Playing video games for hours on end has landed a 16-year-old boy in the hospital in Delhi. He is now being treated with medications and psychotherapy at the BLK Super Speciality Hospital for being "distracted, irritable, and disinterested" when kept away from internet games
“Video gaming addiction is hypothesized to be an excessive or compulsive use of computer games or video games, which interferes with a person’s everyday life,” according to Wikipedia. However, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) has concluded that there is not sufficient evidence to officially recognise video game addiction as a mental disorder.
In the case of the patient from Delhi, he was not only behaving aggressively towards his mother but also performing poorly in school. His frequent binging at odd hours led him to put on around 10kgs in less than six months. He had even begun socially isolating himself so that he could spend more time gaming, according to media reports.
His rehabilitation programme allows him to play for two-three times in a week for two hours as a sudden complete withdrawal can be extremely tough to cope with. Doctors are also using psychotherapy to ensure that he participates in more social activities.
