The American Medical Association (AMA) states that as a rule of thumb, people who spend more than 6 hours a day on the computer playing video games are addicted compulsive gamers which is the main reason why you can’t sleep after playing video games.
Games are consequently designed to be simply difficult enough in order to become really challenging, while enabling players to attain small achievements that encourage them to keep playing. In this manner, video games design is the same to the gambling design of casinos that will enable players to obtain small “wins” which compel them from playing. In addition, there are a number of hooks that are established into the games with the intention of making them addictive.
With school and work consuming the major fraction of an individual’s time, a lot of people will likely sacrifice their precious sleeping time to find time for playing their favorite games. Addiction to video game and extended episodes of sleep deprivation may result to insomnia, while taking the major toll on the health of a person.
Definition: Gaming Addict is when one spends too much time on games while forsaking all other life experiences. This game addiction affects a person’s health, work, school, and relationships with friends and family.
Am I a gaming addict Quiz
Are you one of those gamers who stay up all night to finish the game you start on regularly basis. Find out if you’re a gaming addict below.
- preoccupation with gaming
- craving more time to play video games
- drop in performance at work or school
- feeling ecstatic world gaming
- forgets about time when gaming
- goes into depression when not gaming
- problems at work or at school
- social withdrawal from friends and family
- spends more than 6 hours online per day
- stay up all night playing games
What are the negative effects of video game addiction?
Video game addiction have lots of negative effects to your heart, soul and family. Learn more about 5 negative effects of video game addiction.
- Body Pain. Physical symptoms of gaming addiction are backache, dry eyes, headache, neckache with poor personal hygiene. Back pains may also be normally experienced by addicted gamers as they sit in a single place and stay in a single position for extended hours. Even though these may seem to be trivial ailments from the start, they might have much more profound implications while the addiction continues.
- Mental Health Issues. Even though a lot of people may argue that video gaming provide an acceptable passage to release aggressive feelings, they also have displayed to do exactly the opposite, particularly among the ones who turn to be addicted. The stress and frustration stemming from such addiction might worsen with depression, and might lead the person to show rare patterns of hostile behavior to anyone who interrupts with their video gaming play. An addicted gamer who get inadequate sleep due to too much playing simply does not have the needed energy to use to deal with relationships. Having lack of sleep might also let an active gamer feel irritable and hard to be around with.
- Obesity. Among the most common physical health concerns that are experienced by people addicted to video gaming, children and adults alike, is obesity. Normally, addicted gamers experience this concern as they likely sit in a single place for a very long period of time and so their body almost misses out any form of physical activity. Becoming overweight might boost the danger of initiating other illnesses in the end such as high cholesterol levels, hypertension, diabetes and a lot more.
- Insomnia. Getting into video gaming for an extended period of time straight might also impede the sleeping pattern of an individual which in the long run will to the onset of insomnia. This might further lead to hypoactive immune system and drowsiness.
- Serious Health Conditions. Video game enthusiasts who are devoting their waking hours to gaming are certainly living within an idle lifestyle. Lying down or sitting all day while playing games, together with bad eating habits and sleep deprivation is a risky combination which may result to heart disease, hypertension and stroke.
The right way of approaching a loved one that is suspected to have gaming addiction is by being sensitive to them. Tell them the facts about their behavior and social solitary confinement. Try and get expert medical treatment as soon as possible.
How to quit gaming addiction
Treatment for gaming addiction is just the same with other forms of addictions. Behavior modification and counseling are the main approaches to treat addicted gamers. Altogether, individual and family counseling can be a potent tool to use.
- Get Help from Expert. One on One Counseling techniques would include active listening, body language, psychotherapy and expressing one self. These therapy sessions are private and confidential between the patient and medical expert.
- Ask your family for help. This would then ensure there is less likelihood of any member of the family expressing condemnation and discouragement in any way that will leave the addict feeling rejected and dejected.
- Address your anxiety or depression issues. One of the reasons it has been hard to separate the anxiety issues and the close connection it has to the gaming addict habit would lie in the fact that the addicted gamer is very much a rather lonely, isolating and demoralizing disorder. Try to connect more to people you love and spend some offline time with them.
- Group Counseling. This is a great way to help to beat the gaming addiction. This is mainly because the individual will be able to able to express all the feelings and thoughts without the worry of being judged or looked down upon. While making a conscious effort toward being in better control over the future, the individual would have come to terms with the addiction mindset and thus successfully start the journey towards recovery without looking back.
