The Internet has become an inherent part of our everyday life. We use it at home, at work and in travel. However, specialists claim that being online might prove addictive.
According to recent polls, about 70% of us browse the Internet on a daily basis. It is hardly surprising, as we are able to access the Internet e.g. at work, where it is necessary to maintain the company‘s operation. However, the experts believe that as many as 14% of the population shows symptoms of addiction!
Causes
The main cause behind our vulnerability to addiction is the accessibility of Internet services. Nowadays, citizens in virtually every town can have access points installed in their homes, while mobile phone carriers have been allowing their customers to use the Internet in almost any place in the country.
The psychological factor is also of major importance. There is a plethora of interesting websites on the Internet, and social media, providing us with the possibility to contact out friends, prove to be especially time consuming. Being online gives satisfaction, a sense of security, false anonymity and means to escape the everyday life. Setting it all aside even for a short while makes the addicted feel as if they have lost something important. To those addicted, lack of Internet access can cause reactions similar to those associated with drug withdrawal syndrome.
How to identify the symptoms?
The netoholism awareness remains, regrettably, insufficient. The families of Internet addicts do not even know how to diagnose such symptoms. Fortunately, scientists were able to lend a hand. These are the main symptoms:
- overwhelming need to be online
- deteriorating frame of mind during attempts to limit Internet use
- progressively longer periods of time spent online
- neglecting other activities and interests
- continuing such behaviour, despite being aware of the problem
People suffering from netoholism often neglect themselves, as well as their friends, family, job or school. They may even experience difficulties in communication and expressing their emotions.
How to deal with it?
For those displaying very strong symptoms and major personality changes, the only reliable way is to seek the help of a professional therapist. It will include psychological treatment and reconstruction of the relations between the patients and their family and friends. The issue of netoholism is a serious one, which is proved by increasing number of treatment centres for people addicted to computers and the Internet. The simplest preventive measure is to maintain control over and to limit the use of devices with Internet access. This is especially true for parents, who are supposed to control their children and to determine the time they are allowed to spend on the computer.
Regulation is the best prevention
Children can be difficult to track of. Once they decide they want to do something, it is difficult to sway them not to – simply having a talk with them might not be enough. Even if you have every reason to trust your children, and you know they will get off the computer when asked, you can always take additional precautions. In such cases, SpyLogger surveillance software comes to your aid. What is it capable of?
It allows to monitor a computer in a completely discreet way. The application will register all pressed keys, and capture screenshots in specified time intervals. With SpyLogger you can monitor Internet communicators and social media. The administrator is also able to inspect the emails and, above everything else – track their children‘s Internet activity, as well as the games they play.
The problem of netoholism is serious already, and according to therapists, it is going to escalate over time. Nowadays, even the youngest of children have access to hi-tech devices, which, combined with the parents‘ negligence, might lead to an addiction. It is all the more dangerous, as more and more activities performed today without computers will find their way into the digital world over time.