Are you a net addict?

I am not ashamed to say that I am a blogging addict. Blogging is also addictive for many (like me). I could continue with this hobby(blogging) from a long time because I love to read and write the blogs and surfing the net is always an interesting task for me. Blogging is not a full time job for me, as I am an educator as well, and I realize that I could save myself from disadvantages of net addiction due to my profession.

If you think that you net surfing is your pastime and you are not addicted to it, then check these facts and figures and think seriously about it.

Internet Surfing addiction refers to the over involvement in the integral part of Internet activities like chatting blogging mailing online gaming etc.

According to the Stanford University School of Medicine Study, 1 out of 8 Americans suffer from Internet Addiction, 14% of respondents found it hard to abstain from Internet use for several days; 5.9% said excessive Internet use affected their relationships; 8.2% said the Internet was a means of escape from the real world.

Internet addiction is currently classified by mental health professionals as an Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), a mild to severe mental health condition that results in an urge to engage in ritualistic thoughts and behavior, such as excessive hand washing or, in the case of the Internet, Web surfing.

A senior (psychiatrist) lecturer at Tel Aviv University, Dr. Pinhas Dannon is known worldwide for work in the area of gambling and addiction, a major research focus for him since 1995. He groups internet addiction with other extreme addictive disorders such as gambling, sex addiction and kleptomania.

Two groups are at greatest risk from Internet addiction disorder, Dr. Dannon warns. The first are teenagers. But more surprisingly, the second are women and men in their mid-50s suffering from the loneliness of an “empty nest.” The symptoms of Internet addiction in both groups are vague and are often difficult to diagnose. Sufferers may experience loss of sleep, anxiety when not online, isolation from family and peer groups, loss of work, and periods of deep depression.

The main important types of internet surfing addiction are:

-Chatting addiction
-On line shopping addiction
-On line business addition
-On line banking addiction addiction
-Downloading addiction
-On line movies addiction

SYMPTOMS OF INTERNET SURFING ADDICTION

Some important symptoms are
-Person may feel lonely without internet.
-Aggressiveness when anybody disturbed while working on internet.
-Unusual disputes with friends and colleagues
-Always try to keep ourselves lonely.
-Problem with sleep

A useful resource for addictions: 'Addiction Treatment' aims to help you and your family the best and most suitable way possible.

More resources and articles:

* Net Addiction.com is from 'The Center for Online Addiction' offering hope and valuable resources to those seeking information about Internet addiction.
You can take an important quiz or test from the site to measure the level of your addiction. More about this online test:
The Internet Addiction Test is the first validated and reliable measure of addictive use of the Internet. It is developed by Dr. Kimberly Young, the IAT is a 20-item questionnaire that measures mild, moderate, and severe levels of Internet Addiction.

- Internet Addiction Test (IAT)

* Is net addiction a disease?

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Net addiction"- A new kind of addiction, symptoms and treatment!