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Identifying and Treating a Video Game Addiction

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Video games, like most things, are good in moderation. Play through an evening, kill some time, wind down after work or school or whatever. And like other things that are good in moderation, video games can be abused and overused.

Video game addition is the compulsively excessive playing of video games. This pathological gaming often interferes with other aspects of the person’s life, such as their social life. Symptoms of a video game addiction include:

  • Choosing to play instead of seeing friends
  • Falling out of social groups
  • Irritability or depression when not playing
  • Being more concerned with game interactions over other aspects of their life
  • Suffering hygiene or health, significant weight loss or gain
  • Falling grades, falling behind in school or other responsibilities
  • Lying about game use
  • Other physical symptoms such as headaches, eye strain, carpal tunnel syndrome, dry eyes, and sleep deprivation
  • All free time is spent gaming

Video game addiction has been shown to be detrimental to the addict’s health. In rare cases, this addiction can kill either the addict or people around the addict. Some treatments or preventions:

  • Limiting play-time before any addiction manifests
  • Addiction treatment centers or counseling
  • Enrolling child in extracurricular activities to fill their time and entertain them
  • “Wilderness therapy programs”

There’s nothing inherently wrong with video or computer games – like there’s nothing inherently wrong with alcohol, food, sex, exercise, probably marijuana, medications, or shopping. An addiction – be it substance or behavioral – is a psychological or physiological dependence on something. Treatment may need to be done carefully, but it most definitely should be done.

Filed Under: Computers, Games Tagged With: , ,

How to Recognize the Signs of a Gaming Addiction in Your Child

Video games are part of the western culture. Children are being raised surrounded by technological advances that your parents and even you may not have had exposure to. It is only natural that children want to partake in technology, particularly video games. Video games are fun and rewarding, but can also be addictive.

Before you panic, know that it is normal for a child to want to play hours on end, particularly on the weekends when he doesn’t have responsibilities related to school or work. It is normal to want to play games. It is not normal when video games overtake your child’s life. There are signs to look for when determining whether or not your child has a gaming addiction:

  • Your child becomes enraged when he cannot play video games. He will likely get upset if he can’t but there is a fine line between being irritated and being over-emotional about the lack of gaming time.
  • He hides gaming time from you after you have laid out guidelines for play time. You will find that he will play at a friend’s house when they are supposed to be studying or calling off of work so he can finish a level.
  • His friends don’t call as often and you notice a lack of social time. Most children will have video game time and time outside the home with friends. If your child is increasingly becoming more of a home-body, it is time to talk to him.
  • Gaming interferes with school work. It is easy to procrastinate about homework and play a video game. Children usually turn around when their grades start to slip or after a parent-teacher conference about their grades. Addicts won’t care about grades.

If you have difficulty determining these signs, seek the help of an addiction specialist.

Filed Under: Games, Parenting Tagged With: , ,

Gaming Addictions

Today’s people are very sportive. They keep themselves busy in one way or another. Kids are among them too. The best way to keep one healthy is through some physical work. Physical work means the one involving proper movement of the body and breaking up some sweat. One of the best physical works today is gaming. The term gaming addictions is usually referred to computer games but is also used for the physical type, when one tends to involve in it for too long keeping the rest of the work aside.

Game addictions are too much involvement in any particular game. While some do not care about it and just think of it as fun, there is an evil side to it. Too much of anything is bad. When people get addicted to games too much, their health condition decreases. Too much of sweat causes dehydration and results in some disorders. The muscles also begin to cramp.

There is a limitation to everything. When that boundary exceeds, it causes problems. Game addictions also decreases the useful time required for other works. Various problems arise and it leads to fatigue. So such addictions should be avoided. It also leads to lose of appetite. The other common type of game addiction is found among growing children and some adults. It is the addiction towards computer gaming.

Computer game is a virtual play field. People can control the characters in it with just the press of few buttons. But even though it is lot of fun and entertainment, it often leads to addiction. Kids keep playing it for longer duration. This is problematic as they harm their eyes due to prolonged exposure to the screens. Kids often lag in studies and other co-curricular activities when they are addicted to these kinds of things. Hence it should be avoided.

Filed Under: Games, Internet Tagged With: , ,

Recognizing the Signs of Gaming Addiction

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Online games can be a lot of fun. In many cases, playing games occasionally can help with brain development, eye-hand coordination and logic skills. But if left unattended, gaming can actually turn into addiction. Many children spend hours in front of the computer playing games. They blow off homework, chores, and even friends to conquer the next level or discover a new game. For parents, this can be a very frustrating and heartbreaking experience. The important thing to remember is that there is help.

Before help can be given for a gaming addiction, it’s important to recognize the signs of addiction. Many parents may think that their child doesn’t have a problem when there is indeed a need for help. Here are some signs of gaming addiction to be aware of:

  • Gaming interrupts time with friends or family.
  • Child becomes agitated or irritated when the game is turned off.
  • Reality is distorted.
  • No longer wants to hang out with friends.
  • Fatigue, with a tendency to fall asleep in school.
  • Poor grades.

If you recognize any of these signs in your child, then it may be time for help. The good news is, with the proper help and encouragement, a gaming addiction, just like any other addiction, can be overcome. Catching the addiction early can be a real help. If you are noticing any of these signs in your child, don’t put off seeking help. You may just think that your child is enjoying the game or really interested in the game, when in fact it could be the beginning stages of an addiction. Getting help early is key to helping with addiction.

Online games can be a lot of fun and very educational. The fact of the matter is that too much of anything can be harmful. Watch your child closely and if you recognize any signs of addiction, seek help now.

Filed Under: Games Tagged With: , ,

Help Children with Gaming Addictions

Many children play online games. In most cases, playing online and video games is just fun and doesn’t do any harm. In some cases, the online gaming can actually turn into an addiction. Young children are prone to become addicted to games, especially if their gaming habit goes unattended.

If you think your child is addicted to online, computer, or video games, there is help. Like any other addiction, there are things you can do to help steer your child on the right course and get him on the road to recovery.

  1. Take the game away. It’s going to be difficult, but as the parent you absolutely must take the game away from your child. This is the first step to recovery.
  2. Replace the computer or video game with another activity. Instead of spending three hours a day on the computer, encourage your child to go outside and play soccer or read a book.
  3. Limit screen time. When you do allow time on the computer, for homework or gaming, limit the time. Set a timer and tell your child he only has 30 minutes (or the set amount of time you allow) to be on the computer. When the time is up, turn off the computer.
  4. Get counseling. In extreme cases, you may need to get professional counseling for your child. Addictions to video games formed at a young age can sometimes lead to larger addictions if left unattended.
  5. Love. The most important thing you can do to help your child is to love him. Sometimes this includes tough love, but never stop loving your child.

Computer game addictions can be very destructive if they aren’t taken care of. If you suspect that your child has a computer or video game addiction, take action now. Get the help that you and your child need to overcome the addiction.

Filed Under: Games Tagged With: ,

Controlling Gaming Addictions

With the progress of science and technology newer vistas are opening in the field of gaming. Children have always been interested in exploring things which generally fall out of the normal day to day affairs. Gaming is such an area which is loved by majority of children. As games go beyond the normalcy of the daily life and takes to you to an entirely different world, children get hooked to games easily. Games help them in thinking beyond the real life and out of the box.

Gaming is good, not only for children but for adults as well. However, getting addicted to such virtual games can be disastrous under certain circumstances. Games tend to take you away from the realities of life. In most of the games you are able to perform things which are unimaginable in your normal life. They help you in boosting your morale, however wrong it may be. Then there are also games which are not suitable for children as they focus more on violence than a child should handle. It depends a lot on the parents on how they deal with a situation where their child is getting addicted towards such games.

Fighting gaming addiction is a hard task which your child will not be able to do alone. He needs the utmost help of his parents in dealing with such a situation. Parents should make it a point right from the very beginning that such a situation does not actually occur. Letting their children play within limits from the start will prevent them and their children from facing such a situation. Keeping a note of whatever games their children are playing is another way of controlling gaming addiction. It is extremely important for the parents to know which games their children are playing the most. They should keep a check on the games resorting to violence and sex since children tend to get attracted towards such games.

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Ways to Prevent Video Game Addictions in Children

Children are being exposed to video and computer games at earlier ages. While this might seem exciting and fun to the children it can be a parent’s worst nightmare. Video and computer games can become highly addictive and without the proper parental supervision your child could easily develop a video gaming addiction. Here are some helpful tips and advice for parents to follow so that they can prevent their child from developing such an addiction.

Create Time Limits. This will encompass how much time your child is allowed to spend on the computer or playing a video game. It is a good idea to create a weekly amount and a daily amount. Time limits will limit your child’s exposure to the computer and video games and hopefully prevent gaming addictions from developing.

Watch What Games Your Child is Playing. Parents often are ignorant to what games their children are playing. It is important that you know what game they are playing, what is involved with it and what it may contain. Studies have shown that violent video games can lead to gaming addictions and aggressive thoughts. As a parent it would be a good idea to limit your child’s access to violent or sexually explicit video games. It is recommended that you actually play the video game before your child so you know what it contains. However, that is not always possible. Instead parents can rely upon the video game rating or expert reviews to see what video games are acceptable and which are not.

Encourage Other Hobbies. Try to encourage your child to develop other hobbies outside of video and computer games. Many parents require that their children have to engage in other activities such as baseball teams, arts and crafts or dance class in order to be able to play video and computer games. By encouraging other hobbies you lessen your child’s risk of developing a video gaming addiction.

Filed Under: Games Tagged With: , ,

Help Children with Gaming Addictions

Many children play online games. In most cases, playing online and video games is just fun and doesn’t do any harm. In some cases, the online gaming can actually turn into an addiction. Young children are prone to become addicted to games, especially if their gaming habit goes unattended.

If you think your child is addicted to online, computer, or video games, there is help. Like any other addiction, there are things you can do to help steer your child on the right course and get him on the road to recovery.

  1. Take the game away. It’s going to be difficult, but as the parent you absolutely must take the game away from your child. This is the first step to recovery.
  2. Replace the computer or video game with another activity. Instead of spending three hours a day on the computer, encourage your child to go outside and play soccer or read a book.
  3. Limit screen time. When you do allow time on the computer, for homework or gaming, limit the time. Set a timer and tell your child he only has 30 minutes (or the set amount of time you allow) to be on the computer. When the time is up, turn off the computer.
  4. Get counseling. In extreme cases, you may need to get professional counseling for your child. Addictions to video games formed at a young age can sometimes lead to larger addictions if left unattended.
  5. Love. The most important thing you can do to help your child is to love him. Sometimes this includes tough love, but never stop loving your child.

Computer game addictions can be very destructive if they aren’t taken care of. If you suspect that your child has a computer or video game addiction, take action now. Get the help that you and your child need to overcome the addiction.

Filed Under: Games Tagged With: ,