Internet addicts are already going to «rehab»

A hospital of USA offers medical treatment to patients who abuse technology. The program lasts ten days and is “disconnects” of the digital world.

If you can’t live without looking at your profile on Facebook either Twitter, a hospital in the United States offers help. Technology has penetrated almost all areas of daily life. Addiction to social networks or devices is becoming more and more real and is being recognized by mental health professionals.

The Regional Medical Center Bradford, Pennsylvania, provides a rehabilitation program to treat internet addiction. The psychologist Kimberly Young, who created the program and is an expert in the field, told The Huffington Post that inquiries about this type of problem are more frequent. In response to high demand, he developed a treatment that requires a 10-day hospital stay for adults over 18 and costs $14,000.

in the first 72 hours hospitalization, patients are “detoxifies” from Internet. During their stay, interns also participate in group therapy, undergo psychological evaluations, and learn how to interact with technology in healthy ways. “It’s like food addiction; instead of learning new ways to eat, they are taught responsible use of the internet”Young told The Huffington Post.

The doctor reports that, in general, he sees patients who spend excessive time gambling online, on porn sites, social networks or even shopping on eBay. However, he points out that “there is no typical internet addict”. As with drugs or alcohol, addiction can affect anyone, regardless of age, gender, or socioeconomic status.

Young makes his diagnosis after a 20-question questionnaire he developed (“Do you feel restless, moody, depressed, or irritable without using the internet? Do you stay online longer than initially planned?”). However, it highlights that the patient must also have a dual diagnosis, with another psychiatric disorder, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, depression or anxiety, to receive a diagnosis of Internet Addiction Disorder.

The average mobile user checks their device every six and a half minutes (which is 150 times a day), according to a recent HuffPost/YouGov poll. In turn, a 2012 study found that 66% of people are afraid of losing their cell phone, while another report from the University of Maryland found that even college students forced to disconnect from their devices for 24 hours experience physical symptoms and psychological withdrawal symptoms, similar to what drug addicts feel.

Related note: These habits can cause your tiredness, here.

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