Addictions come in varying degrees of hazards – there are some like newspaper addiction that are healthy and some others like “Internet Addiction” which could wreak havoc on one’s life. Internet Addiction is the latest malady affecting some of us and we don’t realise it!

How did this happen?
The computer and internet are both finding increasing uses in our daily lives and the more we use them, the greater the chances of getting addicted to the Net. Simply put, the internet is such a wonderful place that opens up a whole new world of knowledge and information that people often fail to notice when exactly they cross the slim line that divides normal browsing from pathological addiction.

Call it a quirk of God’s creation but man probably is the only being who has been bestowed with the faculty to think and analyse and it is he who more often than not falls prey to needless temptations and addictions. We often indulge in petty vocations for a variety of reasons but fail to realise when that simple interest metamorphises into a compulsive addiction. There was a time not too long ago when people were addicted to the Television and came to be called “couch potatos”. Technology has moved with the times and now it’s the Internet that threatens to lead the latest addiction race.

Of addictions in general…
By definition, ’’Addiction’’ refers to a compulsive feeling of using a particular product/service for a longer duration of time than what originally intends to and reaching a stage when he/she finds it extremely difficult to spend time without using it. More often than not, attempts to abstain from the addiction result in severe withdrawal symptoms and some kind of depressed feelings.

…and of Internet addiction in particular
The net has its own uses. It is a great medium to learn about unknown things, communicate with people, acts as a stress buster at the end of a tiring day and is a good source of amusement and entertainment. Some might argue that these are day-to-day activities and there’s nothing wrong in using the net for them. Come to think of it, Internet is not the only medium to communicate or entertain ourselves. There are a hundred other ways of doing them. Why then should one depend only on one particular source?

There have been instances where people had got so addicted to the net it that they preferred “e-food”
and “e-sleep” to logging off from the net and had to be carried off to shrinks in a near fatalistic state. Quite a few of us might already be half way through reaching that stage without realizing it. The difficulty arises when people strongly sense that they ought not to surf as much as they do and yet find themselves strangely unable to reduce their browsing time.

I myself went through this phase about 3-4 years ago. I had got a spanking new modem and a net connection. That was it! Yahoo and Rediff chat had me hooked for days and nights on end and at one stage, I didn’t attend office for 2 weeks in a row citing malaria…should have told my boss it was ’’Internetingitis’’ instead! I would spend entire nights chatting on Yahoo chat, sleep for a few hours early in the morning and Rediff chat would beckon me from noon again. Luckily, I realised in time that I was allowing the net to take control over my life and gradually de-addicted myself.

Where do we draw a line?
Hold it! Hold it! Internet Addiction – the very word could be interpreted in different ways by different people. A software professional might spend more than 12-14 hours a day on the net because the nature of his job might demand it. On the other hand someone who spends the same amount of time playing online games, checking mails every 30 minutes and “pataoing” girls in chat rooms at the expense of other daily activities cannot but be called a Net addict. What starts off as a small time engagement soon morphs into a long term marriage.

There’s nothing wrong in using the net to communicate and interact with people across the world because that’s one of the greatest advantages of the Internet. Thinking logically, how many hours in a day do I need to spend for checking mails and indulging in community related activities like reading/writing reviews on MS? All said and done, spending time on the net is not the only vacation for most of us, we have other mundane activities to carry out too.

To put it more directly, I’d call someone as being addicted to the net if they were to spend so much time on the net that it adversely affects their daily life and staying away from the Internet even for a single day results in some kind of restlessness. Another sure signal would be the severe pangs of “separation” when the withdrawal process begins either consciously or unconsciously.

Thus spake Cheeky
To say that the Internet has made the world a smaller place is an under statement. To say that they have replaced all other forms of communication and entertainment is an over statement. For many people, “online life” may often seem more central, more imperative and more forceful than their real life. Yes, the Internet is a helpful tool in the modern age – no two ways about it! In its easy alibi of relaxation and infotainment, the Internet can be beneficial in limited doses. All it takes is a little bit of self control to ensure that the internet does not interfere with one’s normal life.

I still browse for around 3-4 hours a day (for both office and personal work) but in no way does the Internet prohibit me from performing my mundane activities. Thankfully, I learnt of the potential hazards of Internet addiction without becoming a full time slave to it.

In the unlikely case that you feel you might be addicted to the net, try out these tests on some sites that I came across. They may not be indicative of the correct picture but no harm in checking them out for whatever they are worth.

http://www.netaddiction.com/resources/internet_addiction_test.htm

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ttp://www.stresscure.com/hrn/addiction.html