Compulsive e-mailing, texting could be classified as bona fide illness

Considering the plethora of facilities that have opened just in the past few years to deal solely with individuals that have become undoubtedly addicted to video games, the internet and all things Hello Kitty (we jest, we jest), we're not surprised one iota to hear that uncontrollably texting / e-mailing could soon become "classified as an official brain illness." According to a writeup in the latest American Journal of Psychiatry, internet addiction is a common ailment "that should be added to psychiatry's official guidebook of mental disorders." More specifically, Dr. Jerald Block, a psychiatrist at the Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, even goes so far as to argue that said phenomenon (neglecting basic drives to spend more time online) be "included in the [next edition of] Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, psychiatry's official dictionary of mental illnesses." Until then, we wish you the best of luck convincing that creature living in your basement with a dedicated T1 line that he / she isn't alright.

[Via textually]

[Jon @ Mar 17th 2008 8:17PM]

I have compulsive Engadgeting .. And the thing is in serious all my friends think so and my GF tells me i need help ... Oh do I

[bob @ Mar 18th 2008 12:55AM]

See, at least you have a girlfriend...

then there are those whose girlfriend is Engadget...

[TRAFFICBLOWS @ Mar 18th 2008 11:19AM]

Wife: "Are you on that gagdet site again?! You're not buying any gadgets so stop wasting your time!!"

Luckily she hasn't figured out where all my purchases get sent! >:->

[Jason @ Mar 17th 2008 8:18PM]

Great something else to get federal funding for.

[Kamokazi @ Mar 17th 2008 8:44PM]

Exactly...that's why all these institutes and hospitals try to get things classified as disorders and diseases...funding.

Unless there is a chemical dependency, people don't get disorders directly relating to arbitrary things. They get addicted and have a lack of self-control/discipline. There might be other things that are contributing to their addiction, like stress, anxiety, or a real mental disorder, but the actual thing they are addicted addiction ir generally irrelevant...if it wasn't e-mailing or texting it could be video games, or eating, or worse things, like alcohol, or shop lifting for the thrill, etc.

[hypereric @ Mar 17th 2008 9:23PM]

@Kamokazi:

I'm not saying this study has any validity, but your comment is quite incorrect.
Think of a jogger's "high", sex, falling in love, eating spicy food... all these things release chemicals. Granted, they are chemicals within us already, but given stories about jogger's who will still run after being told not to a doctor because of an injury, unsafe sex, serial marriages and my personal favorite, eating jalapenos until I my eyes are watering and my nose running (and then the subsequent sh!tting fire)... well, all these would suggest that there is a very fine line between "outside" chemical dependency and "inside" chemical dependency.

FWIW, I think these kind of illnesses are probably just undiagnosed OCD. Obsessive anxiety produces thoughts to contact so-and-so or the person might "miss" something, and then the compulsion is carried out by texting/emailing.

No, I am not a shrink, but I am an OCD'er who stayed in a Holiday Inn Express last night.

[Kamokazi @ Mar 17th 2008 9:52PM]

I think we're kind of on the same page...addictions can be a sign of something else...but the addiction itself is not the problem and does not deserve classified as a disorder or disease. In most cases though, I think people just generally lack discipline and self-control, and don't get 'addicted'.

[Sukhminder @ Mar 18th 2008 7:23AM]

Throw in Global Warming and you have the Holy Grail of funding.

[Mike Klein @ Mar 17th 2008 8:18PM]

Obsessive/compulsive behaviour can be a problem?!? Who woulda guessed...

[Tiptup300 @ Mar 17th 2008 9:47PM]

I know this is nitpicky but could you have ended with "!?!" instead of "..." please!?!

[~~Tito~~ @ Mar 17th 2008 8:25PM]

Whats next, Obsessive girl obsession order?

[Reader @ Mar 17th 2008 8:47PM]

Obsessive breathing.

[Ignatius @ Mar 18th 2008 12:17AM]

Obsession with WATER.

[James @ Mar 17th 2008 8:26PM]

how did my picture get on the internet....

[happy_penguin @ Mar 17th 2008 8:28PM]

I'm afflicted with compulsive board posting. I have like 18,000 posts. I won't say where.

[DarkLightConnection Unbanned @ Mar 17th 2008 8:50PM]

In the pr0n forum?

[ethana2 @ Mar 17th 2008 9:09PM]

heh.
google "happy_penguin" 1080
google "ethana2" 31,700

I win.

[happy_penguin @ Mar 17th 2008 9:18PM]

You really think I'm going to make it that easy on you two? :)

[Reader @ Mar 18th 2008 12:32AM]

Not quite...

google "Reader" 362,000,000

I believe I win much much harder.

[bob @ Mar 18th 2008 12:59AM]

@ethana2

bob: 277,000,000

its over 9000
I win.

[Carl Vitullo @ Mar 17th 2008 8:33PM]

oh come on. not everything is a disease.

next they'll say compulsive driving or something is an illness.

[Ellianth @ Mar 17th 2008 8:41PM]

When is the last time you've taken in a breath of air? Cuz you might have a problem.

/me gives carl (and everyone in the world) a prescription for compulsive breathing disorder.

[BigD145 @ Mar 17th 2008 8:45PM]

I have this tendency to always look at things. A keyboard, a computer monitor, the food on my plate as I'm eating... I think something is wrong with me.

[Reader @ Mar 17th 2008 8:48PM]

Ahh damn, someone already got compulsive breathing...

[Mike S. @ Mar 17th 2008 8:58PM]

Last I checked, driving was around for hmm.... 50 years before texting/e-mail/etc. was commonplace...

On a side note.. Where'd the original picture go?

[ethana2 @ Mar 17th 2008 9:07PM]

Driving is an illness. We have the internet now.
75% of traffic should simply not be happening.

[Carl Vitullo @ Mar 17th 2008 9:14PM]

yeah!! who goes to STORES anymore!

[kyle allen @ Mar 18th 2008 3:48AM]

doom?

[daryl @ Mar 17th 2008 8:39PM]

Let's just keep inventing diseases so the drug companies can make even more billions.

[Ellianth @ Mar 17th 2008 8:40PM]

The people who did this study should be written up for: compulsive finding compulsive disorders where there are no compulsive disorders.

There, now that I've given the disease a long name and used the world "compulsive" 3 times, my disease will be taken seriously.

[Josh @ Mar 17th 2008 8:41PM]

Why are they bothering to reclassify OCD?

[applefreak @ Mar 17th 2008 8:44PM]

what about compulsive engadget commenting..... ?

[ethana2 @ Mar 17th 2008 9:03PM]

i has it

[applefreak @ Mar 17th 2008 9:05PM]

i has it more that you.... !!!!

[ethana2 @ Mar 17th 2008 9:11PM]

Well, perhaps. Don't forget slashdot, phoronix, ars technica, ubuntu forums and all those other places out there though.

[ethana2 @ Mar 17th 2008 9:14PM]

Actually, google says I win by a solid 45%.

But congrats on your prolific internet usage. ^_^

[Zorque @ Mar 17th 2008 9:19PM]

Prolific and moronic are two different things.

[aardvark sandwich @ Mar 17th 2008 8:44PM]

This has been talked about since at LEAST 1999.

[Aguiluz @ Mar 17th 2008 8:48PM]

"Recognize internet addiction as a mental disorder."

Wow... Now that's what I call "overkill." I mean, when you put Bill Gates in a mental institution I can say that you won. But now, en-eh... You're overreacting.

[ethana2 @ Mar 17th 2008 9:02PM]

There's more than one reason they don't release windows' source code.

[Zorque @ Mar 17th 2008 9:20PM]

What are you two going on about? What does this have to do with Windows or Bill Gates in the slightest? WHAT THE HELL PEOPLE

[Brian @ Mar 18th 2008 1:06PM]

I love this site!

[Daniel @ Mar 17th 2008 9:03PM]

i think it is a disorder. i just wonder what the cure would be. i know i need to get rhab for my adult video watching on the net. i try so hard not to look but can stop. back on topic ill sign up for a study and rake any pills that might get me off the computer and get me outside.

[Mike S. @ Mar 17th 2008 9:05PM]

I'm willing to bet a large chunk of people they'd classify as obsessive in this sense fit Aspergers Syndrome symptoms (Known a few hardcore gamers that were tested for it).

I guess you gotta make that Psych degree do something, making up new illnesses pretty much takes the cake in that respect.

[Chicksta @ Mar 17th 2008 9:10PM]

I'm not sure; one of my sons has Asperger's, and while he can be engrossed in things, he's not 'compulsive' like people I've known/dated w/OCD (and this seems way more like them). I guess it also boils down to 'why' they do it; boredom, paranoia of missing something, habit, etc...

[John @ Mar 17th 2008 9:07PM]

Obsessive doubleposting!

[John @ Mar 17th 2008 9:07PM]

Obsessive doubleposting!

[Nick Ritch @ Mar 17th 2008 9:09PM]

My Name is Nick and I am a textaholic.
When do the meetings start?

[bob @ Mar 18th 2008 1:04AM]

Just text

"txtaholic"

to 31415

*small print

[Jesus Valadez @ Mar 17th 2008 9:11PM]

Eh, I'm addicted to the interwebs, so what? :p