Computer Addiction
March 2, 2000 There once was a time when the
only computers known to the average
person were those the military possessed.
Eventually, large corporations found
many different uses for computers in the
business world, and today, computers
are as common in numerous households
around the globe. People from all age
groups are learning to operate
computers and anyone who has worked with
computers for long periods of time
knows that computers can be just as addicting
as smoking. Computer addiction
can have a number of physical, social, and
psychological effects on a person
and it is to be taken as seriously as any
other addiction that a person is
battling. One common physical effect computer
addiction can have on a person
are back problems. Sitting for so long can take a
toll on a person's muscles
and can result in poor posture. Poor posture can
result in chronic back
problems that require the services of a chiropractor. Dry
eyes, carpal tunnel
syndrome, and vision complications are some eye problems
caused by over use
of a computer. Migraine headaches are quite common in
computer addiction and
are linked to the straining of the eyes. Because of the
long hours spent
engrossed in a computer, addicts often have eating
irregularities, such as
skipping meals and binge eating. Computer addicts
experience sleep
disturbances, or changes in sleeping patterns, which are most
likely due to
late hours on the computer and low blood sugar from eating
irregularities.
One last effect is the failure to attend to personal hygiene,
such as
bathing, combing hair and brushing teeth. All of these physical effects
can
be linked to computer addiction. Social effects of computer addiction
include
reduced time spent socializing with others. People may begin to feel
that
their computer is the only relationship that they have the time to focus
on.
They lose the desire for human contact and communication and in a way
they
are breaking away from reality. Lacking the desire to make contact with
others,
means lacking the desire to create new relationships or to build on
already
existing ones. After a certain amount of time, they lose their
conversation
skills completely. Within the lives of computer addicts it is
their friends and
family that suffer the most from this form of alienation.
They are often moved
to the very bottom of the computer addict's list of
priorities. Computer
addiction has the power to cause serious social effects
and cannot be left
untreated. Along with the physical and social effects of
computer addiction
there are also psychological effects. Some psychological
symptoms experienced by
computer addicts when they are not at the computer
are feelings of depression,
emptiness, irritability, distraction and
withdrawal. Feelings that are common
when addicts are at the computer are a
sense of euphoria or well-being. These
senses of complete ecstasy and
pleasure also causes and inability for people who
are addicted to computers
to stop the activity. They end up having a constant
craving for more time at
the computer, and this is where one can identify an
addiction. Along with
addiction comes a need to cover up their secret and
computer addicts often
lie to those around them. For example lying to employers,
and family members
about their hours spent at the computer and also denying they
have a problem.
This lying a sneaking around eventually results in problems
either at school
or at work. The psychological effects of computer addiction may
not only lead
to distraction and emptiness but may also lead to critical
depression. When
people think of addictions, no one ever thinks of computer
addiction to
actually be common. In this age of computers, computer addiction
will only
increase as time passes. More and more people will experience the
physical,
social, and psychological effects of computer addiction but,
thankfully, like
other addictions, this condition is treatable.