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Online Addiction

Ask Yourself

Have you ever...

  • Neglected real life to spend more time online?  
  • Spent more time online than with your family and friends?  
  • Had people complain to you about the amount of time you spend online?  
  • Had your academics or work suffer because of the amount of time you spend online?  
  • Become defensive or been secretive about what you do online; or hidden how long you have been online?  
  • Anticipated the next time you would be online or spent more time online than you had planned?  
  • Thought life without the Internet would be boring and empty?  
  • Spent late nights logged on, missing valuable sleep?  
  • Fantasized about being online or the next time you would be online?  
  • Yelled at someone who bothered you while you were online?

If you answered yes to just one of these questions you may have an online addiction problem.

 

Did You Know?

  • “More than 70% of men 18 to 34 visit a pornographic site in a typical month.” (ComScore Media Matrix)  
  • “Statistics show that over 6% of online users may suffer from an addiction to the Internet.”  (Center for Internet Addiction Recovery)  
  • A Washington Post Study found that 8% “said they used the Internet as a way to escape problems” and 14% reported they “found it hard to stay away from the Internet for several days at a time.”

 

How to Stay Safe

 

Parents and Children

  • Limit the amount of time your child can be online.  Have clear rules and consequences.  Reinforce the consequences.  
  • Have the computer in a central location in the home—not the child’s bedroom—to help monitor activity.  Remember, it’s not always about trusting your child,  but trusting the strangers that will come through the computer to your child.  
  • Encourage your child to do other things to pass the time—sports, hobbies, or cultural pastimes.  The child should be as socially active as possible.  
  • Be a good role model.  
  • If your child has or develops a problem, get them professional help.
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