Treating China's online addicts

**Adam** · 11th October 2005, 02:00 AM

Wow, hehe

Quote:

The internet is taking China by storm, with millions of people logging on in record numbers and web cafes busier than ever.

Internet addiction is reaching epidemic proportions in China

Rising personal wealth means more people are able to buy computers or pay to go online. The vast majority are young people using the net to chat or play games.

But behind the boom, there is a downside.
Wang Yiming, 21, is a self-confessed internet addict, one of a growing number in China. He used to spend hours online each day, often going without food or sleep. His face is drawn and sallow.

He said addiction changed his whole life:
"A month or two after I started surfing the internet, I failed some of my school tests, but I was too afraid to tell my parents. When my father found out, he was very angry.

"But I couldn't control my addiction. Friends were also telling me that I was on the net too long, but I thought: 'It's my life, I can do what I want.' I became a real loner, was withdrawn, and wouldn't listen to anyone."

The clinic provides medical treatment and therapy

For help, Wang Yiming went to China's first internet clinic, a low-rise, anonymous building in central Beijing.

All 15 patients when I visited were young men - the main social group affected by this problem - and they all told a similar story of how their addiction to the net destroyed their lives.

The clinic itself is part of a bigger addiction centre also treating those hooked on alcohol or drugs. The internet addicts go on a two-week course involving medical treatment, psychological therapy, and daily workouts.

The latter are a key part of the programme. Many of the men have spent every waking moment in front of a computer screen and have never experienced regular exercise.

Dr Tao Ran, head of the clinic, said the scale of the problem in China was enormous:

"Every day in China, more than 20 million youngsters go online to play games and hit the chat rooms, and that means that internet addiction among young people is becoming a major issue here.

"And it's only recently that the authorities have started to wake up to the seriousness of the problem with more articles in the papers highlighting the dangers of going online for too long," he said.

Rising demand

The clinic is getting an extra 200 beds next year to meet demand and new centres are due to open in other major cities like Shanghai and Guangzhou.

But the programme only lasts two weeks, followed by minimal after-care.

Many have their doubts about the long term, like one patient's mother.

"The work of the doctors here at the centre has been very important, but of course I'm still worried," she said.

"I admire the doctors for what they have done so far and all we can do is follow their advice and knowledge to help our son," she said.

All the men know this centre is just the beginning. Now they must return to the outside world and the real test for these computer addicts.
And with millions of Chinese logging on every day, it is likely that the country's first internet clinic is going to have its hands full.

Flutter · 11th October 2005, 03:14 AM

Ohhh so I can strap that to my head and be online all the time and still do all the RL stuff I am supposed to do??
Cool Beans!

**Dra'ki Areese** · 11th October 2005, 06:05 AM

so this is my problem.... here i was thinking i was just a lazy SoB with no life.. turns out im addicted... I wonder if i qualify for government aid now

**Adri** · 11th October 2005, 01:14 PM

What, exactly, is that thing on that guy's head??? And what is that nurse about to plug it into!

My daughter and her classmate had to pair up for sciene class and design a product that people might want/need/actually have in the future. They came up with the idea of a computer implanted into your arm, with the screen being under the skin of your palm, and the keyboard in the forearm. A small device by the elbow allows you to charge up and provided wireless net service. Reading that gave me chills. It is all too easy to see something like that happening one day.

11th October 2005, 06:05 AM	#3
Dra'ki Areese Slave to emptiness Join Date: Dec 2002 Posts: 343 Gold: 71 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Treating China's online addicts so this is my problem.... here i was thinking i was just a lazy SoB with no life.. turns out im addicted... I wonder if i qualify for government aid now I've never figured out how to be gracefully humble without appearing weak. Nor have I figured out how to be gracefully passionate without appearing arrogant. In the end, I always seem to be arrogant and weak instead of humbly passionate.

11th October 2005, 01:14 PM	#4
Adri Wearing metal panties in a lightning storm Join Date: May 2004 Shard: Pacific/Landroval Posts: 3,761 Gold: 5,810 My Mood: Thanks: 177 Thanked 93 Times in 65 Posts Awards Showcase Total Awards: 2	Re: Treating China's online addicts What, exactly, is that thing on that guy's head??? And what is that nurse about to plug it into! My daughter and her classmate had to pair up for sciene class and design a product that people might want/need/actually have in the future. They came up with the idea of a computer implanted into your arm, with the screen being under the skin of your palm, and the keyboard in the forearm. A small device by the elbow allows you to charge up and provided wireless net service. Reading that gave me chills. It is all too easy to see something like that happening one day. We are all broken and wounded in this world. Some choose to grow strong at the broken places. --Harold J. Duarte-Bernhardt Thanks to Atlas for the fantastic sig!

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