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Gambling, Gaming & Technology Use Community of Interest

The Gambling, Gaming & Technology Use Community of Interest brings together addiction and mental health service providers, researchers and subject matter experts in the fields of gambling, technology/Internet use and video gaming to collaborate and share knowledge on emerging trends and clinical best practices.

CNN just posted on a study linking ADHD with digital media use - a risk factor we identify in our own evidence-based resources.

After analyzing the self-reported symptoms and digital media survey responses, the researchers found that each additional high-frequency engagement in a digital media activity was associated with higher odds of having ADHD symptoms at each follow-up point.
 
However, the study, which was published in the medical journal JAMA, sheds light on how more research is needed to determine whether symptoms of ADHD, are possibly caused by digital media use.
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Thank you for sharing! I am happy to see this research being done. My son, in full blown crisis with video gaming addiction was diagnosed with ADHD. He was 19 years old at the time. He had been tested when he was younger and no signs of ADHD were found. Within six months of full detox of gaming, two and a half years later, the ADHD symptoms were gone, as well as his facial tics. We definitely need to see more studies and results moving forward. 

Great article, Howie. And thanks for shedding light on your personal experiences, Elaine. It's interesting because most of the theories I've heard concerning the link between ADHD and digital media use focus on how the symptoms of ADHD (e.g., inattentiveness, impulsivity, etc.) put a person at risk for developing problematic technology use as an unhealthy way of coping with/expressing these symptoms. However, in your son's case, it appears that his video gaming preceded his ADHD symptoms. I'm wondering if there are bidirectional influences involved. Hopefully, more research will be conducted focusing on causality.

In the interim, raising awareness about the links between problematic technology use and ADHD (as well as other types of co-occurring mental health issues) is very important, and can help inform prevention efforts.

Elaine Uskoski posted:

Thank you for sharing! I am happy to see this research being done. My son, in full blown crisis with video gaming addiction was diagnosed with ADHD. He was 19 years old at the time. He had been tested when he was younger and no signs of ADHD were found. Within six months of full detox of gaming, two and a half years later, the ADHD symptoms were gone, as well as his facial tics. We definitely need to see more studies and results moving forward. 

Hi Elaine; I have a 21 year old son with ADHD since he was young, and am interested in how you did full detox on gaming, if you would be able to share this ? I am fully prepared to believe the gaming may have made the ADHD worse, so do you think the lack of symptoms could be directly related now ? My son is thinking he does not have a problem, how did you diagnose and treat your son ? Thank you.

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