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Are you addicted?
How many emails do you send in any given day? What about text messages?
If your habits border on addiction, then pay heed: According to an article in the American Journal of Psychiatry, people who are addicted to excessive emailing or texting might have a form of mental illness. Symptoms to watch for include:
- Suffering from feelings of withdrawal when a computer cannot be accessed;
- An increased need for better equipment;
- Need for more time to use it;
- And experiencing the negative repercussions of their addiction.
I wonder if the connection extends to individuals who are “dedicated” to blog forums, and if so, what does that say about those of us who log onto WMB daily–err, hourly?
Topic: Culture, WorldMagBlog
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back to top16 Comments to “Are you addicted?”
I have a problem with describing anything other than chemical dependence as an “addiction.”
Addiction occurs when you put a substance into your body that creates an actual physical need for more of it. It’s like creating a new kind of hunger.
When you exhibit a need for e-mail or video games or pornography or anything else, that’s compulsive or obsessive behavior, but not an actual addiction.
And it’s funny how we tend to think of that term in regard to things other people do that we don’t approve of. If you play video games six hours a day, some people will disdainfully say you’re “addicted” to them. If you read six hours a day, no one is likely to say you’re “addicted to books,” and if they do, it’ll probably be intended as humor.
Medical professionals draw a distinction between addiction and habit. Heroin is addictive — people who are addicted can’t easily stop, and suffer real physical effects in withdrawal. Marijuana is only habit-forming — people who indulge might do so fairly often, but they don’t have to, and they don’t suffer withdrawal symptoms.
E-mail and texting may be subject to obsessive/compulsive behavior, but can’t be addictions by definition.
The reason it matters to me is that I think it minimizes the real harm of addiction to describe anything someone has a passion for as an addcition.
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I can quit any time I want.
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I’m not addicted. Quitting is easy, I do it dozens of times a day.
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Checking to see if anyone has responded to me. Dang, not yet.
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Stubob, do you want?
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There is also habit to consider. Many things we do are nothing more than that. We are encouraged to make good habits. I would be very uncomfortable if I could not brush my teeth before bed and would do a lot to avoid it. Does that make it an addiction or is it habit? It takes approximately 21 days to form or break a habit. It can be uncomfortable in the process and takes motivation to continue. I suspect for many of us this is all that checking email etc. is. Calling so many things an addiction is not helpful except for creating jobs for those who help “cure” the “addiction”.
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I will not post, I will not post, I will not post…
Oops
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I had to read a book for an ethics class in grad school that made the definition of addiction so broad that virtually everyone could be considered addicted to something. Basically it seemed to be saying something very similar to Christian theology – we all do wrong things that hurt ourselves and others.
I’m fine with not using addiction for habits that are not physically addicting – but you still need some kind of term for the behavior that goes beyond being just a bad habit. I have a habit of cracking my knuckles, which I realize is annoying to some people but is a hard habit to break. But someone who is a compulsive gambler has a much more serious problem.
“Obsessive/compulsive behavior” may be an apt description, but it’s a rather awkward term, plus it encompasses a very wide range of behavior. I no doubt have some obsessive/compulsive tendencies, but they do not interfere with my living a fairly normal life. Some people can barely function in society because of their obsessive/compulsive behavior. But even they may not actually harm anyone except to the extent that they make normal work and family relationships impossible. I still would like to have some kind of term to use for the destructive behavior such as compulsive gambling, eating, etc.
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How about sin?
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OK, I’m back. Did I miss anything?
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I keep checking this one to see if there are any breakthroughs but the only people on here are the obsessive compulsive addicts.
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Well, a chemical response is going on in the brain of people who can’t stop buying lottery tickets or texting, etc. So, yes, I believe you can be addicted to the computer.
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Steve @ #1: It sure sounds like you’re seeking to rationalize your ‘addiction’ to this blog.
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I’ve mentioned before. My favorite place to read is in my desk chair, and beside my desk. Unfortunately, my computer desk is beside it, like an “L”. The unfortunate thing is that it distracts me. If I don’t take a minute to blog, it may be to solitaire or free cell. I’ve never played either with a deck of cards.
StuBob. See what all you’ve missed?
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I’m a just a user. And it’s strictly for personal use, no dealing.
I’ll never be one of those “Check out my blog” dealer people. They’re scary…
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“Obsessive/compulsive behavior” may be an apt description, but it’s a rather awkward term, plus it encompasses a very wide range of behavior. I no doubt have some obsessive/compulsive tendencies, but they do not interfere with my living a fairly normal life. Some people can barely function in society because of their obsessive/compulsive behavior.
Addictive personality meaning “psychologically addictive.” Much of this has to do with the natural levels of certain brain chemicals most notably seratonin. Those who naturally have the lowest levels tend to be genetically or biologically most predisposed to OCD and psychological addiction. That’s what Prozac and like drugs treat; they help the brain absorb more of these chemicals that make people less OCD, depressed and psychologically addicted.
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