Hi Dr Laura,

Technology almost ruined my 14-yr-old son's life but I think we have intervened in time but not without heavy consequences. We are just now helping him put his life back together. He was addicted to his video games. He just couldn't handle school or much of anything else anymore. He lost all ability to cope with even the little things.

The virtual world was very responsive to him. He could be in control. In the real world, things became painfully slow and boring. He lost interest in most everything. We were watching our smart, intuitive and optimistic boy become withdrawn, socially inept, depressed, angry and anxious. We took his games away and have gone through a very difficult 8 weeks of withdrawal...it was just like coming off a drug.

There is very little information on how you "detox" from something like this. I'm blown away at how this effected our family life. There is story after story of kids who have extreme testimonies of gaming effects. My son is slowly coming back to life, he's drawing and creating again. We are trying to help him fill the void by keeping him as busy as possible.

There is hope but parents MUST be strong enough to set the boundaries and protect their kids and families from being eaten alive by technology.




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