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This week the World Health Organization (WHO) declared Gaming disorder as an official “thing”. I hope and pray that “sex and love addiction” will not be far behind. Imagine we substitute playing Warcraft for 8 hours straight with looking at porn for 8 hours. Better yet how about 8 hours setting up a “hook up” on tinder, the back page or Craig’s list. How about blowing off work to sit in a strip club all day or cruse in your car in a seedy part of town all hours of the night looking for a sex industry worker to offer you a “date” in the front seat of your car, risking arrest, HIV and physical assault all while your wife and kids are home asleep.. If you can step out of the box for one moment you can see that the powerlessness and unmanageability is all the same at the end of the day. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) was years behind declaring alcoholism as a disease. Many died not being able to seek treatment. They seem to always behind the curve. Hopefully now, we got next!

Enjoy the read.

Like your video games a bit too much? WHO thinks you might have ‘gaming disorder’

The World Health Organization is planning to add the term “gaming disorder” to its official list of diseases in 2018, according to a draft of the organization’s 2018 International Classification of Diseases.

The WHO’s description of Gaming Disorder says that those who are afflicted are characterized by a pattern of persistent or recurrent gaming behavior, either on digital devices like smartphones or video-gaming offline on machines.

This isn’t the first time video game addiction has come up in an official capacity. In 2013, The American Psychiatric Association (APA) considered “internet gaming disorder” as an entry in its DSM5, and listed it in its Conditions for Further Study section.

The APA describes internet gaming disorder as similar to gambling addiction, in which affected individuals don’t have control over their impulses to continue participating in said activity. This specifically has to do with online gaming though, whereas the WHO’s gaming disorder includes offline gaming.

The ReSTART Addiction Center is nondescript by design. The modest, five-acre compound, just a short drive from Microsoft’s campus in Redmond, is not marked by any signs. The main house is set far back on a private drive. With wide lawns, a communal dining room and an away-from-it-all atmosphere, Restart resembles hundreds of similar retreats where people escape their everyday lives and work to re-center themselves.

But Restart’s clients are not working out drug or alcohol issues. Restart is the first Internet addiction treatment center in the United States. And, if current research on the issue is any indication, it’s the first of many.

Computer/Addiction Screen (CASH)
By Dr. Hilarie Cash, Ph.D., founding member of the reSTART program.
reSTART Internet Addiction Recovery Program is located in
Fall City, Washington 98024. For more info call (866) 575-7526 

Dr. Hilarie Cash, is a psychotherapist and the chief clinical officer at reStart.

Here is what to look for (3-4 yes responses suggest abuse; 5 or more suggest addiction)

  • Increasing amounts of time spent on computer and internet activities
  • Failed attempts to control behavior
  • Heightened sense of euphoria while involved in computer and internet activities
  • Craving more time on the computer and internet
  • Neglecting friends and family
  • Feeling restless when not engaged in the activity
  • Being dishonest with others
  • Computer use interfering with job/school performance
  • Feeling guilty, ashamed, anxious, or depressed as a result of behavior
  • Changes in sleep patterns
  • Physical changes such as weight gain or loss, backaches, headaches, carpal tunnel syndrome
  • Withdrawing from other pleasurable activities

The reSTART Model

  • Instilling hope, inspiring connection.
  • Increasing connection to what matters most to each individual
  • Reconnect to the activities of life
  • Participate in a community of like-minded individuals for support
  • Improve overall physical, emotional and overall health and well-being
  • Reduce the risk factors leading to problematic use

What does it take to change?

If you know someone who fits this profile please seek help.
Never forget, misery IS optional!