GAF - News - China Opens Clinic for Online Game Addicts

News - China Opens Clinic for Online Game Addicts

Posted by Luke Campbell at 05:13:58 AM EST on 7.7.2005.

We often hear news of people becoming so addicted to online games that they neglect their personal lives, sometimes to the point of death, be it their own or a child's. To combat this problem, the first officially licensed clinic for treating online gaming addicts has opened in China.

"All the children here have left school because they are playing games or in chat rooms everyday," says the clinic's director, Dr. Tao Ran. "They are suffering from depression, nervousness, fear and unwillingness to interact with others, panic and agitation. They also have sleep disorders, the shakes and numbness in their hands."

China promotes use of the Internet for business and educational purposes, but popular internet cafes are becoming hotspots for negative activity, causing the authorities to close down certain locations. Cases that some may remember include the couple whose World of Warcraft obsession lead to the death of their child, and the man who killed a friend over the sale of an MMO item. Despite these cases, internet cafes still continue to grow in popularity in China.

Dr. Kimberly Young has studied internet addiction, and she is not surprised with the internet-related problems in China. "They are catching up with a lot of our technology, and certainly at that juncture, are now able to run into some of the same difficulties," she said.

At the government-owned clinic, a dozen nurses and eleven doctors tend to the patients. Most patients are between the ages of 14 and 24, and they've become shamelessly addicted to the internet. Some come of their own free will, but others are taken there by family members. Most patients say their addiction stems for a desire to escape everyday stress.

Dr. Tao Ran, the clinic's director, estimates that as many as 2.5 million Chinese are currently suffering from internet addiction.

"As the number of the Netizens grows, the number of the addicted people will grow as well, but we should not worry about the issue too much," says Kuang Wenbo, a professor of mass media at Beijing's Renmin University. "The young men at the age of growing up have their own problems. Even if there was no Internet they will get addicted to other things."

Some patients were willing to offer up self-analysis:

A 20-year-old man who spent 10+ hours each day playing games said, "I wasn't normal. In school I didn't pay attention when teachers were talking. All I could do was think about playing the next game. Playing made me happy, I forgot my problems."

A 21-year-old had been in the clinic for 10 days said that he was indeed escaping from life pressures, including academic stress brought on by his family. "I would stay up for 24 hours. I would eat only in front of the computer," he said.

Tao's team has a set of tests in place to determine whether or not a patient is addicted. Then they have a combination of medication and physical activity which is employed to help ease patients back into "normal" life. The cost of the clinic is $48 day, but considering the average weekly income in China is $20 per week, the clinic is not cheap.

Tao says the treatment seems to be successful, but once patients leave the clinic, it may be difficult to keep them from returning to their old habits. However, moderation may be the key. One patient said, "It would be hard to give it up completely. I'll take it step-by-step."

Now if you'll excuse me, I gotta meet up with my WoW guild for a raid... or ten.

Source: Shacknews

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Comments

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drizzt 7.12.2005 at 06:44:07 AM

1 ticket to china please.

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drumlord 7.9.2005 at 08:06:05 PM

It could be taking it too far, but remember that you are dealing with a psychological problem. Some psychological problems are actually related to chemical imbalances. I would imagine the medication is probably advised when known mental illnesses are found, such as panic disorder, ADHD, etc.

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lizard_axe 7.7.2005 at 08:10:44 PM

"Then they have a combination of medication and physical activity which is employed to help ease patients back into "normal" life."

Medication? That's kind of scary. I think they're taking it a little to far there.

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eeveegou 7.7.2005 at 06:07:15 PM

I think it's an excellent idea. I attend college and I found that a lot of kids there tend to neglect their school, only to have to pay back large financial aid checks due to the excessive use of online games. I really can't place blame on the games themselves, but I do think that there should be an advisory when you load the application. I have no idea what it should say, but perhaps they should really put one there just so the company itself doesn't get into any trouble from their consumers' excessive use. It's a lot like how cigarette companies need to place advisories on containers. I'm just glad people are doing something about it, and I am more pleased that people with the problem are seeking help.

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balbanesbeoulve 7.7.2005 at 04:33:09 PM

sejarki-

http://games.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/07/01/1824229&tid=10

Last week. I'm right. You're wrong.

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abercrombie 7.7.2005 at 04:07:12 PM

This an great idea, hopefully the gamers and China can confide in this!

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jekku 7.7.2005 at 12:34:36 PM

n_n I hope it is successful.

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sejarki 7.7.2005 at 10:25:38 AM

"This is like a week old."

liar.