Internet and Nicotine Addiction: My Own Addiction

I have a relative who is a computer addict. He does not want help and his addiction is getting worse. Do you know of an organization that can help? In addition, I have another relative addicted to nicotine. She does not want help either, inspite of the fact, that she knows the harmful effects of cigarettes, since she is a nurse. Today, I learned that my relative who was addicted to cigarettes quit turkey, 6 months ago just after after she had a mild stroke. I hope she will not touch cigarettes again until she say goodbye to this world.

Image Credit: techaddiction.ca.com

My wife's nephew has been suffering from computer addiction since he was in college (15 years ago). Let us call him Jim (not his real name). The irony and sad fact is that computer science was his major. Because of this disorder, it took him six years to graduate for a four year course with the constant nagging of his Dad. After graduation, his Dad literally forced him to take a job. He stayed only four weeks in this job. He was either fired or he quit. His dad has a relative who needed a programmer. Jim worked there for six months. For reasons unknown he quit this second job without telling anyone. Today he is jobless.

Today, Jim lives alone in the ancestral home of the family here in US. Lucky for him, he has an older brother who is single that supports him. He has no friends and goes out of the house once week to buy his groceries. I talked to his brother last month and inquired about Jim. He is getting worse and is not communicative. The family wanted to commit him to a public mental hospital, but he would not go of his own free will. The family has no financial resources to get private medical help, because he has no insurance, nor is he covered with his brother's insurance. According to his brother, he seemed to be physically healthy, but not communicating at all. When you talk to Jim, he just gives you a blank stare according to his older brother. Jim's current status is as follows:

He has no friends, zero social interaction, is sometimes moody and just uses his computer almost all day and night except when he eats or does his bodily needs. He does not want help and will not talk to his family. Both Jim's father and mother are dead. He has a sister nearby, but he ignores her. Sometimes he complains to his brother that he has a hard time sleeping. I believe the above symptoms are typical of a computer addict.

What is computer addiction? According to Wikipedia, "Computer addiction is a loosely used term for the excessive use of computers to the extent that it interferes with daily life. Excessive use may explain problems in social interaction, mood, personality, work ethic, relationships, thought processes, or sleep deprivation. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders does not include a diagnosis for such a disorder".

I feel sorry for the brother, but there is nothing my wife and I can do. Do you know of an organization that can help Jim, considering the family financial situation?

I have another relative who is addicted to cigarettes. She has tried several times to quit, but her nicotine addiction was just too powerful to overcome.

My cousin-in-law, Bella (not her real name) is a retired public health and visiting nurse. She has practiced her profession for more than 25 years here in the US and knows the health hazard of cigarettes. In her career as a public health nurse, she had visited several patients in their homes who are dying of lung cancer due to smoking. But she cannot quit smoking, or may be just cannot stop the habit.

Her husband, Ben (not his real name) had tried every incentive to help her quit smoking. Ben even enrolled her to a smoking cessation clinic offered by his employer in the mid 1990s. Bella quit for six weeks after the clinic, but went back to smoking. She has tried quitting twice, but the power of nicotine addiction is just too hard to break. Ben tried to bribe her, a vacation to Aruba, Spain and Cancun, and bought her a grand piano, but she is still smoking today. Ben tried to nag her, but it did not work also. Ben finally gave up nagging her. As a result of smoking, she acts much much older than her chronological age. Bella is only 70 years old but is physically weaker than my 88-year-old first cousin in the Philippines.

Based on statistics, she will be lucky, if she survives until she reached 80 years old. Ben on the other hand does not smoke. Bella needs a wheelchair when they travel to the Philippines annually during their snowbird sojourn. Ben told me that Bella is happy when she smokes, so he stopped nagging her to quit. Ben just makes sure that he does not breathe second hand smoke, by not allowing Bella to smoke inside their house. Bella started smoking in the mid 1980s while she was in nursing school. She told Ben, she will not quit smoking even if she gets emphysema or lung cancer.

The "Power of Nicotine" addiction is indeed hard to fight. It overpowers and clouds the reasoning of an intelligent women who knows the hazard of cigarette smoking. If Bella dies of lung cancer, will Ben have the right to sue the tobacco companies for selling a hazardous and dangerous product? Any lawyers reading this article?

Do you know of a relative or friend addicted to cigarettes? Did your friend or relative survive beyond 80 years or older?

I think I am also partially addicted to computers and Television. I read my Facebook account about 1 hour in the morning, update my blogs, read hubs , read news in the Internet, watch TV episodes in my PC another 2 hours to 3 hours. By the time I finished it is almost lunch time. In between this, I take care of the personal needs of my wife who has Parkinson Disease. In the afternoon, I play computer games and slot machines in my PC. In the evening I watched another 2 to 3 hours of TV. The only reason why I think I am not officially an addict to the computer and TV is the fact that these activities do not really interfere in my daily activities for survival. Taking care of my wife, cooking and shopping still are priorities in my activities. Cleaning the house is not one of my duties as of last month. Our kids hired two professional cleaning ladies who comes to the house twice a month. Thank you Kids for this gift!.

Speaking of professionals ( from the Heavenly Help Cleaning Crew) cleaning my house, makes me feel like a millionaire that I do not have to do this task. This lifestyle reminds me of our annual four months sojourn in the Philippines where we have a cook, a driver, two gardeners, a housekeeper/laundry lady and a caretaker for my wife.

Internet addiction treatment and self-help

Written for students, the information on signs and symptoms, self-help, and helping a friend can also be useful to adults. (University of Texas at Dallas Counseling Center)

Balancing your Internet Use – Provides a practical list of tips to cut down on excess Internet use and build real live relationships. (UCSF Employee Assistance)

Re-Start Internet Addiction Recovery Program – Treatment for excessive use of Internet, gaming, texting, and video games. (Re-Start Internet Addiction Recovery Program)

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous – Find out how to find a 12-step program for sexual addictions; also provides a list of other similar 12 step groups. (Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous)