Internet Addiction Disorder: You May Be Crazy If...
Published July 24, 2008
Yep, you may be crazy. No, I can't read your mind, or see you drooling through your computer screen, but I still insist you may be crazy. Do you want to know how I know? It's simple — you're reading this! Besides me pulling your leg, some people - maybe it's your parents or your spouse or even some scientists and researchers - want you to think that you are crazy if you spend too much time on the Internet. Do you think you're crazy?
For the sake of argument, let me rephrase that question: Do I think I'm crazy? (Notice I didn't ask if you think I'm crazy. That would be too easy. I just ask the tough questions.)
Maybe you can help me answer that question, however. Here’s my typical day: First things first, I get the coffee brewing, then head right in to my ‘office’ to fire up the computer. I'll run back to the kitchen to grab a cup of coffee and head back to settle in front of the computer. (I won't tell you what I do on the computer; that would take all day.) Sooner or later, nature calls or my coffee cup is empty, whichever comes first. I get that taken care of, then I'm right back here in front of the computer relieved and with a fresh cup of coffee. Nature/coffee call #2 is when I notice hours have gone by, guilt sets in and I go feed my animals and myself. Then, it’s back inside to my computer, toting another cup of coffee. This pattern repeats itself all day. Every day. Without fail.
Just to give you a little perspective, I've had this desk chair for years. It has holes worn in the seat of it. The stuffing is flattened. It has no back support. My butt bones sit on board. But, the wheels still roll, and if I lean back, it reclines. Sort of. Put it this way, I'm not sitting in luxury here.
So, do you think I think I'm crazy? Well, I suppose I am a bit crazy, but it's not because of the time I spend on the Internet. "No" is the correct response, okay? (Just humor me if you would.)
- Internet Addiction Disorder: You May Be Crazy If...
- Published: July 24, 2008
- Type: Opinion
- Section: Sci/Tech
- Filed Under: Sci/Tech: Computers, Culture: Society, Sci/Tech: Internet
- Writer: Theresa Komor
- Theresa Komor's BC Writer page
- Theresa Komor's personal site
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Comments on this articleComments
Good article.
I was going to write a longer comment but I've gotta run and check out my auto forum, and then there's my RSS and craigslist and eBay for some shopping and some email I've gotts answer...
@ mc - I think the reason I looked into IAD and wrote about it was because as soon as you even mention the word 'addiction', all sorts of panic buttons are pushed. It just is not a legitimate mental health disorder!
@ bliffle - I think you're just as crazy as the rest of us! In that good way, of course!
Thank you for your comments!
Theresa
Off a little but not entirely off subject, there was a show on CBC radio that recently discussed the art of writing letters and what it meant to people.
Is this a form of communication that will die off permanently?
My name is Alessandro and I suffer from Invertigopius: A dizzying disorder within a degrading disorder.
Impossible to detect or cure.
I think you'll be ok, Alessandro. Take two aspirin and call your doc in the morning.
Lately, I've noticed that Wired and other popular Internet magazines have picked up on IAD and insist it is a real disorder. It is not. Someone decided to loosely copy the symptoms of Gambling Addiction and called it IAD. Again, it is not a true, mental health disorder.
Theresa
Eric D. Snider's Blog
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(O)only the top half of the picture. The rest of it -- which may regret xseeing -- is after the jump.
(E)entry was posted on Tuesday, July 29th"Hu-"#, 2008 at 9:19 pm and is filed under Photos. (F)follow any responses to entry through the 2.0 feed(mr.gabby lopez & mrs.santos-concio). (L) leave a response, or trackxback from site.
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Hello Theresa: I thoroughly enjoyed your article and found it to be thought provoking. Just because IAD exists does not mean a mental illness is lurking around somewhere. Or maybe it is or is not. Who knows. Only he knows and he is probably not going to tell or maybe she knows and she is not telling. We must be gender neutral, huh.
mc