The arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic has forced people to live most of their lives, including work, entertainment, and personal interactions, online. All this screen time has taken a toll, as more people of all ages are reporting symptoms of "Cyber sickness". Cyber sickness was a phenomenon before the pandemic, but had been studied mostly in the context of up-and-coming virtual reality games. Cyber sickness is a form of motion sickness, characterized by nausea, disorientation, and oculomotor disturbances, according to a study of the problem by Kay Stanley and colleagues, published in 2020 in the International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction. A recent article in National Geographic explains how cyber sickness is seasickness in reverse. Instead of your body moving while your perception thinks you should be still, such as the experience of being on a boat while looking at a fixed horizon. In a virtual world your body is still, but your senses are perceiving motion, whether through video games, Zoom meetings, or just endless scrolling. Fortunately, the dizziness and discomfort of too much screen time can be eased by some of the same strategies that work on other types of motion sickness. For example, the Sea-Band wristband is designed to relieve the symptoms of motion and travel sickness naturally through the use of acupressure. Specifically, the Sea-Bands include studs sewn inside that put gentle, steady pressure on the P6 (Nei-Kuan) acupressure point. Studies have shown that applying pressure to this point relieves the nausea associated with motion sickness. "Because the bands do not use drugs, they do not cause any of the side effects associated with anti-nausea drugs and can be worn on each wrist whenever you feel nauseous," according to the company website. Sea-Band wristbands can be used by anyone, adults or children, and usually have an effect on symptoms within five minutes of putting one on, according to the company. Sea-Bands are latex-free, washable, and reusable, and they can be used in combination with other anti-nausea medications. Sea-Bands can help relieve not only the nausea and dizziness associated with motion sickness and cyber sickness, but also post-surgery nausea, nausea associated with chemotherapy, and nausea associated with pregnancy. And Sea-Band products are HSA- and FSA-approved, so they are covered by many health insurance plans.
4 Types Of Internet Addiction
Internet addiction is a broad term that covers a range of behaviors and impulse-control problems involving internet, personal computer, and mobile technology. While there is yet no officially accepted criteria to diagnose an internet addiction, researchers have identified 5 subcategories of specific types of computer and internet addictions.
Net Compulsions
Net compulsions concern interactive activities online that can be extremely harmful, such as online gambling, trading stocks, online auctions (such as eBay), and compulsive online shopping. These habits can have a detrimental impact on one’s financial stability and disrupt job-related duties. Spending or losing excessive amounts of money can also cause stress in one’s relationships. With instant and easy access to online casinos and stores, it is easy for those who are already susceptible to a gambling or spending addiction to get hooked online.
Cyber (Online) Relationship Addiction
Cyber or online relationship addicts are deeply involved with finding and maintaining relationships online, often forgetting and neglecting real-life family and friends. Typically online relationships are formed in chat rooms or different social networking sites but can occur anywhere one can interact with people online. Often people who pursue online relationships do so while concealing their real identity and appearance; this modern phenomena led to the creation of the term “catfish.”
After being consumed by an online social life and persona, a person may be left with limited social skills and unrealistic expectations concerning in-person interactions. Many times this leads to an inability to make real-world connections, in turn making the individual more dependent on their cyber relationships. Counseling or therapy is typically required to treat this addiction and ensure lasting behavioral changes.
Compulsive Information Seeking
The internet provides users with a wealth of data and knowledge. For some, the opportunity to find information so easily has turned into an uncontrollable urge to gather and organize data. In some cases information-seeking is a manifestation of pre-existing, obsessive-compulsive tendencies. Compulsive information-seeking can also reduce work productivity and potentially lead to job termination. Depending on the severity of the addiction, treatment options can range from different therapy modalities — which target changing compulsive behavior and developing coping strategies — to medication.
Computer Or Gaming Addiction
Computer addiction, sometimes referred to as computer gaming addiction, involves online and offline activities that can be done with a computer. As computers became more widely available, games such as Solitaire, Tetris, and Minesweeper were programed into their software. Researchers quickly found that obsessive computer game playing was becoming a problem in certain settings. Office employees would spend excessive amounts of time playing these games, causing a notable decrease in productivity. Not only are these classic games still available today but so are thousands of new ones, and the condition of computer gaming addiction is as prevalent and harmful as ever.
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