Addiction Of Electronic Gadgets - Treatment, Symptoms and Causes

The modern era is defined by scientific innovations and gadgets have made life simpler and a comfortable one. Gadgets cover each and every facet of our life and have resulted in an overbearing dependence on them. Consider the smart phones which have revolutionized the way we interact with people and have penetrated into every facet of our lives especially the kids. Kids, today, do not have social circles but indulge in social networking. They don’t go out to play as they interact with everyone from the comfort of their homes. This device seemingly offers them the world and they latch on to it and never let go. Have you ever seen a kid whose phone signal 15 percent battery is left; the anxiety, the sense of despair and hopelessness that comes when the phone’s battery actually dies? This behaviour can’t simply be categorized as dependence but has to be categorized as an addiction. It may seem harsh given the importance of the devices but the behaviour of complete submission to this device shows consistency with that of an addict and hence has to be categorized in that manner. This is particularly common among children especially those born in late 90’s and early 00’s as they have not known a time when these gadgets were not around.

The main reason for this sort of addiction is that these gadgets form a very large part of our lives in the modern day existence. These gadgets are readily available without any restrictions on usage be it in terms of age or time.

Moreover they seem to be very fulfilling at first especially for kids who do not have to make much of an effort to establish connections (however unfulfilling they might be). In fact the causes f the addiction are the same reasons which make these gadgets useful i.e. the increased productivity it ensures and the ease and speed with each it makes the services available to us.

Another reason could be understood by taking into account the safety of anonymity and security for m socially awkward situations that these agents provide. One never has to go through a bad conversation and can easily avoid a difficult conversation if their only medium of contact is internet. But it becomes very difficult to do so in real life and this why it is so addictive. It allows us to project how we want ourselves to be and not who we are.

The symptoms of gadget addiction involve risks that engulf our physical and psychological well being apart from our social life. Some of them are enumerated below:

• This sort of addiction is usually accompanied by dramatic mood swings and aggression. This can easily be seen when one has to submit their phones and especially in kids where they seem restless when one asks them to stop using their gadgets.
• The social networking in the virtual world leads to them being involved in it even when real people are around .
• It could lead to posture issues and eye problems
• Insomnia is often a symptom in these cases

The next question comes is about treatment which becomes incredibly pertinent in these cases as the source of the problem is an important part of modern existence. One can’t just keep the stimulant in this case out of one’s life because it does fulfil various utilities of modern day life.

One of the core issues that can be addressed especially in cases of children is the parent gets involved in the life of child and offers the kid the most important thing that is there; time.

Kids could be given phones with basic functionality so that it is used for only the purposes for which it was intended i.e. communication.

It should be understood that the most important thing is to keep things in check in a very friendly manner and being too much of a disciplinarian can lead to undesirable outcomes.

How does one prevent addiction to something that is all encompassing and ever present in our lives? It presents a Catch22 situation and it must be understood that the usage in itself is not bad but over bearing dependence to the point that it starts affecting one’s life is. Some ways to prevent these particularly in kids are as follows:

• Children look up to the parents and it’s up to them to set appropriate behavioural standards to look up to.
• Limit your viewing times and schedule outdoor activities.
• Strictly avoid usage of phones when it’s not necessary and at social events like dinner with friends

Withdrawal refers to a very characteristic reactionary process through which the body goes when the stimulus to which it was 'used to” is removed from the equation. These symptoms can be listed as follows:

• Irritability
• Craving
• Depression
• Restlessness
• Anxiety
• Guilt or shame

This is not an exhaustive list and it must be understood that these gadgets form an indispensable part of our lives and it is not advised to put a complete stop to it but it is recommended that the usage must be as deemed fit.