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New clinic to help those addicted to gaming |
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Written by asap
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Friday, 09 June 2006 |
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AMSTERDAM, Netherlands — Get the shakes when you step away from “San Andreas”? Losing track of friends and family as you try to get that elf to level 60?
It may be time for video game detox.
An addiction center is opening Europe’s first such clinic for game addicts in July. The program will run four to eight weeks.
Like other addicts, gamers are often trying to escape personal problems, said Keith Bakker, director of Amsterdam-based Smith & Jones Addiction Consultants. When they play, their brains produce endorphins, giving them a high similar to that experienced by gamblers or drug addicts. Gamers’ responses to questions even mirror those of alcoholics and gamblers when asked about use.
SYMPTOMS: Bakker has already treated 20 patients, aged 13 to 30, since January. Some show withdrawal symptoms, such as shaking and sweating, when they look at a computer.
A REFORMED GAMER SPEAKS: Hyke van der Heijden, 28, a graduate of the Amsterdam program, started playing video games 20 years ago. By the time he was in college he was gaming about 14 hours a day and using drugs to play longer. “For me, one joint would never be enough, or five minutes of gaming would never be enough,” he said. “I would just keep going until I crashed out.” Van der Heijden says he has been drug- and game-free for eight months. | Only registered users can write comments.
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