Excessive Use of Internet Can Create Psychotic Disorder
By Vineet at November 23, 2012 | 1:10 pm | Print
The Internet is a free and liberal space that many individuals use on a daily basis and a growing part of a normal social life.
But while technologies such as Facebook have numerous advantages, some patients are harmed by these social networking sites, which can attract those who are lonely or vulnerable in their day-to-day lives or act as a platform for cyber-bullying and other predatory behavior.
Here is a new research that shows some light on how excessive use of internet can create psychotic disorder.
Research Report:
The researcher presented three in-depth case studies linking psychotic episodes to Internet communications from his own practice.
According to Dr. Nitzan, patients shared some crucial characteristics, including loneliness or vulnerability due to the loss of or separation from a loved one, relative inexperience with technology, and no prior history of psychosis or substance abuse.
In each case, a connection was found between the gradual development and exacerbation of psychotic symptoms, including delusions, anxiety, confusion, and intensified use of computer communications.
All three of Dr. Nitzan’s patients sought refuge from a lonely situation and found solace in intense virtual relationships.
Although these relationships were positive at first, they eventually led to feelings of hurt, betrayal, and invasion of privacy, reports Dr. Nitzan.
“All of the patients developed psychotic symptoms related to the situation, including delusions regarding the person behind the screen and their connection through the computer,” he says.
Two patients began to feel vulnerable as a result of sharing private information, and one even experienced tactile hallucinations, believing that the person beyond the screen was physically touching her.
Some of the problematic features of the Internet relate to issues of geographical and spatial distortion, the absence of non-verbal cues, and the tendency to idealize the person with whom someone is communicating, becoming intimate without ever meeting face-to-face.
All of these factors can contribute to a patient’s break with reality, and the development of a psychotic state.
Conclusion: So think twice before addicted to internet. It might harm you in long run.
