Psych Observer – Exposing Bad Psychiatry

I was watching the news with my father earlier tonight and I couldn’t help but to see this latest story about how psychiatry is trying to classify the excessive usage of an E- device, like Blackberry, I-phone, Email,SMS,etc as a mental illness.

Dr Jerald Block mentions the four symptoms: suffering from feelings of withdrawal when a computer cannot be accessed; an increased need for better equipment; need for more time to use it; and experiencing the negative repercussions of their addiction. that can indicate someone being an addicted to the cyberspace world.

Let’s go over this shall we?

1. suffering from feelings of withdrawal when a computer cannot be accessed

• Sure when someone isn’t happy with their lifestyle of choice (depression) they will ultimately search for another another source like entertainment, like the computer for instance. People uses the Internet for variety of reasons, Some are for good reasons and some are for bad reasons.

2. an increased need for better equipment

• This has got to be the most silliest symptoms to describe an addiction to cyberspace. Do I need to say more? I better not upgrade my hard drive or I’ll be labeled with a mental disorder! People have the right to spend their money on their passions of computers without feeling guilty and fearing that their going to get labeled as having a mental disorder by the Pseudo-psychiatrists.

3. need for more time to use it

• After spending a lot of money on upgraded 3D graphics cards, a good hard drive, including faster processors and so on you’re obviously going to be wanting to spend more time to discover how your computer is. If you finally had the money to spend on a 2008 Ferrari 430 Scuderia, wouldn’t you want to spend more time with your new toy? I think it would be insane to leave it in your garage untouched.

4. experiencing the negative repercussions of their addiction

   Sure! If you choose to sit on the computer all day, nothing gets accomplished.

I wonder what the treatment for this new addition addiction? I get it! medication Drugs! Get more people hooked on psychiatric drugs so the pharmaceutical companies along with psychiatry can make more money off of fake illnesses.

Reported by NEWS.com.au

March 23, 2008 11:03am

PEOPLE who send excessive texts and emails may have a mental illness, according to an article in a leading psychiatric journal.

As more people leave the office computer, only to log on as soon as they get home, the American Journal of Psychiatry has found addiction to text messaging and emailing could be another form of mental illness.

The article, by Dr Jerald Block, said there were four symptoms: suffering from feelings of withdrawal when a computer cannot be accessed; an increased need for better equipment; need for more time to use it; and experiencing the negative repercussions of their addiction.

Dr Block said that although text messaging was not directly linked to the Internet, it was a form of instant messaging and needed to be included among the criteria.

“The chief reasons I see to consider it are motor vehicle accidents that are caused by cell phone instant messaging, stalking and harassment via instant messaging, and instant messaging at social, educational, (and) work functions where it creates problems,” he said.

“It should be a pervasive and problematic pattern, though, not isolated incidents.”

Leanne Battaglia, 21, said she would not classify herself as being clinically addicted to online communication, but could see how quickly the problem could develop.

“It’s become a way of life now, but I don’t think it’s at that stage yet,” Ms Battaglia said.

Despite sitting at a computer all day, the sales consultant admits she will often log on again when she gets home.

“I use it almost every night and during the day. I’m pretty much always on Facebook, eBay, ninemsn and gossip sites.”

Ms Battaglia also sends about 20 text messages a day.

“I swear by my mobile, it’s like a security blanket. I just feel really bare without it,” she said.

Dr Robert Kaplan, a forensic psychiatrist at the Graduate School of Medicine, University of Wollongong, said he first saw a case of internet addiction in 1998.

Since that time, he has noticed a steady increase in the disorder among Australians.

According to a report titled Media And Communications In Australian Families 2007, the average child spends about one hour and 17 minutes on the internet each day, with teenagers aged 15 to 17 spending an average of 30 minutes sending text messages and another 25 minutes playing online games.

“I think in general it’s escalating,” Dr Kaplan said. “We now all live in an internet world, and it brings with it a range of problems.”