Understanding Gaming Addiction
For over five decades, gaming has become a multi-billion-dollar industry comprising multiple video games. Some examples include:
- Computer games
- Arcade machine games
- Console games
- Mobile games
- Online Gaming
The American Medical Association (AMA) does not recognize video game addiction as a diagnosable disorder. However, it remains a real issue that negatively affects millions of people globally.
What Is Gaming Addiction?
Gaming addiction refers to a compulsive or uncontrolled habit of video games, which affects other areas of a person’s life. This compulsive disorder is also referred to as gaming disorder or internet gaming disorder.
Gaming addiction refers to the excessive playing of video games. This behavior causes physical and mental harm and other related personality problems. People with gaming addiction are often unable to stop playing even if they need to stop.
In 2018, the World Health Organization (WHO) defined gaming addiction as recurrent or persistent gaming behavior. The WHO also accepted it as a diagnosable medical condition. In addition, gaming addiction can be described by three criteria. These criteria include:
- Lack of control when playing video games
- Making gaming a priority over other interests or responsibilities
- Lack of ability to stop playing video games
Although millions of people play video games, most of them lack an addiction to gaming, with about 3-4% having an addiction. In contrast, some experts suggest that video gaming can strengthen cognitive skills, such as memory and reasoning. This makes it an engaging social component, but moderation can be difficult.
Symptoms of Gaming Addiction
Like other addictions, video game addiction accompanies certain warning signs determining if an individual is an avid gamer. These symptoms can occur whether playing offline or online and can be physical or emotional. Some most common symptoms of gaming addiction include:
- Feeling restless, anxious, or irritated when unable to play
- Fatigue
- Poor personal hygiene
- Neglect of other hobbies or friendships
- Isolation from other people to spend time playing video games
- Migraines or eye strain due to intense gaming
- Preoccupation with thoughts of gaming, such as thinking about the next gaming session
- Inability to quit gaming or playing less within a specific period
- Using gaming to suppress bad moods and feelings
- Playing despite recognizing problems of gaming addiction
- Lying to people they care about how much time they spend gaming
- Experiencing issues at home, work, or school-related to gaming
While these symptoms may have short-term effects on the individual, some can result in severe long-term problems. For instance, an individual can suffer from fatigue and hunger as short-term effects of gaming addiction. However, these symptoms can become long-term effects and cause sleep disorders or diet-related health problems.
Common Causes of Gaming Addiction
Typically, video games are created to become addictive through behavioral psychology that keeps the player hooked to the game. Besides, games offer riveting experiences, stimulating a high amount of dopamine, while overexposure can cause structural changes to the brain. Therefore, each time someone plays increases gaming-related activities in the brain.
Gaming regularly makes the player feel in control and safe, creating a dominating environment where they are comfortable. This is among the leading causes of gaming addiction since they prefer spending time seeing measurable progress within the game. Other causes and triggers of gaming addiction include:
- Boredom
- Addictive personality
- Coping with significant stress or trauma
- Urge to escape reality
- Suffering from other diagnosable mental health conditions
- An increased amount of time spent gaming
Generally, gaming addiction can occur due to the nature of the game, mental health elements, and personality traits. Despite providing temporary comfort, video games can further intensify someone’s problems long-term.
Health Risks of Gaming Addiction
Compulsive video gaming has various adverse effects on a person’s mental and physical behavior. This incorporates multiple health risks and concerns, including:
- Lack of Social Engagement - Despite socializing virtually through gaming, most gamers focus on a social life around gaming. This affects social development and compromises identity development.
- Problems Concentrating - Gamers often find gratification in gaming and have little attention to things that require their attention. Those addicted to video games will always think about gaming when not playing, which affects their concentration.
- Poor Hygiene - With much time spent gaming, concentrating on hygiene becomes difficult. Besides, lack of hygiene on a regular basis can result in mental health complications.
- Lack of Adequate Sleep - It is easier for addicted gamers to play video games longer and in the middle of the night. This often deprives their sleep, and it becomes problematic, mainly when it occurs on work or school nights.
- Reduced Physical Exercise - Gamers who spend most of their time gaming lack regular physical activity essential for overall body health.
Treatment For Gaming Addiction
Although researchers are looking for the most effective treatment methods for addictive games, video game addiction is treatable. Thus, people with video game addiction can undergo treatment programs to manage gaming symptoms. Whether suffering from gaming-related physical or emotional health issues, rehabilitation and therapy can help ideal treatment options.
Therapy focuses on the problematic behavior of gaming to determine its origin, symptoms, and ways to integrate change. In addition, it recognizes other mental health issues or substance use disorders that might require treatment to manage gaming addiction symptoms.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is the leading therapy method for treating video game addiction. It is an approach that makes an individual replace thoughts of gaming and change their pattern of behavior. These behavioral interpolations include encouraging other healthy behaviors and creating boundaries around gaming.
However, video game addiction has no medication to manage the habit specifically, but certain drugs can help reduce specific symptoms. In addition, someone with other mental health issues or addiction diagnoses can have medication to help treat these conditions.
Get Help For Gaming Addiction at New Method Wellness
Recovering from video game addiction can be difficult since the habit can be severe like other addictions. At New Method Wellness, we offer professional therapy treatment for gaming addiction, where we help patients recover from their addiction. For more information, contact us to learn more today.
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Clinically Reviewed By:
Deanna J. Crosby, M.A., LMFT, LAADC, Psy.D. (C)
Deanna Crosby is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) with over 20 years of experience working with clients in recovery. Her expertise has catapulted her into the spotlight. Featured on several episodes of the Dr. Phil Show as a mental health expert, DeAnna is a routine contributor for NBC News, The Huffington Post, Elle Magazine, MSN, Fox News, Yahoo, Glamour, Today, and several other prominent media outlets.
After receiving her bachelor’s degree from the University of California in Irvine, Crosby did postgraduate work at Centaur University where she graduated at the top of her class with a CAADAC certification in Centaur’s chemical dependency program. Following her time at Centaur, Crosby received her Master of Counseling Psychology degree from Pacifica Graduate Institute, where she also attained a Doctoral Degree in Depth Psychology.
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