Gaming Disorder is an official illness by WHO

[3kCle]

Doesnt know difference between withdrawl symptoms, and depression symptoms smh....

Or you just don't know the difference between a comparison and a metaphor

 

[HeavyNorse]

Doesnt know difference between withdrawl symptoms, and depression symptoms smh....

Oh yes I do. Felt both on my own body, and still am.
Ignoring the real issue and just waving it off as something is partially why I am still struggling with the things I do, because back when I started having these symptoms, it wasn't something you spoke about. It wasn't something you showed other people. And getting the help to get over it was far more difficult than it is today. Which meant that instead it just got bottled up, ignoring them, until it exploded because I couldn't contain it anymore.

I'm sorry that you're not willing to be open-minded about this and instead choose to turn away from it. Hopefully the people around you, wife/partner, children, family and friends have other less ignorant people to go to for help if something like this hits them.

 

[Rpgz]

Oh yes I do. Felt both on my own body, and still am.
Ignoring the real issue and just waving it off as something is partially why I am still struggling with the things I do, because back when I started having these symptoms, it wasn't something you spoke about. It wasn't something you showed other people. And getting the help to get over it was far more difficult than it is today. Which meant that instead it just got bottled up, ignoring them, until it exploded because I couldn't contain it anymore.

I'm sorry that you're not willing to be open-minded about this and instead choose to turn away from it. Hopefully the people around you, wife/partner, children, family and friends have other less ignorant people to go to for help if something like this hits them.

I meant the other guy calm the fuck down. im not trolling u, im trolling the troll.

Also most my family and friends are dead plz dont talk about them or bring it up.

 

[HeavyNorse]

I meant the other guy calm the fuck down. im not trolling u, im trolling the troll.

You quoted and responded to me, and I reacted accordingly. Don't be an asshole.

 

[Saboteur-6]

Opioids create physical dependence for abusers...so no they arent the same...smh...if you dont understand that im just gonna ignore u...good luck! Youve been added to my ignore list TROLL POSTER!!!

Nah homey welcome to mine.

 

[Rpgz]

You quoted and responded to me, and I reacted accordingly. Don't be an asshole.

I ignored the other guy, so sorry, but takes one to know one...sorry m8.

 

[Rpgz]

Nah homey welcome to mine.

Plz ignore me Im only here for video game tips u fuggin casuals

 

[Zoidberg747]

No offense, but some people have a pretty simplistic understanding of how addiction works. Maybe read up a little bit more on the subject before spewing out false statements.
By that 'logic' I'm assuming gambling addiction doesn't exist either.

Trying to make people understand mental illness is like trying to break through a brick wall. Not worth the effort.

Ah yes, we're just like animals but we can think! We are nothing like animals, we not only have superior cognitive abilities but we also have a conscience and the ability to rationalize.

Not sure if you have any training in psychology, but I do and you are calling me a stupid millennial (indirectly I guess but still) when you are trying to blame addiction on the products people get addicted to. The problem comes from the person themselves IF you get addicted, you have deeper issues and deeper problems you're using this addiction to hide/ignore. What does ignoring issues come from? Laziness! Something that is actually the biggest problem that people have today.

Video games don't destroy people's lives, people LET video games destroy their lives.

You are grossly oversimplifying the problem.

A big part of the creation of this classification is kids in China/Korea who drop out of school and do nothing but play games, specifically MOBAs or mobile games. These games are made to incentivize grinding a lot of matches in order to rank up. A lot of these people aren't running from anything or using games as escapism. They get addicted to playing and want to rank up so they throw their lives away playing the game. You don't have to be using video games as escapism to get addicted to them, especially when games themselves are prioritizing ridiculous grinds to keep their playerbase numbers high. League of Legends is a prime example of this. The whole ranked system is designed so that it takes hundreds of games before you get to your true rank. When each game takes 45 minutes you can see how it can be easy for people to get carried away.

Obviously in some cases you are correct that people use video games as escapism (although calling issue avoidance "lazy" is oversimplified and definitely not very helpful). I'm also not saying that games themselves need to change necessarily, a lot of those addicted are young and don't have very good impulse control (which is why China and other countries are trying to limit how much games young people play, not saying I agree with this tactic btw). But to say that video games themselves have nothing to do with the addiction is disingenuous and not really reflective of the current situation.

 

[TackyHaddock]

I can't play MK right before going to bed anymore. Mind gets overactive and repeats images/sequences like a broken record preventing me from falling asleep often for many hours.

Pretty much can only play in the morning, afternoon or early evening with a substantial buffer period for bed

 

[Hot_DNA]

LOL.. some of these comments.. Most of the people who talk about opiods/drugs have no clue what they are talking about... For a living I'm forced to be around addiction..I been around addiction users/sellers on a weekly basis for the last 10 years.. Go to my IG: PhillyHousingProjects and you will see... It is a bad comparison video games and heroin....Some addictions are physical and some are mental... A better analogy could have been used BUT you can become addicted to ANYTHING.... Most people start addictions to escape some facet of life... There is NOTHING in the world that you can not become addicted to

 

[Saboteur-6]

Trying to make people understand mental illness is like trying to break through a brick wall. Not worth the effort.



You are grossly oversimplifying the problem.

A big part of the creation of this classification is kids in China/Korea who drop out of school and do nothing but play games, specifically MOBAs or mobile games. These games are made to incentivize grinding a lot of matches in order to rank up. A lot of these people aren't running from anything or using games as escapism. They get addicted to playing and want to rank up so they throw their lives away playing the game. You don't have to be using video games as escapism to get addicted to them, especially when games themselves are prioritizing ridiculous grinds to keep their playerbase numbers high. League of Legends is a prime example of this. The whole ranked system is designed so that it takes hundreds of games before you get to your true rank. When each game takes 45 minutes you can see how it can be easy for people to get carried away.

Obviously in some cases you are correct that people use video games as escapism (although calling issue avoidance "lazy" is oversimplified and definitely not very helpful). I'm also not saying that games themselves need to change necessarily, a lot of those addicted are young and don't have very good impulse control (which is why China and other countries are trying to limit how much games young people play, not saying I agree with this tactic btw). But to say that video games themselves have nothing to do with the addiction is disingenuous and not really reflective of the current situation.

Thanks for this. I wanted to post something similar about the correlation of the article to China/Korea as well as exploitative mechanics in games engineered to behaviorally reinforce a "grind mentality" but I'm at work lol. Spot on though.

Video games (especially mobile and RNG games) lean heavy into operant conditioning under the guise of "replayability" and "loot drops" to exploit people to sink tremendous amounts of time into the game and often find ways to monetize aspects of that process. It's predatory and it pisses me off and has infiltrated game design at an unprecedented level.

 

[Vslayer]

agreed with ..... the power of choice , this gift that God gave to us, can be used to goodness or evil .... life is all about choices, decisions .... decisions .... hehe ..... even not making nothing to solve a problem, it's a decision on itself so, a choice you decided : "I decide to not decide about solving that issue, hehe" .....

Exactly! We have free will of our lives. Sure addictions can take over, but if you're addicted to gaming and gaining weight, it means you're addicted to food too, which means the issue is addictions and other underlying issues, not the games and not the food.

 

[xenogorgeous]

Exactly! We have free will of our lives. Sure addictions can take over, but if you're addicted to gaming and gaining weight, it means you're addicted to food too, which means the issue is addictions and other underlying issues, not the games and not the food.

yeah yeah, never put on external facts the consequences of your bad choices in life ... if you are addicted to something, its because you chose to not struggle against it, not fighting against, and just went lazy and weak mind against a serious problem that demanded all your will power , in order to be overcomed ..... you have the power to say yes or no for things that make you suffer, right ?

if you allow yourself to be dragged out to your own hell , it's only and exclusive your fault, your decision to be a fucking loser in life ....

 

[Vslayer]

Trying to make people understand mental illness is like trying to break through a brick wall. Not worth the effort.



You are grossly oversimplifying the problem.

A big part of the creation of this classification is kids in China/Korea who drop out of school and do nothing but play games, specifically MOBAs or mobile games. These games are made to incentivize grinding a lot of matches in order to rank up. A lot of these people aren't running from anything or using games as escapism. They get addicted to playing and want to rank up so they throw their lives away playing the game. You don't have to be using video games as escapism to get addicted to them, especially when games themselves are prioritizing ridiculous grinds to keep their playerbase numbers high. League of Legends is a prime example of this. The whole ranked system is designed so that it takes hundreds of games before you get to your true rank. When each game takes 45 minutes you can see how it can be easy for people to get carried away.

Obviously in some cases you are correct that people use video games as escapism (although calling issue avoidance "lazy" is oversimplified and definitely not very helpful). I'm also not saying that games themselves need to change necessarily, a lot of those addicted are young and don't have very good impulse control (which is why China and other countries are trying to limit how much games young people play, not saying I agree with this tactic btw). But to say that video games themselves have nothing to do with the addiction is disingenuous and not really reflective of the current situation.

Underlying issues could be an addictive personality disorder as well and other mental illnesses like anxiety and depression, which is what it is most of the time.

I went through this myself, I had a really bad gaming addiction and once I took care of my dependency for alcohol, when I got rid of my social anxiety, when I got rid of my general self-hatred,I realized that I have the control and that I should take control, not the console or the game. I'm saying this so you can see that I'm not talking out of my ass when I talk about addiction, not to mention I studied this field in university.

If you have a problem and you're ignoring it, it IS absolutely a form of laziness and that's the product of technology and how kids and teens are basically babied until they're adults. And when they're adults, they can't do anything by themselves because they didn't have real life experiences and their parents did/do everything for them.

The problem, again, is NOT video games. Sure they're MADE to keep you grinding, but anyone that doesn't have an addiction problem can just say "F this I just want to play for fun" and not grind 16 hours a day. The problem is addiction itself, at the core of it and how you deal with it. And how most people deal with addiction is childish and reckless, they ignore it and in turn, they get addicted to other things (gambling, food, porn, etc.,) which in turn will lead to depression and anxiety.

 

[VSC_Supreme]

Jeez this thread quickly descended into the usual shit flinging on whether addiction is or isn't a disease, and if one addiction is worse than others. It's great that everything in life is so black and white.

 

[xenogorgeous]

Jeez this thread quickly descended into the usual shit flinging on whether addiction is or isn't a disease, and if one addiction is worse than others. It's great that everything in life is so black and white.

yep, we are all shitholes giving our inflamed biased personal opinion here .... that what make it so fun, hehe

 

[Saboteur-6]

yep, we are all shitholes giving our inflamed biased personal opinion here .... that what make it so fun, hehe

It actually helps to expose people I don't want to actually know or interact with. Side bonus.

 

[Vastly]

We need to ban everything that creates the possibility of addiction! I'll see you in my freshly built hut alongside an amazing local river in my town. I'm going to plant veggies and a fresh herb garden! I am going to spend countless hours gardening and cultivating the best produce that anyone has ever see...crap, gardening just got banned.

 

[Zoidberg747]

We need to ban everything that creates the possibility of addiction! I'll see you in my freshly built hut alongside an amazing local river in my town. I'm going to plant veggies and a fresh herb garden! I am going to spend countless hours gardening and cultivating the best produce that anyone has ever see...crap, gardening just got banned.

Who is talking about banning video games? What's the point of bringing something up that no one has even remotely discussed?

 

[TyCarter35]

Honestly if it's affecting ur life too much u sometimes just need to stop. I dropped Injustice 2 abt a year ago because it was starting to piss me off and more stressful than it should be (I mean playing Aquaman only does that to u) Point is that if gaming is stressful and ur not even doing it for money than it's probably not worth all the trouble quite frankly. It's just my 2 cents

 

[Zoidberg747]

Underlying issues could be an addictive personality disorder as well and other mental illnesses like anxiety and depression, which is what it is most of the time.

I went through this myself, I had a really bad gaming addiction and once I took care of my dependency for alcohol, when I got rid of my social anxiety, when I got rid of my general self-hatred,I realized that I have the control and that I should take control, not the console or the game. I'm saying this so you can see that I'm not talking out of my ass when I talk about addiction, not to mention I studied this field in university.

If you have a problem and you're ignoring it, it IS absolutely a form of laziness and that's the product of technology and how kids and teens are basically babied until they're adults. And when they're adults, they can't do anything by themselves because they didn't have real life experiences and their parents did/do everything for them.

The problem, again, is NOT video games. Sure they're MADE to keep you grinding, but anyone that doesn't have an addiction problem can just say "F this I just want to play for fun" and not grind 16 hours a day. The problem is addiction itself, at the core of it and how you deal with it. And how most people deal with addiction is childish and reckless, they ignore it and in turn, they get addicted to other things (gambling, food, porn, etc.,) which in turn will lead to depression and anxiety.

Addiction is a form of mental illness. If you are going to tell me that all mental illness can be overcome without outside assistance, then you are being ignorant and there is no point in continuing this conversation. I'm not even trying to be mean, i'm just telling it like it is (to reiterate, SOME PEOPLE can solve their mental illness issues by themselves, many absolutely cannot). Maybe i'm misunderstanding you here, but people that are addicted to the point of having a disorder cannot overcome it themselves a majority of the time because their brain chemistry is fucked, same for people with severe clinical depression or panic disorders.

Technology certainly can make people lazy and addicted (i'd go as far to say more people are addicted to social media in the west than video games). I don't really agree with the age thing, as most boomers and older didn't have to deal with nearly as much debt and or rent costs which makes it hard for even qualified professionals to make a comfortable living in major cities. Regardless I don't really see this as relevant.

I call Bullshit on your last paragraph. You said it yourself, the games are made to be addicting. How are they at no fault for getting people addicted? It's not all on the game developers, and people with addictive personalities would likely find something else to be addicted to. But some of the blame falls on predatory practices, just like some of the blame for people addicted to smoking is on the tobacco industry for their predatory practices. No one is arguing for games to be banned. But calling out developers for intense grinds would benefit everyone, not just those who get addicted.

 

[Vslayer]

Addiction is a form of mental illness. If you are going to tell me that all mental illness can be overcome without outside assistance, then you are being ignorant and there is no point in continuing this conversation. I'm not even trying to be mean, i'm just telling it like it is (to reiterate, SOME PEOPLE can solve their mental illness issues by themselves, many absolutely cannot). Maybe i'm misunderstanding you here, but people that are addicted to the point of having a disorder cannot overcome it themselves a majority of the time because their brain chemistry is fucked, same for people with severe clinical depression or panic disorders.

Technology certainly can make people lazy and addicted (i'd go as far to say more people are addicted to social media in the west than video games). I don't really agree with the age thing, as most boomers and older didn't have to deal with nearly as much debt and or rent costs which makes it hard for even qualified professionals to make a comfortable living in major cities. Regardless I don't really see this as relevant.

I call Bullshit on your last paragraph. You said it yourself, the games are made to be addicting. How are they at no fault for getting people addicted? It's not all on the game developers, and people with addictive personalities would likely find something else to be addicted to. But some of the blame falls on predatory practices, just like some of the blame for people addicted to smoking is on the tobacco industry for their predatory practices. No one is arguing for games to be banned. But calling out developers for intense grinds would benefit everyone, not just those who get addicted.

I never talked about people overcoming addiction alone, what are you going on about?

Okay so clearly you are using the words 'changing chemicals in your brain', but you don't know what that means. Not saying this to be a bitch, but I got the B.A in psych here, and it's clear you don't. You can influence tryptophan and serotonin by consuming certain things, anything that will activate the pleasure centers of your brain, like eating or even a hobby you like. Anything that gives you pleasure and satisfaction will do that. So any addiction-based disorder, just like the 'gaming disorder', can and will cause one of these chemicals not releasing effectively or too much, which causes anxiety or depression, which is the underlying issue of why people get addicted in the first place. So to curb the addiction, you need to first fight the anxiety and depression and then the addiction will more than most likely disappear along with it because the amount of serotonin and tryptophan will be normal again unless they give you pills which is a whole other ball game.

 

[NeonGroovyGator]

This subject doesn't even need to come down to being a healthcare worker or understanding how the brain works.
It should just be about having the humility to understand that your experiences aren't everybody else's experiences, and what works for you in your life doesn't work for everyone else.
Do you have an iron will? Are you A B O V E getting addicted to something? Congrats, have a cookie. Not everyone is. Some people need assistance. Telling someone with a mental illness to "get their shit together" or "make better decisions" most definitely doesn't help, and if you're not helping, it's generally better to be quiet.
Do you know who you tell to make better decisions? That cousin who's 30, unemployed and abuses your aunt's generosity to fuck around all day and do nothing else. That's the person who might benefit from a reality shock.
Being someone who at the same time struggles with a mental illness and is almost graduating to be a healthcare professional, that kind of attitude is what drives people away from seeking help and worsens the problem. Stop.
Sorry if I was rude, but honestly, both being told for 7 years to just make better decisions and "get better" and seeing patients get treated the same way and never coming back to continue their treatment, STOP.

 

[CrimsonShadow]

Anyone who knows real addiction would know that it's not what the top players in this scene are doing to level up.

Actual addiction is a disorder and isn't just "Gonna grind MUs 8 hours a day so I can make Top 8 at EVO"

There were a couple of people who actually died in Asia because they were glued to their chairs grinding MMOs and didn't eat or properly sleep for days. That's a true case of clinical addiction.

 

[Zoidberg747]

I never talked about people overcoming addiction alone, what are you going on about?

Okay so clearly you are using the words 'changing chemicals in your brain', but you don't know what that means. Not saying this to be a bitch, but I got the B.A in psych here, and it's clear you don't. You can influence tryptophan and serotonin by consuming certain things, anything that will activate the pleasure centers of your brain, like eating or even a hobby you like. Anything that gives you pleasure and satisfaction will do that. So any addiction-based disorder, just like the 'gaming disorder', can and will cause one of these chemicals not releasing effectively or too much, which causes anxiety or depression, which is the underlying issue of why people get addicted in the first place. So to curb the addiction, you need to first fight the anxiety and depression and then the addiction will more than most likely disappear along with it because the amount of serotonin and tryptophan will be normal again unless they give you pills which is a whole other ball game.

The way you phrased your post was "I did this, then I did that". It read a lot like the people telling how they were depressed and then "pulled themselves up by their bootstraps" and beat their depression by themselves. It seemed like you were saying you did those things all by yourself, if you were talking about going to a professional to help/fix those issues then I agree that is key to overcoming things like addiction and other mental illnesses. My bad for misunderstanding if that's the case.

And as far as the changing chemicals in your brain thing yes I am referring to medication which is sometimes necessary for extreme forms of mental illness because there is such a chemical imbalance that the person's actions aren't going to change the nature of the illness. Some addicts can and will be able to break their habits by themselves or with therapy, but there are some that will have to medicate. Those cases are why the WHO is making this classification, this is not about some 16 year old who pulls all nighters. It's about people ruining their lives or even dying because they have an addiction disorder.