subject: Living A Fantasy Or Losing Grip On Reality? The Truth Behind Video Game Addiction! [print this page] LIVING THE DREAM LIVING THE DREAM
A recent episode of ABC Wife Swap involved a man who spent at least 4 hours a day playing computer games. It stated the only time the man spent with his son was inside the game. The two were not even in the same room. This man had a serious case of video game addiction and he felt that he was normal. He was not.
SIGNS OF TROUBLE
For most kids and adults the playing of video and computer games can be fun. For some, however, it can become a their whole world. If you believe you or someone you know has a problem here are some telltale signs to look for:
1) Spending all their free time on the game - A normal person may spend a few hours or maybe even a whole Saturday playing their favorite game, but an addict will spend all their time on the game.
2) Falling asleep at school or work - Many of us may be tired at work or school once in a while. The video game addict will be tired just about every day from staying up late nights engaging in their habit.
3) Poor grades or performance at work - A sure sign of a video game addict is the start to fail in other areas of their life.
THE GAME IS LIFE
One of the worse problems with a video game addict is the addict starts to live their lives around the game. One game addict was playing a simulation game online so long that his real wife accused him of having an affair with his "online wife." People with a game addiction may start to talk about characters in the games they play as if they are real people they go interact with on a daily basis. Almost more real they the people they work or go to school with.
KNOWING THE REAL DANGER
Most addicts don't realize the real danger they are putting themselves in every time the get back on the game. For an addict the world becomes as real as the world they are trying to escape. What started out as a way to live out a fantasy has turned into a real world. A world were they are more then a character on a screen but a real person in a life or death situation. Meanwhile back in real life they are losing everything: family, friends, and everything that use to mean something to them.
BREAKING THE HABIT
So what can the addict do to bring themselves back from the brink of self-destruction? Turn the game off for a while, but that is easier said then down. What the addict needs is to go out into their real world for a while and leave the gaming world behind. With the help of their loved ones they can break the habit.
