“Healing Your Child’s Gaming Addiction”

“10% of Our Children Have This Behavioral Challenge”

There is a new addictive behavior that has taken over our teenagers and young people. They become withdrawn, separate themselves from everyone, they quit all their social activities and they become secretive. And in some instances, they stop taking showers and even stop doing their homework. What’s this new addictive behavior “Gaming”. This addictive behavior afflicts 8 to 10 percent of young people in the US.

And some teenagers and young adults will not put away their smartphone no matter what… even if they are told to do so. And this causes lots of problems at home.

What Can Be Done to Heal This Challenge?

1 - Find Help - There are some psychiatrists that specialize in helping teenagers whit this addiction and behavior. You can find them in your are and make an appointment for your loved one.

2 - Put Away the Gadgets. Many people are doing just that and they are moving to simpler ways of living. Instead of playing games online they have to work in the garden, learn to play piano, or some other musical instrument or other endeavors such as playing basketball, or football, or baseball, or joining the track team. Of course, some kids need their computers to do their homework on now but their parents limit how long they can be on their computer.

3 - Get Them Outdoors. Lots of young people don’t know what to do outdoors anymore. Get them involved in Scouts, or FFA, or 4H, or some other activity. Or take the time to take them with you outdoors. Nature is healing for the mind, so make sure to get them outside camping, swimming, trail riding, skating, hiking, skiing, and so many other activities.

4 - Have Them Join Clubs. It seems that these teenagers are cocooning themselves away from everyone and that is not good. It’s important to push them a bit to join clubs and get out and have fun with other kids. I know for sure that my parents would not let me sit around doing nothing or watching TV we had to get up and do something constructive. And my dad always took us out to the field to work with him if we had a day off… that way we we were out in nature and we were helping our parents.

5 - Teach them Meditation. I know 3, 4, and 5-year-old children who meditate daily twice a way. And they do it on their own and have made it a part of their daily routine. If did not come easy but their parents were people who practiced meditation and they wanted their children to meditate and so they taught their children. And now their children will not go a day without daily meditation. Meditation calms the mind so they have less interest in gaming and the internet. So meditation is another answer to this challenge.

6 - Get Them Involved in Helping Others. It’s never too early to have a child or young adult learn to help others. Have them work in a soup kitchen, work in a community garden, or go to your church and cut the grass, or go to a home to the elderly and just talk to some of the older people who need someone to talk to. A

7 - Start Them on Their Spiritual Path. And it’s never too early to teach them some of the values of your spiritual path. This is very important and will help them all their life. And when they have difficult choices they will come back to what they have learned from their spiritual practice and it will save them from harm and lots of sadness.

All Will Be Well

Many Blessings to Everyone!

Dr. Paul Haider