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Is there such a thing as internet addiction?

Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
Hey guys ;)

Well, I've 'seen' that some psychologists have come up with 'computer addiction' and 'internet addiction' - but really is that just another label for a normal thing or is it a serious issue. The reason I ask is because, whenever my PC breaks down I get soooooo much done (converting the garage into workshop in one day, woo!) and feel really good for it. Then the PC comes back online (it's my main hobby) and I spend so much time on it it's ridiculous. Must be 70+ hours a week :(.

I feel bad about it, but the thing is even now as I type this it's 'hard' to just turn it off.

Sigh. Reduces willpower to zero.

Comments

  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I'm not sure but i know exactly what you mean. If for some reason the internet is out or my pc is broke i feel like i can get loads done, ill tidy my room (and the rest of the house!) sort out old junk, organise and label cd's and everything.

    The internet does consume a lot of time on.. well not much really to be fair. I find that most of the time im just sat here waiting for someone to talk on msn or something. Maybe setting a daily allowance for the net would motivate you. whilest getting anything you need to do on the pc done?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Not sure about an internet addiction as such but i also know how you feel.
    I've spent the majority of my Christmas holidays on the net, i think its just the ultimate precrastination tool. I've got 2 essays and a business plan to be doing as well as a hell of a lot of reading but i've done none of these instead choosing to sit around watching tv shows online or checking facebook/here. Rubbish isn't it.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    When I was at school age I spent my life on it - 10+ hours a day 7 days a week. My parents got very worried, but they didn't stop me using it. I suppose I just grew bored of it eventually and decided to cut down. Getting a type of RSI didn't help *later found out it wasn't RSI but a genetic condition, but spending less time online did help!*....

    If you're worried, talk to someone (real, not online) ;)
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    yes there is.

    I had one about 8-10 years ago, I would stay up all night long to chat to my friends from around the world, even at the peril of college and work.. come home, sleep for a couple of hours, then get back online all night

    day in day, for years, literally.

    Horrendous state of affairs.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    :yes: ... pretty much like you can be addicted to anything.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    It's getting to the point where I'm considering selling / getting rid of my PC. :grump:

    Not going to mess up Uni over a stupid attatchment to a stupid machine.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    ShyBoy wrote: »
    Must be 70+ hours a week :(.
    Given you're a student, I'm just surprised it's not higher than that. :p

    I did Computing Studies for a year when I started my A-Levels. I was working with a group, and we had to produce a report on the pros and cons of the Internet. Whilst randomly searching Google on a boring Thursday afternoon, we came across something called Internet Addiction Disorder. When our lecturer first heard about it, he was convinced we were just making it up!
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    yessssss..especially when i'm at uni as im always on facebook cuz i miss my friends
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    When I was at my worst I was agitated at times when offline because I wanted to be online in case some of my buddies were around. I spent all my free time online. Ended up losing out on social maturity that I had to catch up with later on, I still don't feel fully fledged. (Depression didn't help with my situation)

    I'm still pretty bad today, but I've 'grown up a bit' in my addiction. As in, I can go without for a few days if I need to. I however often experience that I don't get stuff done or delay doing stuff I need to or even really want to do because I'm wasting life online.

    Sometimes I try to chop things up. If I read x many pages or something I allow myself to check stuff y online or chat for z mins. That way I'm still getting things done in small bits.
    What's also helped me tremendously is to turn the computer off if I can (was harder at uni!!). If it's turned off the temptation isn't as strong. When on I always have the excuse that I really need to 'just check this or that'.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    There is totally such a thing. I'm glad in many ways that I don't have the net in my flat, as it means when I go home I relax, read books, watch DVDs, cook, etc.

    I associate the internet with being at work. I did have the net in my old house for a while, and I would stay up really late just looking at nothing, and then end up tired at work.

    The internet is a good thing in many ways such as shopping, chatting, etc, but it's not a replacement for real life interaction. It's very bad for the eyes to spend endless hours on it as well.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    katchika wrote: »
    There is totally such a thing. I'm glad in many ways that I don't have the net in my flat, as it means when I go home I relax, read books, watch DVDs, cook, etc.

    I associate the internet with being at work. I did have the net in my old house for a while, and I would stay up really late just looking at nothing, and then end up tired at work.

    The internet is a good thing in many ways such as shopping, chatting, etc, but it's not a replacement for real life interaction. It's very bad for the eyes to spend endless hours on it as well.

    It's funny you should say that.

    I had an appointment with the opthomalogy dept. at Leicester Royal Infirmary this morning because I'm getting funny bouts of vision loss in one eye.

    I missed it, cos I was on the PC last night. Only got myself to blame though.

    On the good side, today I've been forcing myself to be productive, and have got a fair few bits done. The guilt of not doing anything just got too much.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    i dunno about anyone else, but i find that having information on pretty much everything in the world quite distracting
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