A man sought out counseling for alcoholism, only to be told he was also suffering from another kind of addiction: Google Glass.
A 31-year-old serviceman of the U.S. Navy checked himself into Substance Abuse and Recovery Programme to get himself some help due to alcohol abuse. The process of sobriety requires no drinking, smoking, or taking drugs for 35 days. It also means that the patient doesn't have any access to electronic devices.
It was during his admission that they noticed something peculiar with the navy serviceman: he kept tapping on his temples, the same thing one does when using Google Glass, a wearable from Google that allows Internet access, among other things.
The serviceman was later told to be addicted to Google Glass, and he's showing symptoms that are often linked to withdrawal such as irritability, cravings, and involuntary movements like temple tapping. In fact, these symptoms are so significant that doctors aren't sure if this is the reason why he developed alcohol abuse when he can no longer have access to the device.
But how did he become addicted to it? About a few months before he checked himself, he was provided with the device in order to speed up his work and make him more efficient. In turn, he wore the device for more than 15 hours a day, every day.
Slowly he built an addiction, feeling irritable when he can't wear the device and even dreaming about it.
His case currently appears in a journal called Addictive Behaviours written by Dr. Andrew Doan. In the study, the doctor stressed that Internet addiction is real for some people and that very soon there will be enough research and treatment for it.
Until today, Internet addiction is not recognized as an official mental disorder under the newly revised and updated Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Rather, it is considered as a symptom of other underlying problems or mental disorders including depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder.