoming increasingly accepted. Recently, the World Health Organization added gaming disorder to its official list of diseases.
Gaming disorder is defined as a pattern of gaming behavior characterized by impaired control over gaming, increasing priority given to gaming over other activities to the extent that gaming takes precedence over other interests and daily activities, and continuation or escalation of gaming despite the occurrence of negative consequences.
– World Health Organization
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The Brains Reward System
Your motivation to either commit or quit harmful acts is tied to the biological makeup of your brain and your brains reward system. This system is an intricate network of neurotransmitters that are critical to human survival. Your self-control circuit is comprised of: 1. the brain systems that drive you to seek out things that bring you pleasure and, 2. the prefrontal cortex , which applies the brakes when youre about to engage in risky behavior.
In the addicted brain, the underactive PFC can create an imbalance in the reward system and cause you to lose control over your behavior. When this happens, youre more likely to fall victim to your cravings. Having low activity in the PFC often results in impulse control problems and poor internal supervision.
How To Overcome Video Game Addiction
When you hear the word addiction, the first thing that pops into your head is probably drugs or alcohol. Gambling or sex addictions might also register as types of negative habits. Or perhaps even the digital obsession many have with their devices. But video game addiction? Is there really such a thing?
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How To Stop Playing Video Games: 3 Effective Strategies
When a gamer learns about video game addiction, the first question that comes to their mind is, âHow do I stop playing video games?â
There are three ways to stop playing video games:
However, for these strategies to be effective, it is essential to understand how bad your video game addiction is. Here is a quiz to figure that out:
Continue reading to learn how video games affect your brain and behavior, and how you can stop playing video games.
How Parents Can Help Their Kids Avoid Video Game Addiction
Because video game addiction so often happens in childhood, its important for parents to recognize they play a huge role in stopping video game addiction in children. Moms and dads should be ready to address this subject, and they can take several proactive steps to help their kids avoid becoming video game addicts.
If youre a parent of a child who enjoys playing video games, or who hasnt yet started playing video games, the following suggestions may prevent a future issue:
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World Of Warcraft Addiction
This content is accurate and true to the best of the authorâs knowledge and does not substitute for diagnosis, prognosis, treatment, prescription, and/or dietary advice from a licensed health professional. Drugs, supplements, and natural remedies may have dangerous side effects. If pregnant or nursing, consult with a qualified provider on an individual basis. Seek immediate help if you are experiencing a medical emergency.
Video Game Addiction Symptoms Causes And Effects
Although it is not yet recognized by the American Medical Association as a diagnosable disorder, video game addiction is a very real problem for many people. According to the University of New Mexico, recent studies suggest that 6 to 15 percent of all gamers exhibit signs that could be characterized as addiction. Though this disorder can have significant consequences to those suffering from it, its signs and symptoms can sometimes be very difficult to recognize.
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Mistakes To Avoid When Your Child Is Addicted To Video Games
- Pointless battle?
- Avoiding common mistakes
Emily awoke at 2 a.m. after hearing a noise downstairs. Nervously pulling back the blanket, she slipped quietly out of her room toward the mysterious sound. Anxiety turned into anger as she approached the faint but distinct music of her sons favourite video game the same game they had been ordered to stop playing hours earlier in order to go to bed.
At that moment Emily couldnt decide whether to scream or cry whether she was losing her mind or coming to her senses. Emily unplugged the video-game system, gathered up cords and devices, walked onto her second-storey deck and pitched hundreds of dollars worth of equipment over the railing. With a great sense of relief, she listened for the sweet sound of crashing electronics below. “There!” she assured herself. “That should take care of the problem.”
Emilys reaction may seem extreme, but those who live with a child addicted to video games understand. Years later, Emily said her decision to jettison video games from her home had lasting significance protecting her sons from an addiction that is stealing countless children away from real life.
But Heres What You Dont Want To Do
Dont internalize the problem by constantly telling yourself, Im a video game addict and beating yourself up about the ways youve behaved in the past.
Doing this just makes you feel more down .
And taking on addict as a self identity label gives you an out every time the going gets tough
Most addictions in this vein really just come down to a mixture of impulsiveness and low frustration tolerance .
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How Gaming Affects The Brain
As with any behavioural addiction, gaming addiction is a disorder of the brains reward system. High levels of an addictive stimulus in this case, video gaming experienced over time initiate the production of increasingly large quantities of dopamine in the brain, which stimulates receptors which in turn drive the impulse to repeat the behaviour in question.
Up to a point, the more frequently this is repeated, the more easily dopamine production is stimulated after a while, however, the brain develops a tolerance to high levels of dopamine, and thus the individual in question feels compulsion to engage in the addictive behaviour in other words, to play video games more and more often in order to feel the same level of satisfaction and pleasure which was initially experienced.
Moreover, once this tolerance has developed, stopping the addictive behaviour will result in unpleasant sensations driving cravings until enough time has passed that the brain chemistry has normalised and the addiction has been quashed though cravings to resume the addictive behaviour may recur for months or even years after the last instance of engaging in it.
Gambling Addiction Signs And Symptoms
Gambling addiction is sometimes referred to as a hidden illness because there are no obvious physical signs or symptoms like there are in drug or alcohol addiction. Problem gamblers also typically deny or minimize the problemeven to themselves. However, you may have a gambling problem if you:
Feel the need to be secretive about your gambling. You might gamble in secret or lie about how much you gamble, feeling others wont understand or that you will surprise them with a big win.
Have trouble controlling your gambling. Once you start gambling, can you walk away? Or are you compelled to gamble until youve spent your last dollar, upping your bets in a bid to win lost money back?
Gamble even when you dont have the money. You may gamble until youve spent your last dollar, and then move on to money you dont havemoney to pay bills, credit cards, or things for your children. You may feel pushed to borrow, sell, or even steal things for gambling money.
Have family and friends worried about you. Denial keeps problem gambling going. If friends and family are worried, listen to them carefully. Its not a sign of weakness to ask for help. Many older gamblers are reluctant to reach out to their adult children if theyve gambled away their inheritance, but its never too late to make changes for the better.
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