Internet Addiction Disorder - Symptoms, Causes and Treatment

Internet addiction is a new type of addiction disorder, in which the addicted person uses the internet on a daily and excessive basis.

Internet addiction interferes with his daily life and with the duties and functions he has to perform. This addiction puts full control of life, relationships, and works of the addict, and negatively affects him and creates a kind of tension and anxiety.

How to prevent yourself from internet addiction disorder

Internet Addiction Disorder - Symptoms, Causes, and Treatment

Internet Addiction Disorder

The Internet has become the focus of attention of individuals more than anything else in their lives and what has stimulated this interest is widespread in computers and the Internet in the homes.

In the era of speed and technology almost all houses are not free of Internet access and requirements, despite the advantages of the Internet; however, there are many negative aspects, notably Internet addiction disorder.

Internet addiction disorder is a global problem that is studied and sought for treatment in the most powerful countries of the world, such as China, India, Korea, and Europe, where it is causing social problems and psychological and neurological disorders that affect the life of the addict negatively and prevent him from living a normal life outside the computer screen.

In 1995, Dr. Ivan Goldberg satirically theorized Internet addiction as a disorder, comparing its original model to pathological gambling.


Although Internet addiction disorder has many effects on the body and mind,  it is not yet an officially recognized mental disorder and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM -4 and 5 ) does not consider Internet addiction a mental disorder.

Symptoms of Internet Addiction Disorder

 There is no specific behavioral pattern for Internet addicts, but some common things have emerged.

If Internet use interferes with or hinders your daily life in any way, that is, if it somehow affects your relationships with your business and your knowledge and studies, you may be suffering from the problem of addiction.

If you find yourself rushing to connect to the network when you feel bored or change your mood, then you may be on your way to addiction, because what distinguishes addiction is not only the number of hours spent on the Internet, but the nature or purpose of use.

Other symptoms of Internet addiction may include:

• Excessive use of the Internet, and a constant desire to stay connected on the network.
• Lying about behavior when connecting to or hiding the network, and inability to control these behaviors.

Some major symptoms of Internet addiction are:

• Sitting for hours in front of a computer without restrictions.
• Feeling anxious and upset as soon as the internet connection is interrupted.
• The focus of the person's conversation on the Internet and related to it.
• Lack of interest in daily and functional duties and social relations, and it is preferred to use the Internet on them.
• Neglect of problems and failure to solve them.
• Sleep disturbance and confusion and wake up intermittently.
• Escape from daily problems and stress of life.
• Neglect other hobbies and focus on using the Internet.

Some examples of dangerous behavior caused by Internet addiction include:

• The survival of a lonely person does not know anything about the reality where he is completely separated from him.
• The heightened level of psychological arousal.
• Lack of sleep or Insomnia
• Failure to eat for long periods.
• Lack of interest in physical activity.
• Mental health problems such as depression, OCD, anxiety, and low family relationships.
• Health problems such as back pain, neck, eyes.
• Impulse control problems.
• Substance use disorders, such as alcoholism or drug abuse.
• The failure of various social relations and marriage in the forefront.

Due to lack of knowledge and poor ethics about culture and civilizations, he believes in whatever he sees on social media and comments and discusses those who are different from their upbringing, habits, and culture. As a result, it increases the negativity about them.

Causes of Internet Addiction Disorder

Internet addiction can be understood and analyzed by comparing it to other types of addiction.

For example, alcoholics and other addicts drink alcohol and other drugs, they feel they are normal when they are abused and they reach a state of euphoria. 

This is also true of online addiction, where addicts use internet excessively to feel normal, to reach euphoria or happiness through cyberspace and leave social and physical relationships and take phantom social relationships online and replace the deep and warm feelings arising from social relations, to live the temporary senseless feelings.

Internet addiction follows the formative nature of other types of addiction.

Internet addicts struggle to control their lives, feel frustrated when they fail, and lose their self-confidence, forcing them to flee and dive more into their addiction and cyberspace.

Treatment of Internet Addiction Disorder

The state of addiction may develop on the Internet and need to be treated by a psychiatrist, but most people prefer not to resort to this solution.

How to prevent yourself from internet addiction

The best ways to get out of addiction are:

• Limit your attention to a single application at a time.
• Delete the addictive apps off your phone.
• Block out distracting websites for a set amount of time. 
• Focus on single tasks for 25 minutes apiece. 
• Maximize focus while shifting between different tasks. 
• Specify certain hours for Internet use
• Be careful to organize your time.
• Create projects for yourself.
• Set aside reading time. 
• Rearrange the Family Room Furniture.
• Make it a rule that you can't be online if the sun is shining.
• Use “do not disturb” or “airplane mode” to silence incoming distractions.

Put your phone on greyscale so you aren't as enchanted by the colorful graphics.

Seek serious assistance from responsible persons and experts before the situation worsens and the problem further deteriorates.

Get support and encouragement from family, friends, and relatives interested in a person's interest.

Stay away from accessing the Internet through mobile phones to reduce Internet usage hours, because of the use of the Internet at this time through phones.

Force the addict not to use the Internet all day of the week, tell him to identify himself to the lack of use on the weekend, or postpone the use of time and prioritize other priorities.

The addict puts himself on external and involuntary restrictions and barriers such as: to use the Internet before going to work or school by an hour so that it is linked to an appointment to end the use of the network immediately.

The addict should restrict himself to a specific time to access the Internet.

Refrain completely if its use is related to certain areas, such as chat and pornography sites.

Conclusion: 

Internet addicts are advised to integrate with others and try to stay with them for as long as possible. If you feel addicted to the Internet, you should undergo treatment immediately so that the problem does not get worse.