The idea of video games being addictive sounds like a joke, but as a gamer, your humble contributor can tell you that it is very real, and easy to fall into. I sit down to work every morning and all I want to do is load up the PS4 and start trying to beat that boss. Sarah Fadian recounts her husband’s harrowing addiction in today’s feature, I Am Married to a Video Game Addict:
almost immediately after our honeymoon, I encountered a man who was constantly and compulsively connected to his Xbox or computer. My requests for him to accompany me to bed were ignored as he played through the night, and I was crushed as my excitement at finally living with my soul mate was replaced by loneliness, confusion and isolation.
Sarah compares her frustration to the “same circle of shame and madness as someone married to an alcoholic”, which is accurate because her life has been affected in many of the same ways. Studies show one in thirteen American adults battle alcoholism, a number so overwhelming, other unconventional addictions are perhaps not sufficiently noticed. With this in mind we ask:
