Move over AA & Bill Wilson, obsessed Hollywood gossip junkies are the latest 12-Step newbies
By Gayl Murphy
HOLLYWOOD, CA (Hollywood Today) 3/26/08 – An editorial in the current issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry brings up yet again, the idea that using the internet too much could very well be the latest addiction to hit The Boulevard of Broken Dreams since alcohol, gambling, narcotics, sex and celebrity flameout.
In the US accurate estimates of internet abuse are lacking unlike in So. Korea for example, where internet cafes are used and where the average high school kid plays online games 23 hours a week with more than 210,000 kids requiring treatment for excessive gaming and Internet usage in 2006.
By comparison, stateside games and virtual sex are downloaded from the home and most attempts to measure the effects of internet abuse are clouded by shame, denial, and minimization.
In a town like Hollywood however, where gossip fuels careers and dealmakers sometimes appear more like cyborgs then humans, as they dash from meeting to meeting, decked out in the latest designer headsets and crackberrys- this could either be very bad intel…or not. Are we becoming slaves to our passions?
The reality is, this latest bit of Addiction News only adds to our collective Tinseltown guilt, which is something we revel in – but socially it does offer entry to a whole other 12-Step pool of celebs and wannabes to bitch to, trade headshots and network with.
As with all full-fledged addictions, a Hollywood internet habit doesn’t come without symptoms either writes Dr. Jerald Block, the articles author and a shrink at Oregon Health and Science University.
These hardcore symptoms he describes include, but are not restricted to; social isolation, arguments, anger, lying, neglecting basic needs like sleeping and eating, anger and depression – especially when not able to access a computer and an increasing need to upgrade your stuff. (Jeez, that’s sounds like most towns!)
And Doc Block says these symptoms also apply text messaging and various forms of other manifestations, even though not directly tied to the internet.
And the worst news of all according to the good doctor is – it doesn’t’ matter if you’re an interested fan, fledging startlet, flavor of the month, longtime board member or major player…if you can’t stop emailing, texting, gaming or surfing for your fantasy…you’re screwed. Powerless. Step One. And, those really off the deep end, I mean we’re talking one way ticket to rehab, they can’t account for gaps in time (think two hours lost on MySpace, YouTube or the classic movie “The Lost Weekend.” Can you say, hi my name is and I’m an internet junkie?
The point is, Doc Block argues that addiction to the internet is a really a mental illness and that it should be given official status, although we at Hollywood Today are hard pressed to figure out why. Could it be that the kind doctor owns a patent on technology that restricts internet access? Perhaps. But we say, what the heck! Let’s take a meeting first, and get our ISP, RSS and BAMF on the line.
18 responses so far ↓
1 Kuehnle // Apr 29, 2009 at 4:15 am
I agree with you 99% but wonder if you have really looked at the whole picture. DOn’t mean to be critical just food for thought.
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