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For those who don’t know, the WHO declared compulsively playing video games a mental health problem. If that is the case with your child, it will be best to introduce them to alternatives like board games, physical sports, or even hanging out with friends.
One of the highly common problems that plague our youth today is video gaming addiction. There is a substantial rise in parents who seek help from professionals for their children because they spend a lot of time on video games. Because of the severity of this problem, the WHO declared it a mental condition. It applies to people who play video games excessively in such a way that it considerably impairs their life in the personal, social, educational, occupational, and many other aspects for a minimum of twelve months. So, below are the answers to all your concerns and questions.
When should you be concerned about this problem?
Many children, and even adults, play video games for recreational purposes. Considering these things, when should a parent be concerned? If your kid shows any of these signs mentioned below, it is time to tackle the problem. Here are the symptoms.
- Your kid is constantly preoccupied with games, and it almost looks like the child’s life revolves around it. The child is always either playing a game or talking about it. All in all, it always feels like games are the only motivating source in their life.
- The social interaction of the child has significantly reduced. It has declined to such an extent that they don’t even feel like stepping out of the house and meeting their friends.
- Your kid’s grades are rapidly declining. They also refuse to do their homework, and they don’t even seem to be bothered about academic things.
- If you stop them from playing video games or delete them, they have a mental breakdown, a burst of anger, or they become irritable to an alarming extent.
- Your kid always lies about the time they spend playing the games. In some cases, they might also steal money to play video games.
Why should you be concerned about this problem?
If you see these problems in your child’s life, it is time to be concerned.
Reduced sleep
Most times, kids play many video games, especially during the nighttime, because nobody is awake to disturb them. It results in them being deprived of sleep, which is highly harmful because their minds are supposed to develop at this age. When they also have to go to school the next day, it also affects their attention span and learning. The lack of sleep causes them to have headaches and feel tired throughout the entire day.
Reduced physical exercise
Kids who play a lot of video games often don’t exercise much. All of these things also aid in secondary physical problems like obesity. Furthermore, exercising is essential for developing brains.
Other health problems
Using the mouse and the controller more than usual can also lead to carpal tunnel syndrome. Many other complaints include dry eyes, headaches, and backaches. In some severe problems, gamers also neglect their hygiene.
Socially isolating themselves
When children play a lot of video games, their interaction with family members also reduces significantly. They are alone most of the time, which deprives them of developing so many social skills that they could learn by just being with their friends. Although many online gamers are social, these children’s skills can learn from these platforms are highly limited because there is no real-life interaction here.
No interest in reading or other educational activities
When a kid plays a lot of video games, he doesn’t seem to be much interested in other hobbies that develop a child’s intellect. Reading books and engaging in creative activities are some of the skills that they will need in the future.
Avoiding people
Many children undergo a lot of stress in their lives. For them, the gaming world is more of an escape from reality. It helps them to avoid facing the problems and finding its solution. It is a highly essential skill that children should develop while they are young.
As a parent, what to do about these things?
Communicate with your kid
Communicating with them about these problems can be the best thing to do. You should explain to your children why you are worried about them and how to help them with it.
Maintain consistent boundaries
The video game timing should be limited to one hour per day, according to many famous institutions. The best thing to do here is to stay firm with the time limit and balance the consequences for exceeding the gaming time limit.
How to make sure that your child is safe on the Internet?
Avosmart is an excellent parental control tool that will help you ensure the online safety of your child. With Avosmart, you can block websites and apps that can be quite harmful to your children. Also, you can block YouTube channels that can prove to be harmful to your children. It provides you insights into their online activities. You can also be aware of their location with the help of Avosmart.