Addiction — it comes in many forms and can quickly destroy your life and all that is dear to you. We all know it forms an integral part of our lives in the 21st century, but have you ever wondered if you may be addicted to the Internet?
Sure, the Internet has certainly made our lives easier in many ways, allowing us to instantly learn breaking news, stay in touch with friends or buy practically anything you need with the click of a button. However, always being connected perhaps makes it a little too easy to constantly receive and send information, and for some people it can turn into a serious dependency problem.
Japanese news site Excite News recently ran an article based on the online manga (comic) series titled “The Manga Introductory Guide to Psychosomatic Medicine” (Manga de Wakaru Shinryo Naika) published by You Mental Clinic, in particular an episode dealing with Internet addiction. According to the article, the manga episode lists 10 signs that indicate you may be addicted to the Internet. So, do any of them apply to you?
10 Signs of Internet Addiction
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You often realize that you’ve been online longer than you intended or thought.
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While using the Internet, you often find you can’t stop and go offline, even when you think it’s time you should.
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You find yourself choosing to spend time online rather than with other people.
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Even when there’s something you know you have to get done, you find yourself connecting to the Net first.
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There have been instances when the quality of your work or studies has suffered due to time spent online.
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You’ve made new acquaintances through the Internet.
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Being online helps to calm your everyday worries and relieve stress.
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You find it very annoying or upsetting when you’re interrupted while online.
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Without the Internet, your life as you see it would be boring and empty.
- During your daily routines, you often can’t stop thinking about the Internet.
If you answered “yes” to five or more of the statements above, the article says there’s a chance that you may be more dependent on the Internet than is healthy. The scary part is, quite a few of them sound like they could apply to anyone, or at least a good many number of people, don’t they?
The article goes on to mention that in China, where Internet dependency is seen as becoming an increasingly serious social issue, one criteria used to diagnose Internet addiction is if someone spends an average of six hours or more online daily other than for work or study. Now, six hours may sound like an awfully long time and you may think that there’s no way you could be spending that much time connected to the Internet. While that may be true, it’s also quite possible that you’re actually online each day for a longer amount of time than you think. With smart phones allowing people to go online anywhere anytime, those short spans of time spent checking e-mails or tweeting can pile up. If you think you may be a little too fond of the Internet, it may be a good idea to keep accurate track of exactly how much time you’re spending online each day.
And what should you do if some of the signs listed above seem to apply to you? According to psychiatrist Dr Yu Yuki, who is quoted in the article, it’s naturally important for anyone with a dependency issue to first realize that a problem exists, so simply acknowledging that you may be dependent on the Internet is a step forward.
The next step would be physically keeping yourself away from the Internet, maybe by forcing yourself to go outdoors or to go see friends and family and basically staying away from computers and mobile devices whenever you feel the urge to connect to the Internet. Hmm, that sounds like it may be easier said than done, particularly with all the communication devices we’re surrounded by, but then, of course weaning yourself from any kind of dependency can’t be expected to be easy.
If the list does make you pause for thought, though, it may not be such a bad idea to take some time to think about how much time you really want to be spending time in the virtual world, because hopefully, the “real” world also has much joy and delight to offer you.
Source: Excite News Read more stories from RocketNews24. -- Online Game Addiction -- Learning Language Through Nonsense -- Housewives: Why Carefully Managing Your Husband’s Money Leads To A Happier Home
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21 Comments
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nath
You know you're addicted online when you write things like these, when they know the symptoms themselves.
Time and again, a new "10 signs that you may be addicted" comes up ... whether it's regarding surfing, online games, social networking, adult stuff, whatever's out there. So it's not new news anymore, just re-worded and re-cycled.
Kimokekahuna Hawaii
I am on line reading this instead of interacting with real people
SauloJpn
That's 10 for 10. Guess I need help... Ok, I wonder where I can find some help... I know on the net!!!
TheDevilsAssistant
Isn't numbers 1-4 saying the same thing?
Moonraker
You’ve made new acquaintances through the Internet.
Moonraker
Clicking in the wrong place, like I just did above, might be another sign of impatience associated with addiction.
What is wrong with that? What would I do each morning other than acquaint myself again with those familiar monikers and avatars on the Japan Today discussion boards?
Mocheake
I'm addicted to being addicted.
wanderlust
Another simplistic article... most work nowadays means that you are connected to some sort of network, e.g. the internet, a LAN, an intranet, etc..
Checking emails - could be working. On-line - could be working, researching, studying, ordering some goods, PR, marketing, business communications, paying a bill, uploading a file, etc.,
Perhaps the author is meaning to focus on social media interactions, some which can also be work!
And I won't even start on Cloud computing..which means a permanent internet connection!
Yubaru
So I guess I am not addicted to online versions of surveys that come out on JT. However I am addicted to watching TV cop shows on the net, and watching sports...but then those aren't covered by the survey so I am safe.
nath
How to tell if you're addicted..."you often find you can’t stop"
What genius wrote this?
There is no such thing as Internet addiction. There is such a thing as bored people lacking in willpower.
You find yourself choosing to spend time online rather than with other people.Some of the people I know I would choose to sit in a dark room crying with sick on the floor rather than spend a moment longer with them than I'm contractually obliged to.
Yubaru
Just like there is no sex addiction too right? Or pachinko, or gambling, or alcohol, or drugs?
Xeno23
Addiction LOL. This is just practice for when the Internet is in our heads...
Cos
It's not addiction when there is no problem. If you take precautions against STDs and unwanted pregnancies, you'll find willing partners, nobody gets hurt. Idem for internet, Why would you want to be cured ?
They ruin yourself and your health. Seriously, in Europe, they had a team of doctors that did an experiment with a group of "internet addicts" and they tried to rehab them... but, they found that nobody was addicted at all. Nearly all these persons were unemployed, on sick leave or students with very hours of class. When they became busy with something else, they'd all drop the internet activities. Their real problem was finding a job.
Yes, they have lots of idle people. They were playing mahjong in parks, now on Internet.
When the internet doesn't work, I don't use it. I don't care. I have a game with little balls you try to fit in the holes, that can take all day too.
Maitake
I challenge some of the posters here to stay away from JT for a few days. Bet you can't!!
TheDevilsAssistant
Cos, LoL!!!
Maitake
Oh no! I'm addicted. Oh no! Oh no! Oh no!
akkk1
Sign me up for internet anonymous!
Tessa
Not necessarily. I think some people really do become addicted. It starts out as a harmless way to pass the time, and rapidly escalates into an all-consuming obsession.
Look at all those ridiculous "mommy bloggers" out there who spend seemingly every waking minute online, chatting back and forth with people they'd never know if they passed on the street. You have to wonder when they find any time to do any actual mommy-ing. One of them admitted to me (online, naturally) that she knows she's overdoing it when her two small kids tug her sleeves and ask for food. Seriously, if a housewife spent several hours a day on the phone chatting with complete strangers and ignoring her kids, people would say she had a problem, all right. A big problem.
cubic
Rapan
Most all of my time spent on the net is in securing deals to make a living. I joined FB etc. for the same reason. You won't find me posting about what I had for lunch. My value as a star on the social media stage is slim to none and I like it that way.
HonestDictator
I think I'm guilty of 1, 6 and 9 (I watch TV online, play video games online so I don't have a TV or cable except for internet service only...)... but otherwise seems things are just fine.