cormack12
Gold Member
Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-59744569
For Stephen and Louise, life with their 16-year-old son Alex can be tough.
Alex's compulsive desire to play first-person shooters like Counter-Strike late into the night, has caused years of anguish for the family. He has also recently been diagnosed with autism.
He has been a patient at the NHS's specialist clinic for treatment of addiction to video games, since earlier this year.
The National Centre for Gaming Disorders is the only treatment facility of its kind in the UK.
The (mostly teenage) patients' compulsion to play is so extreme that it often leads to violent outbursts and confrontations with parents or carers. If access to games consoles or computers is denied, many of the people treated at the clinic have threatened to commit suicide. Their social interactions are almost always restricted to online or gaming activities.
Gaming Disorder is a controversial condition defined by the World Health Organization by three characteristics:
"We know that gaming disorder is quite a rare condition. The symptoms can be really quite severe, which has surprised us," she says.
"We start treatment at 13. We've had a few 12-year-olds who've been referred, we've also heard from parents of people as young as eight, but we haven't been able to see them. The age of people being referred goes right up to the 60s."
It's the only NHS clinic in the UK treating this condition, and its patients are spread out across England and Wales - often treated via video chat. Dr Lockwood thinks there are some advantages to video therapy sessions: "It enables us to engage with people who might be quite reluctant to come to the clinic, because their motivation for engagement and treatment can be quite low."
For Stephen and Louise, life with their 16-year-old son Alex can be tough.
Alex's compulsive desire to play first-person shooters like Counter-Strike late into the night, has caused years of anguish for the family. He has also recently been diagnosed with autism.
He has been a patient at the NHS's specialist clinic for treatment of addiction to video games, since earlier this year.
The National Centre for Gaming Disorders is the only treatment facility of its kind in the UK.
Controversial condition
BBC News has gained exclusive access to the clinic, which opened its doors nearly two years ago.The (mostly teenage) patients' compulsion to play is so extreme that it often leads to violent outbursts and confrontations with parents or carers. If access to games consoles or computers is denied, many of the people treated at the clinic have threatened to commit suicide. Their social interactions are almost always restricted to online or gaming activities.
Gaming Disorder is a controversial condition defined by the World Health Organization by three characteristics:
- impaired control when gaming
- prioritising gaming over other interests
- escalation of gaming despite negative consequences
"We know that gaming disorder is quite a rare condition. The symptoms can be really quite severe, which has surprised us," she says.
"We start treatment at 13. We've had a few 12-year-olds who've been referred, we've also heard from parents of people as young as eight, but we haven't been able to see them. The age of people being referred goes right up to the 60s."
It's the only NHS clinic in the UK treating this condition, and its patients are spread out across England and Wales - often treated via video chat. Dr Lockwood thinks there are some advantages to video therapy sessions: "It enables us to engage with people who might be quite reluctant to come to the clinic, because their motivation for engagement and treatment can be quite low."
